Guptkashi temple Uttrakhand

Guptakashi Temple is located at an elevation of 1,319 metres (4,327 ft) , in Garhwal region of Rudraprayag district in Uttrakhand. It is also known as Vishwanath Temple dedicated to the Lord Shiva, and this temple is similar to the one in Varanasi (Kashi). The other well known temple here is dedicated to Ardhanareshvara, a half man half woman form of Shiva and Parvati. The name Guptakashi has legendary significance linked to the Pandavas. Its religious importance is considered next to that of Varanasi, the most pious of all Hindu pilgrimage places.

The temple town is located on the way to the Kedarnath. It has the scenic backdrop of the snow-covered peaks and enjoys a salubrious weather throughout the year

Ganga & Yamuna streams

Cleansing before Darshan

Ardhnarishwar Temple

Nandi ji

Legend

 Legend holds that after the Kurukshetra war of the Mahabharata, the Pandavas wished to atone for their sins of fratricide committed by them during the war by seeking pardon from Shiva and also pray for his blessings before attaining salvation. But Shiva was not willing to meet them since he was annoyed with them for the unjust events of the war. He, therefore, avoided meeting them at Kashi and went incognito as the bull Nandi to Guptakashi in Uttarakhand. But Pandavas pursued him to Guptakashi and recognized him in the disguised form of Nandi. When Bhima, the second Pandava brother tried to hold the bull by its tail and hind legs, Nandi vanished from Guptakashi, into the ground (into a cave for hiding), but reappeared later as Shiva in five different forms namely, hump at Kedarnath, face at Rudranath, arms at Tungnath, navel and stomach at Madhyamaheshwar and the locks at Kalpeshwar. The vanishing act of Shiva gave the name Guptakashi (hidden Kashi) to this place on the bank of the Mandakini River.

Mythology also states that Shiva proposed to Parvati at Guptakashi before they got married in the small Triyuginarayan village at the confluence of Mandakini and Sone-Ganga rivers.

Badrinath Temple Uttrakhand

Badrinath or Badrinarayan Temple is a  temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu and is situated in the town of Badrinath in Uttarakhand The temple  form one of the four Char Dhams. It is open for six months every year (between the end of April and the beginning of November), because of extreme weather conditions in this region. The temple is located in Garhwal hills along the banks of Alaknanda River at a height of 10,279 ft above the mean sea level.

The image of the presiding deity in the temple is a 1 m  tall, black stone statue of Vishnu in the form of Badrinarayan. The statue is considered by many Hindus to be one of eight swayam vyakta kshetras, or self-manifested statues of Vishnu.

The  moorti  of Badrinarayan,  is housed in a gold canopy under a Badri Tree. The sanctum also houses images of the god of wealth—Kubera, sage Narada, Uddhava, Nar and Narayan.  Other moortis in this temple include that of Lakshmi , Garuda  and Navadurga, the manifestation of Durga in nine different forms.  The conical-shaped roof of the sanctum, the garbhagriha, is covered with a gold gilt roof.

The Tapt Kund, a group of hot sulphur springs just below the temple, are considered to be medicinal; many pilgrims consider it a requirement to bathe in the springs before visiting the temple.  The two water ponds in the temple are called Narad Kund and Surya Kund.

History

 According to some accounts, the temple was a Buddhist shrine till the 8th century and Adi Shankara converted it to a Hindu temple.^[
 It is believed that Shankaracharya  resided in the place for six years from ad 814 to 820. He resided six months in Badrinath and the rest of the year in Kedarnath. He discovered the image of Badrinath in the Alaknanda River and enshrined it in a cave near the Tapt Kund hot springs.

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Kedar nath Temple Uttrakhand

Kedar nath Temple Uttrakhand

 is a famous Shiva temple located in the Garhwal range near  Mandakini river in Kedarnath, Uttarakhand .  The temple is open only between the end of  May to  November. During the winters, the deities  from Kedarnath temple are brought to Ukhimath and worshipped there for six months. Lord Shiva is worshipped as Kedarnath, the 'Lord of Kedar Khand'.

The temple was built by Pandavas and revived by Adi Sankaracharyaand is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, the holiest Hindu shrines of Shiva. Pandavas were supposed to have pleased Shiva by doing penance in Kedarnath. The temple is one of the four major sites in India's Chota Char Dham pilgrimage of Northern Himalayas. 

The temple is situated at an height of 3,583 m (11,755 ft), 223 km from Rishikesh, on the shores of Mandakini river, a tributary of Ganga. The  temple is believed to have been constructed in the 8th century CE, when Adi Shankara visited. The present structure is on a site adjacent to where Pandavas are believed to have built the temple. It has one Garbhagriha and a Mandapa,  surrounded by snow clad mountain and glaciers. In front of the temple, directly opposite to the inner shrine, is a Nandi statue carved out of rock.

History

According to History, during the Mahabharatha War, the Pandavas killed their relatives. To absolve themselves of this sin, the Pandavas undertook a pilgrimage. But Lord Vishweshwara was away in Kailasa in the Himalayas. On learning this, the Pandavas left Kashi. They reached the Himalayas via Haridwar. They saw Lord Shankara from a distance. But Lord Shankara hid from them. Then Dharmaraj said: "Oh, Lord, You have hidden yourself from our sight because we have sinned. But, we will seek You out somehow. Only after we take your Darshan would our sins be washed away. This place, where You have hidden Yourself will be known as Guptakashi and become a famous shrine."

From Guptakashi (Rudraprayag), the Pandavas went ahead till they reached Gaurikund in the Himalayas valleys. They wandered there in search of Lord Shankara. While doing so Nakul and Sahadev found a buffalo which was unique to look at.

Then Bheema went after the buffalo with his mace. The buffalo was clever and Bheema could not catch him. But Bheema managed to hit the buffalo with his mace. The buffalo had its face hidden in a crevice-in the earth. Bheema started to pull it by its tail. In this tug-of war, the face of the buffalo went straight to Nepal, leaving its hind part in Kedar. The face is Doleshwar Mahadev in Sipadol, Bhaktapur, Nepal.

On this hind part of Mahesha, a JyotirLinga appeared and Lord Shankara appeared from this light. By getting a Darshan of Lord Shankar, the pandavas were absolved of their sins. The Lord told the Pandavas, "From now on, I will remain here as a triangular shaped JyotirLinga. By taking a Darshan of Kedarnath, devotees would attain piety". A triangular shaped rock is worshiped in Garbhagriha of the temple.

Bageshwori Temple Nepalgunj Nepal

Bageshwori Temple is one of the most important Hindu temples in Nepal, located in Nepalgunj. It is dedicated to goddess Bageshwori. The temple area also houses another famous temple- the temple of lord Shiva with mustache.

There are several other smaller temples inside the temple area including a temple of lord Buddha, statue of lord Ganesha, Shani temple and the temple of lord Hanuman. The Bageshwori pond that is situated within the temple area has the temple of lord Shiva with mustache stands at the center of it.

Guhyeshwari Temple Kathmandu Nepal

Guhyeshwari Temple is one of the holy temples in Kathmandu, Nepal. The temple is a Shakti Peetha located near  the world famous Pashupatinath Temple. King Pratap Malla built this temple in the 17th century.

The temple name originates from the Sanskrit words Guhya (Secret) and Ishwari (Goddess). It is believed that Sati Devi's corpse's parts fell in different region when Shiva took it and roamed around the world in sorrow. The temple marks the spot where her yoni fell; guhya means vagina and ishwari means goddess. The goddess is worshipped at the centre of the temple in a kalasha (water jar) that is covered with a layer of silver and gold. 

Shakti Peethas are shrines of the Mother Goddess. These are places that are believed to have enshrined with the presence of Shakti due to the falling of body parts of the corpse of Sati Devi, when Lord Shiva carried it and wandered in sorrow.

Ref : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guhyeshwari_Temple

Pashupati nath Temple Kathmandu (Nepal)

The Pashupatinath Temple  is one of the most famous and sacred Shiva temple  located on the banks of the Bagmati River in Kathmandu city of Nepal. Infact, this Hindu temple is a collection of temples, ashrams, images built over many centuries along the banks of the sacred Bagmati river.

The twelve Jyotirlinga (in India) are the body and the Jyotirlinga at Pashupatinath temple is the head over this body.

Legend surrounding the Temple Origin

Pashupatinath Temple is the oldest Hindu temple in Kathmandu. It is not known for certain when Pashupatinath Temple was founded, but its  existence dates back to 400 B.C. The temple has the sacred five mukhi Shiv linga . There are many legends associated with this temple. Some of them are narrated below:-

The Cow Legend : Lord Shiva once took the form of an antelope and sported unknown in the forest on Bagmati river's east bank. The gods later caught up with him, and grabbing him by the horn, forced him to resume his divine form. The broken horn was worshipped as a linga but overtime it was buried and lost. Centuries later an astonished herdsmen found one of his cows showering the earth with milk. Digging deep at the site, he discovered the divine linga of Pashupatinath.

Other beliefs

 One story goes, in that Shiva and Parvati came to the Kathmandu Valley and rested by the Bagmati while on a journey. Shiva was so impressed by its beauty and the surrounding forest that he and Parvati changed themselves into deers and walked into the forest. After a while the gods began to search for Shiva. Finally, they found him in the forest, but he refused to leave. Shiva announced that, since he had lived by the Bagmati in a deer's form, he would now be known as Pashupatinath, Lord of all animals. It is said that whoever came here and beheld the lingam that appeared there would not be reborn as an animal.

Kaiash Mansarovar yatra (contd)

(Please read my blog dt 31 May 2016 to maintain continuity)
some more tips for this Holy Yatra
Who can undertake this yatra

• Any healthy person upto age 70 years is eligible. Since you require chinese permit and visa,they insist that all indian citizens should be 70 yrs or below.
•  It is advisable that persons having IHD, Hypertension, COPD, Bronchial Asthma, Joint pains, Obesity etc Must consult their respective physicians before undertaking this yatra.
• Yatri having minor illness must carry their medicines required during yatra, since those medicines wont be available during yatra.

What to carry

• Your tour operator will give you a list of articles to be carried.
• A duffel bag, back pack, Warm jacket,water bottle is generally provided by tour operators. Check with your tour operator before leaving home and carry these things if not provided.
• Carry woolens, thermal inner wears, wind cheaters, Monkey cap, Woolen socks, cotton socks, Thermos flask small,Torch, digital camera, video camera,trekking shoes, biscuits, dry fruits, snacks etc
• Medicines you are taking plus Crocin, Cambiflam, Oraindazole, Augmentin, Ciprofloxacin, Band aid, crepe bandage, moove ointment, Sunscreen cream.
• If you are interested in pooja after dip in Mansarovar please carry all pooja samigri like Havan, camphor, match box, aggarwati, desighee dipped cotton vicks, sandal wood samidhas, small haven kund, Mug plastic for bath in mansarovar if unable to take dip.There is no Pandit ji there unless one happens to be in your group. Otherwise pooja has to be done by your self.

There is No temple at either mansarovar or Kailash. You are supposed to take Holy dip for your self, your family members and ancestors in Mansarovar. Water is not very cold if you take dip in afternoons. Avoid marshy place for dip, select rocky area.Soap is not to be used. When taking dip bring small pebbles in your hand and carry them as souveniers for pooja at home.

• Walk slowly and steadily during parikrama, dont isolate your self, preferably take pony during parikrama. Take rest in between, take warm water at frequent intervals during parikrama.
• You can have Kailash darshan all along your first day parikrama till Derphuk. At deraphuk, you will have BEST darshan and you are face to face with Mount Kailash , You will forget all your tiredness once you have majestic view of Mount Kailash here. Enroute keep observing various mountains and you will surely see images of Ganesha, shiv ling, Hanuman ji, Nandiji on these hills.Keep observing and enjoying...the ultimate pilgrimage.
• At Dera phuk, one can sit infront of imposing mount kailash, meditate and observe closely Mount Kailash, you may be able to have Darshan of lord of Lords LORD Shiva

  

  Golden Mount Kailash at Deraphuk

  
  

  

  Majestic Mansarovar with Mount Kailash in background
  

  
  

  

  Mount Kailash seen during ist day Parikrama
  

  
  

  

  Pehla Darshan Mount Kailash on road toMansarovar
  

  
  

  

  Ist Day Parikrama

  
  

  

  Mansarovar vast and beautiful

  
  

  

  Pooja after Holy Dip