Chardham Yatra - Part 6 (Gangotri Darshan)

Day 5 of our Yatra (23/05/2019) was an important day in many ways. Besides going for darshan of Gangotri (the origin of the holy river Ganga), it was also the day that the election results of the Lok Sabha was to be declared. We were excited about both and were ready by 5.30 a.m. in the morning. After morning coffee & other rituals, we left towards Gangotri while it was still dark. We were not the only ones on the road so early as we saw other vehicles too moving in the same direction.

We played nice devotional songs available on the phone and enjoyed the blissful morning peace. By 6 a.m., the sky was growing brighter heralding the arrival of another glorious day. On the way we halted at a place called Gangnani which is famous for its thermal water springs called Rishi kund. Few of us decided to have a dip here as the pond was very clean and the water inviting. As it was still early, it was not much crowded. We finished our bath and had tea at a local shop and were on our way soon.

On the way, we halted for breakfast. Ranveer had made nice Semia (Vermicelli) upma with white chutney which we eat with relish at a local eatery. After breakfast and another round of tea, we cleaned our plates in the natural water that was flowing down the mountain. The water was very cold and fresh. We then proceeded towards Harshil, a small town on the way. Outside Harshil, we saw an army unit which was posted outside their camp distributing freshly made Moong dal ka halwa as prasad to the pilgrims. We spoke to them for some time enquiring about their welfare as their home state etc. We also thanked them for the thankless job they do of protecting our nation. The Halwa was excellent and even the fussy eaters of our group enjoyed eating it.

All along the route, we had Bhagirati on one side of the road. As we went further the weather kept becoming more pleasant. The drive was very beautiful with lovely green woods, blue mountains with white snowclad tops, waterfalls etc. which kept us enthralled. As we approached our destination, I found that the roads have been widened and traffic well managed. A huge parking area was available for accommodating the rush of pilgrims and there were adequate security personnel to regulate the movement.

We had to walk for a few hundred meters after alighting from our TT. Gangotri (the town is named thus) is a small town with many shops lining the way selling water cans & containers, puja articles, photos / idols, ornaments made of Rudraksha and other natural items etc. We walked through the crowds and went through the Gangotri temple towards the area which has bathing ghats. A few of us quickly had our bath in the chilling waters of Bhagirati. The head becomes numb when dipped into the ice-cold waters as if we have had anaesthesia. Once you come out of the water, dry yourself and change into fresh clothes, the cold is no longer felt. The thrill of bathing at Gangotri is something one had to experience to understand. We then did Ganga puja with the help of a local priest.  We also collected Gangotri water in small containers to carry back home.

After this we went for darshan of Devi Ganga in the temple. There were two queues – one for ordinary darshan and one for special darshan. We opted for special darshan thinking we could get in faster and get a closer look. As it turned out, the special darshan queue seemed to take more time (as most pilgrims opted for it) and the darshan area was the same for both queues. While waiting for darshan, we got the good news of election results from the few people who had connectivity. After a wait of nearly an hour, we got the blessed darshan of Devi Ganga. We came out and took pictures of ourselves in front of the temple to serve as a memory. Some of us then went to a local shop to seal our containers – there is only one shop outside the temple which offers this service and hence this could lead to delays.

After this, we trudged back towards our TT and in the meantime, it began to drizzle slightly. Covering our heads with whatever we could find, we walked briskly towards our vehicle and gave a miss to any other sights to be seen at Gangotri. We then drove back to our hotel at Nayatala which is just outside Uttarkashi. On the way, we had a simple rice lunch which we had carried with us - Jeera Rice & Kadi with Pakoda. After we reached around 7.30 p.m. we rested awhile and then went for dinner. Ranveer had made nice dinner of Chappati, dal, bitter-gourd and curd rice. We had a nice dinner and retired for the night. That night we slept happy in the thought that we had completed darshan of two Dhams and the fact that Modi government was re-elected with a huge tally.

Thus ended Day 5 of our yatra.