Chardham Yatra - Part 13 (Rudraprayag to Haridwar)

Day 12 (30^th May 2019) was the penultimate day of our yatra. We were woken up by Ranveer as always by 5.30 a.m. with coffee and by 6.30 a.m. we had bathed, finished our rituals and were ready. Our bags were taken to the TT and were loaded along with our mobile kitchen and the breakfast & lunch of the day. As it was Ekadashi, 5 out of 10 of us were fasting. Hence, Ranveer prepared much less quantity of breakfast and dinner as compared to other days. Before leaving the hotel, we captured some pictures for remembering our stay here. The morning hour was blissful and we could see the Sun slowly emerge from behind some mountains and reveal Himself in full glory.

Our first halt was at Rudraprayag (the confluence of Alaknanda & Mandakini) which was a short drive away from our hotel. As we were early, there was virtually no one at the bathing spot at the Prayag. We had to climb down about a hundred steps to reach the Prayag. As the water flow was very high and there were no secured bathing ghat here, we could not take a dip. Instead we used a steel bucket from the mobile kitchen to bathe here. Three of us had a bath here while the rest were contended to just sprinkle some water on themselves. The water was very cold here. On the way back up, we visited a small Chamunda Devi temple which was managed by an old woman who stays there. Further up, we visited the Shiva temple where Sage Narada is believed to have meditated on Lord Shiva to learn music and got darshan of the Lord who also taught him music. Sage Narada then installed another Shiva Lingam here to commemorate the event. We had carried water from the Prayag which we used to pour on the Lingam.

We then proceeded from here. On the way, we stopped at a small eatery for breakfast. Pongal along with a side dish was the breakfast for those who ate. In addition, Kanji was made for everyone. Apart from two people who were fasting, all others had the Kanji and were unanimous in their opinion that it was very well made. In fact, the Pongal too got very good reviews and the contents in the container got completely consumed in no time. After this we proceeded further and stopped at the Dhari Devi temple which is in the middle of a river.

Dhari Devi is considered as the guardian deity of Uttrakhand and is revered as the protector of the Chardhams is a Shakti Peeth temple which has a unique story. A few years ago, a dam was proposed to be built which was going to submerge the temple. The construction company proposed to move the temple to a different location much against the wishes of the local people. The company then decided to raise the level of the temple by 611 meters in the same spot and build a bridge to access the temple. Within a few hours of the dismantling the temple on 16^th June 2013, there was a massive natural disaster in the region. There was a massive cloudburst, thousands of lives were lost, and the roads got blocked by the landslide that followed. All traffic & life came to a standstill and it severely disrupted the yatra for the next few years thereafter.

We had two options to go to the temple – one was by jeep through a rough temporary road and other was by walking down the steps to the temple. Few of us went by Jeep costing Rs. 40 for the up & down journey. Few others walked down the few hundred steps to reach the temple. One unique feature of the temple is that people ask for favours and when that gets fulfilled, they tie bells in & around the temple. So, there are literally hundreds of bells on the bridge leading to the temple as well as the temple itself. We had a lovely darshan here as there were very few people here and returned to our vehicle to proceed further.

We then moved further and by noon reached Dev Prayag. This is the place where Alaknanda and Bhagirati river join to form the holy Ganga. To reach the bathing area, one must climb down a lot of steps and pass by another important Divya Desam temple dedicated to Lord Ram. This is the Raghunath temple where Lord Ram is believed to have done penance to rid Himself of the sin of killing Ravana who was a Brahmin by birth. When we reached here, the temple was already closed for the afternoon, but the priest kindly agreed to open the door for us to have darshan. We saw Lord Ram alone here without the company of His eternal spouse Sita Devi. Outside the temple, we also saw the rocky seat where He is believed to have sat during His penance.

After this, we went further down to the Prayag. Srinivasan had made arrangement with a local priest to come and help us do sankalpam before having bath here. While we all did the sankalpam, only two of us went ahead for the bath here. Here, the bathing ghat was nice and comfortable. The water flow was not too high and there were strong iron ropes to take support of while having bath. The water was not too cold, and, in my opinion, this is the best place to have a dip. After our bath, we all had lemon juice made with water from Ganga. We then went back to our vehicle through a shorter route. Our driver had come there by driving some distance and we got into the vehicle for our ride back to Haridwar.

On the way, we stopped at a small eatery for our lunch break. Lunch comprised of Rice sambhar, cabbage bhaji and curds. There was enough food left over to feed four other people from a different group who were on their way towards Chardham and had also halted at the same eatery. Post lunch we moved further. The weather became warmer and warmer as we descended. There were traffic jams in a couple of places along the way. We saw the lovely route of the famous river rafting which started much before Rishikesh. Movement was slow as we came down and hence, we skipped the planned halt at Rishikesh by passing the town. We could see that Rishikesh has exploded by having innumerable buildings – from a green jungle once upon a time, it has become a concrete jungle now. Sad.

By the time we reached Haridwar, it was almost 8 p.m. We were taken to a different hotel – this one was very nice. Nice AC. No mosquitoes. Good TV and clean bathroom. It had a small temple of Radha Krishna within the premises. I did not join for the dinner and hence do not know the menu. With his great track record, I am sure Ranveer would have turned out another lovely dinner. As we were to depart the next day back to our hometown, we did not do much unpacking for that night.

Thus, ended Day 12 of our Yatra.

Chardham Yatra - Part 12 (Badrinath to Rudraprayag)

Day 11 (29^th May 2019) – As planned the previous day, we had set our alarm clock at 3 a.m. that day to wake up, have our bath and go for the early morning 4 a.m. Nirmalaya darshan of the Lord. Waking up so early in the cold weather is difficult especially after a hectic previous day. So, we woke up a little later and dragged ourselves to the bathroom. Luckily, we had running hot water available. Still, by the time we were bathed and ready, it was 4.15 a.m. From our window we could hear the faint sound of Vishnu Sahasranamam being played at the temple since 3.30 a.m. and it was in the familiar voice of M S Subbalakshmi.

As we moved towards the temple fully protected by our woollen wear, we saw that about a couple of hundred pilgrims had already assembled and were queued up for darshan. We had no option but to join the queue. It was cold but bearable as we waited in the slow-moving queue. After nearly 45 minutes, we came near the main door of the shrine. Some people were singing bhajans which was nice to hear. After nearly an hour, we had a fleeting darshan of the Lord. Yes, it was the Nirmalayam darshan and we could see the Shaligram from about 20/25 feet. The short darshan only kindled in us a desire to come back one more time in future to see Him for a longer duration.

The idol of Lord Badrinarayana is a Shaligram where He is holding a Shanka (Conch) and a Chakra in two of His arms and the other two arms are resting on His lap in a Yogic pose. The sanctum also has images of Kuber (The Lord of wealth), Sage Narada, Uddhava, Nara & Narayana. There are many other deities around the temple like Mahalakshmi, Garuda, Nava Durga (manifestation of Durga in nine forms). There are also shrines for Lakshmi Narasimha and for Saints Adi Shankaracharya, Nara & Narayana, Ghantakarna, Vedanta Desika & Ramanujacharya. All the other idols in this temple are made of black stone.

Our tour operator Srinivasan also arrived there to offer Kesari (a sweet made with Rawa) prasadam to Ghantakarna which a ritual he has been practicing for a long time. After this, we stepped out and got our pictures taken in front of the temple. After this, we returned to our rooms. Although we were hungry, we just had a cup of coffee as three of us were going to offer Pinda danam to our departed ancestors.

At about 7.45 a.m., three of us went to have bath in the Tapta Kund. There is a story here about the Tapta Kund that is interesting. Due to a curse received by Agni (Lord of fire), He had to reside in Badrinath. After praying to the Lord of Badri for a solution on how to mitigate the curse, He was advised to remain in the Tapta Kund and remove the ailments of people who bathe here. The water here is nearly 45 degrees centigrade and it is shockingly hot when one enters it. Within moments, however, one gets used to the heat and then it becomes very pleasant. We had a quick bath here as it was overcrowded with people, changed into fresh clothes and went for the Pinda danam ritual.

Arrangements had been made with a local priest who conducted / guided many people at the same time. He had a team of people to assist him and the pilgrims in the process. We had to only carry our panchapatram – rest of the items were provided by the priest viz. Til, Rice, Flowers, Turmeric, Water etc. The priest even had a microphone with him to be audible. He spoke in many languages but chose to communicate mainly in broken English. Our respective wives sat behind us to make the rice balls to be offered as Pindam. The whole ritual included offering Pindam to relatives (including parents, uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters etc.) and friends, Guru etc. The process took about 45 minutes after which we dissolved the Pindam in the Alaknanada river. The priest followed a slightly different process which he called the Badri Padati (process specifically followed in Badri). Offering of pindam at Badri is believed to grant Moksham (salvation) to the souls concerned and it was a very deeply satisfying to us for having done this. The priest charges were Rs. 750 per person including cost of materials. We also gave tips to the assistants and to many others who flocked around us once the rituals were completed.

After this we went back to our hotel room and had a hearty breakfast of Aloo Parathas made along with curds and pickles and the Kesari prasadam. After this, we packed and checked out of the hotel. The coolies had come to carry our luggage back to the parking area. We left our hotel with a tinge of regret that we could not stay longer. Within a short time, we left Badrinath and rapidly made our way down from the holy Dham. We came to Joshimath and had a darshan of the Bhavishya Kedar - a small temple which is prophesized to be the future Kedarnath when the existing one will become inaccessible. After this we went to the nearby Shankaracharya Mutt and were fortunate to meet His Holiness and also speak with him for a short while. We also visited the Kalpavruksha (boon giving tree) tree under which Adi Shankaracharya had once spent time meditating.

After this we left Joshimath and on the way down, we stopped at a roadside eatery to have our lunch. I must mention here that throughout our Yatra all the food cooked and served by Srinivasan Tours were without onion or garlic. Yet, it was very tasty, and we never missed the flavour adding vegetables. On this day when we had offered Pindam to our ancestors, it was even more nice to have such food. This time it was nice spicy rasam with potato & brinjal vegetable along with rice and curds. Afterwards, we had nice lassi from the eatery to finish the meal.

After a long drive with just one break we arrived at Rudraprayag by around 7.30 p.m. The rooms were very nice, and we had air coolers in each room. That night we had Upma & chutney for dinner.

That concluded Day 11 of our Yatra.

Chardham Yatra - Part 11 (Pipalkoti to Badrinath)

Day 10 (28^th May 2019) – It was the day to proceed towards the last Dham in our yatra – Badrinath. Badrinath is considered one of the holiest places on this earth. One of the 108 holiest Vishnu shrines, or Divya Desams as they are called, it is situated at a height of 3133 meters above sea level and is open for only 6 months in a year like the other four Dhams. It is situated along the banks of the river Alaknanda which flows down to later merge with various rivers including the Bhagirati to form the river Ganga. The two holy mountains Nara & Narayana flank this temple with mountain Nara situated across the river Alaknanda.

We woke up early as usual and got ready by 6 a.m. By 6.30 a.m. we were on our way to Joshimath which was about 35 kms away. Our first halt was at Narasing temple at Joshimath. This is the popular old temple of Lord Narasimha which has been recently renovated. This temple serves as the winter retreat for Lord Badrinarayan. It is believed that the right arm of the Lord Narasimha is constantly eroding and when it fully erodes, the holy temple of Badrinath will be blocked and inaccessible. After that Badrinarayan will appear in the Bhavishya (Future) Badri temple of Badrinarayan which is 17 kms away from Joshimath and will be worshipped there in future.

We reached Narasing temple by about 8.30 a.m. and participated in the morning worship ritual. Even though Abhishek was completed by the time we reached, we could still get darshan of the Lord before He was covered by Alankaram and flowers. The priests were chanting Sri Sooktham in a unique tune and it was nice to hear it. After the puja and the aarti, we moved out and had darshan of the nearby temples including a nice Vasudeva temple which has a lovely idol made in black stone. After our darshan, we left towards Badrinath which is approximately 45 kms away from here.

After driving some distance, we came toto Vishnuprayag which is the confluence of Alaknanda and DhouliGanga. We had breakfast here as the place is developed well with small temples and nice resting place for pilgrims. Breakfast was Upma made of Dhaliya / Lapsee rice with chutney. We also took the opportunity to take some pictures here as the place was very scenic.

We then drove further towards Badrinath. The roads here were generally well maintained and we did not encounter much traffic. On the way, we saw the detour on the road which takes one towards the famous Hemkund Sahib - the holy place for Sikhs. We also saw the route that takes one towards the "Valley of Flowers" which is to be visited in the months of September / October. We reached by 12.30 p.m. and had our first darshan of the world-famous temple from the road itself. We loudly chanted “Bolo Badri Vishal ki Jai”. In fact, Srinivasan (our tour operator) has a ritual of shouting Jai slogans to all the deities before starting and ending every journey. We loudly & enthusiastically participated is such rituals. Our vehicle then drove towards a parking place from where we hired local coolies to carry our luggage to the hotel where we were to stay. It was a short 10-minute walk. The place being in the mountain, the walk has its ups & downs and one needs good lung power to walk.

We found the hotel to be decent and right across the river Alaknanda on the Nara mountain. From our room, we had a lovely darshan of the temple, the river and the long queue that was waiting for the darshan. The rooms were clean and decent. The weather was great as the Sun was shining that day and it reduced the cold and the wind was also not blowing strongly. It seemed as if the Lord was welcoming us cheerfully. After settling down, we had lunch which comprised of rice, rasam, one vegetable and curds.

After lunch and a little rest, we went to the village Mana which is about 4 kms away from Badrinath. This is the last village on the Indian side and has many important pilgrim spots. The roads were crowded with vehicles going to this village and there was a traffic jam. So, we got down from our TT and walked about a kilometer to reach this village. As we walked inside, we could see the small houses and people going about their daily routines. The pathway was narrow and there was no space for vehicles to move inside the village. Many of the villagers had put up small shops selling locally made woolen items like sweaters, scarfs, gloves, caps etc. We could also see some people actually making these items by hand. 

We first went to the Ganesh Mandir where Lord Ganesh had seated Himself and written the Mahabaratha which was composed and dictated to Him by Ved Vyasa. We then went to Vyas Gufa (Cave) which is in a slightly higher location. This is where Ved Vyasa used to meditate and where He composed the Mahabaratha as well as the Srimad Bhagavatam. We were overawed by visiting this holy place and bowed our heads to Him who is the incarnation of Lord Narayana. My wife recited the 12th chapter of the 12th Canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam in the dark cave supported by the torch light provided by Sri Srinivasan. The 12th chapter is the summary of the Srimad Bhagavatam and chanting of it is considered equivalent to chanting the entire Srimad Bhagavatam.


After this we walked towards the place where we could see Saraswati river gushing down with tremendous farce. Legend is that the sound of the river Saraswati was so high that it disturbed Ved Vyas who instructed her to go underground and she obeyed Him. She is believed to surface at holy Prayagraj where the 3 rivers merge (Ganga, Yamuna & Saraswati) together. We also saw the path taken by the Pandavas while on their last journey and the huge boulder of rock placed by Bheem between two mountains to facilitate their crossing. This rock is called Bheem pul (Bridge) and is a marvel to see. After taking pictures at this spot, we saw the last resting place of Draupadi at a distance. Due to paucity of time, we did not go towards that place. On our way back, we did some small shopping of the local handicrafts (woolen wear) which is made of sheep's wool and gives very good warmth. It was available at a very low price here. 

In the evening, we waited for some time in the room as the darshan queue was very long. By 7.30 p.m. it had thinned, and we went for darshan. Before going to the temple, we had enquired about any Seva / Special darshan tickets but were told that none was available. We were resigned to a normal darshan from a distance, but fate was in our favour. Srinivasan used his local connects and got us all aarti darshan without any tickets and we got the opportunity to sit for a while in front of the Lord!!! We were thrilled beyond words at the special favours being continuously received by us. We felt very blessed and special indeed. Most of us, with the exception of four, returned to the hotel after this.

Four of us went for a short meeting with the main priest of Badrinath temple. This priest is called as Rawal and has been traditionally been coming from a Namboodri family in Kerala. The priest who is now in charge of conducting daily pooja at Badrinath is B Sankaran Namboodri and he is only 24 years old. He was kind enough to spend some time with us after his return from the temple to his quarters and gave special Badri prasadam for all five couples. He explained to us how the main diety of Badrinarayan is actually a Shaligram and is in the shape of a person sitting in a meditative posture.   

After that we returned to our room and had a nice light dinner comprising of dosas and chutney and went to bed with a plan to wake up early and go for the early morning 4 a.m. darshan wherein one can get the Nirmalaya (without any alankaram) darshan of the Lord. We were also told that the crowds will be less at that time. So, we set our alarm clock for 3 a.m. and went to sleep.

Thus ended 10 of our Yatra.

Chardham Yatra - Part 10 (Sitapur to Pipalkoti)

Day 9 (27^th May 2019) – We were woken up early as always at 5 a.m. by the morning coffee call of Ranveer. By 6 a.m. we were packed, loaded and ready to leave. Kedarnath will always be etched in our memory as one of the eventful visits. The miracle we witnessed which enabled our darshan of the Lord, the multiple darshan and the wonderful temple of Triyugi Narayan were simply wonderful and memorable.

Although we were ready early, there was already a traffic jam right outside our hotel on the way out of Sitapur. After a wait of 15 minutes or so, we joined the traffic. The movement was slow till we covered approximately 6 kilometre or so. Then the roads cleared, and we could move smoothly. Our first halt was at Gupt Kashi – the place where Lord Shiva is believed to have proposed to Devi Parvati after being pleased by Her penance. This is also the location where Lord Shiva is believed to have gone incognito when the Pandavas were searching for Him to seek His pardon for the sin of Brahamanahatya & Banduhatya (Killing of Brahmin & relatives).

The temple at Gupt Kashi can be reached by walking up a few hundred steps from the main road. There are also services of local jeeps who charge Rs. 20 per head for the short one-kilometre trip through narrow roads. Due to paucity of time, we opted for the jeep. All 10 of us could squeeze in one jeep. Within 5 minutes or so we were in the temple. In the temple, one can see two spouts of water flowing – one believed to be Ganga and the other Yamuna. We washed our feet, hands and faces at both spouts. Even though we had decided not to do any puja here (due to shortage of time), we still went ahead and did a small puja conducted by a local priest. Here we also made offerings to our departed ancestors. One unique custom here is that our offering to the priest is done secretively – He make a small cut a dried whole coconut and then we are asked to put our offerings inside it and then covered with the coconut piece. The puja was conducted in the temple courtyard.

After this we went for darshan of Lord Vishwanath inside the temple. We also had darshan of the Ardanareeshwara idol in the adjacent temple. After this, we took the same jeep to return to our TT which was waiting for us at the main road.

We then resumed our journey towards Badrinath. After a short while we halted for our breakfast at a roadside eatery. Ranveer had made dosas with chutney. Although cold, it was delicious, and we wolfed down a good number of soft dosas. The journey was long and felt very warm after the cold climate we had experienced in the earlier day. The original plan was to reach Badrinath on the same day but due to traffic and the extra time taken at Gupt Kashi we were making slow progress.

Along the way, we stopped at another eatery for our lunch break. This was in a small village on the way. The menu for lunch was rice, sambhar and cabbage sabzi plus curds and pickles. We also bought some sweets from the shop and that became our desert. We also found a dog there to whom we gave buns bought at the same shop. After eating two, the dog refused to have any more. There were some medical shops in the village where we made some emergency purchases.

As we were running behind schedule, our tour operator decided to halt a town called Pipalkoti. This is about 35 kms before Joshimatt. We were apprehensive about the quality of the hotel & rooms here but were pleasantly surprised to get a very nice hotel. The location of our hotel was excellent – we were in between several large mountains and the view was terrific. Although it was warm here, there was also a strong breeze flowing – so strong that it was pushing the plastic chairs which were in the lobby. The rooms were large and had TV with few channels working. We also had large & clean bathrooms where we could wash our clothes. As the room was large, we could tie our clothesline in the room and as the weather was warm, the clothes got dried by morning. We had a dinner by about 8 p.m. – Dinner comprised of Tawa parathas and a mixed sabzi followed by rice, curds and pickles. After this, we went for a walk in the small town and had a nice glass of hot milk at a nearby restaurant.

The hot milk made us sleepy and we went to sleep by 10 p.m. eagerly anticipating our visit to Holy Badrinath the next day.

Thus, ended Day 9 of our Yatra.

Chardham Yatra - Part 9 (Kedarnath to Sitapur)

Day 8 – 26^th May, 2019 saw us waking up early & eagerly. We were served tea in the morning and we left immediately after that. On our way away from our room towards the helipad, we took some pictures to serve as memory. We said our goodbyes to the Lord at Kedarnath and also to our priest who had made all the arrangements. We reached the helipad by 6.30 a.m. and were allotted slots for the return journey.

 The wait for our flight was quite long. While waiting we saw a body of a pilgrim who passed away at Kedarnath being loaded on a helicopter. Many people, especially the older pilgrims, find the lack of oxygen and the cold unbearable. Complaints of nausea and breathlessness is common as are the complaints regarding the cold and the blast of wind from the helicopters while landing or taking off. After a very long time, we got our turns to fly down to Sersi. We came down by 11.30 a.m. It was very warm at Sersi but we were not complaining as it was comforting. Breathing was easy and nose blockage was steadily improving.

 Our TT took a long time to arrive after that as they were caught up in traffic. As mentioned earlier, traffic in this area is bad with people parking on the roads and not allowing eaough space for the movement. This combined with the heavy flow of vehicles on both directions often creates jams which take a long time to clear. We reached back our hotel by 3 p.m. and had lunch. Ranveer had made a special treat of Vettakozhumbu, Kootu, fried papadams and also Semiya milk payasam / kheer to celebrate the darshan of Kedarnath. We were given new rooms on the first floor of the hotel. These rooms were decent and much better than the ones on the ground floor.

In the evening, we drove about 18 kms to a lovely temple called Triyugi Narayan. One has to cross Sonprayag (confluence of Mandakini river with Basuki river) and go up one of the mountains to reach this temple. This temple is famous as the wedding of Shiva & Parvati was conducted here by Lord Narayan in the Satya yug. It is believed that Parvati did penance at Gauri Kund to obtain the love of Lord Shiva. He was won over by Her penance and proposed marriage to Her at GuptKashi and they eventuall got married at TriyugiNarayan village which was the capital of Her father Himavat.

 

Very few tourists were there when we reached the temple by around 6.15 p.m. The village was very quaint and peaceful. The temple looked lovely and we eagerly went to it. There are four kunds here viz. Brahma Kund, Vishnu Kund, Rudra Kund and Saraswati Kund. The village also has a Veda Patasala. This village is inhabited by about 130 Brahmin families which lives here even during the winter months when the village is virtually isolated. During winter, the villagers spend time praying inside the temple which has an eternal fire going.

With the help of a local priest we did a small pooja there at the very spot where the divine marriage was solemnised. We then entered the temple and had a darshan of the Akhand Jyoti (eternal fire) which is believed to be kept alive and burning for the last 3 yugs (Hence the name Triyugi). The temple is also known as Akhanda Dhuni temple due to the eternal fire which is kept ablaze by the wood offered by pilgrims & priests. It is believed that prayers offered at this temple results in getting marriages fixed for eligible bachelors / spinsters and also gives conjugal bliss to couples. We had darshan of the deities in the temple and were specially attracted to the idol of SatyaNarayan. We were also lucky to get darshan of aarti at this temple.

It was dark when we left the temple. We reached our hotel back by 9 p.m. in time for dinner of Puri & Bhaji followed by curd & rice. After that we retired for the night.

Thus ended Day 8 of our Yatra.

Chardham Yatra - Part 8 (Kedarnath)

Day 7 - 25 May 19 was the day we have all been looking forward to - Darshan of Lord Kedarnath.  We woke up a little late on this day as our plans were not finalised. We had paid in advance to our tour operator for booking helicopter rides for all of us but till the last minute he could not make the reservations online.

The previous night we had spoken to a pilgrim who had just returned from Kedarnath. He had gone up by taking a ride on a horse and told us that it was a difficult journey. He said it rained during their climb up and though they were wearing raincoats, their clothes and bags containing spare clothes all got soaked wet. It was chilling cold up there and very difficult to breath, he said. Only 3 members of their 25 member team braved the journey and all of them found it very tiring. Horse ride took nearly 5 hours due to stoppages, traffic etc. The stay in the mountain was also uncomfortable due to the extreme cold and the lack of oxygen, he further added. He recommended to us that if we go up it has to be by helicopter and we should try to return the same day.

From Sitapur, we had 4 choices to reach the adobe of Kedarnath (a) Going to Sonprayag and taking a jeep to Gaurikund and then Trekking - 16 kms which could take anything from 8 to 12 hours depending on our speed (b) Doli from Gaurijund which could take about 6 hours (c) Horse ride from Gaurikund which was about 5 hours (d) by Helicopter ride from Sersi which takes only 7 minutes. 

Based on the recommendation of the pilgrim and, on my own experience, I suggested that we should opt for helicopter ride, if available. Unfortunately, due to unprecedented rush of pilgrims as well as shortage of helicopters, no tickets were available. Over breakfast of hot idli, vada and chutney, much against our wishes, we were discussing next alternate mode of reaching HIS abode and some of us were contemplating taking the horse ride, as we were determined to have HIS darshan. 

Before coming for this Yatra, two of our members had visited Shankaracharya at Sringeri Mutt to seek His blessings and He had enquired how many people were there in our group. When told that we were ten members, He had given His blessings and said “Go ahead. You have my full & complete Ashirwadam”.

While we were discussing the alternative mode of going up to Kedarnath, a group from Bangalore who were staying in the same hotel as ours seem to have heard our plight and asked us as to how we are planning to go to the shrine. When we said we don’t have tickets but are planning to go to the helicopter station to try our luck, they said they have got tickets for the helicopter ride and as our luck will have it, they said 10 of them have dropped out and can give those tickets for us. Imagine our ecstasy. We were 10 members and they also had exactly had 10 tickets to spare. Strange are HIS ways. HE clears all obstacles. Guru's Ashirwadam and Goddess's benevolence made this possible. We really felt blessed and overwhelmed at this turn of events.

However, it was not very smooth. HE was testing our patience and determination. We were not sure whether the Helicopter company will allot those tickets to us or to any other people who were waitlisted by them. Initially, the helicopter company agreed to allot all the 10 seats to us but later said they can give us only 7 tickets. After lots of pleading, 10 tickets were issued to us.  As we were awaiting our turn to board the flight, suddenly dark clouds formed and started raining, resulting in the helicopter services being suspended. Our prayers were answered when suddenly the skies cleared, sun came out and flight services were resumed after about half an hour. The two way helicopter ride costed us approximately Rs. 5000 per person.

Finally, after being ready at 7 am in the morning we reached the Holy Kedarnath at 7 pm, to be greeted by majestic snowclad mountains and biting, bone chilling cold. From the helipad it was a short walk, of about half a kilometre, to our room in a hotel.  All around us we could see snow lining the walkway. We crossed a short bridge over the river Mandakini to reach the temple side. We were connected to a local priest by our tour operator who also manages accommodation for pilgrims. The priest suggested that we can have the last darshan at approx. 8.30 p.m. and then go for special darshan in the night along with Abhishekam. Special darshan tickets were available for @ Rs. 1000/- per pilgrim which was procured by the priest. Our slot was at 11.30 pm.

The two rooms we were given were very basic. There was no flowing water in our bathroom as the waterpipes were clogged and broken in some places due to the cold. It rained heavily once we were in our room and the temperature dropped further. When we landed at Kedarnath, it must have been 3 degrees Celsius which became nearly zero after the rain. The local priest arranged dinner for us (we had not had much to eat since our breakfast and were famished). Dinner was hot chappatis with dal and potato sabzi and hot Kichadi with pickles. Hot dinner brought some energy & warmth in us.

Only five of us went (the others were too much overcome by the cold and the breathlessness.) for Alankar darshan at 8.30 p.m. This is when the Lingam is dressed up & decorated with flowers etc.  Although the darshan was only for a few moments, it was wonderful, and I was seeing this for the first time in all my 5 visits. The main temple doors close only after the last pilgrim is allowed inside and hence everyone who comes and joins this queue will get this darshan.

The special darshan starts around 10 p.m. after the last pilgrims who have come for Alankar darshan have left the temple premises. Entry for this is from a side door and strictly monitored to allow only ticket holders. In this darshan, the decorations are removed from the Lingam and local priests guide the pilgrims through the Pooja & Abhishek process. The Lingam at Kedarnath is unusual and not in the usual shape seen at all temple. This is in the form and shape of the mountain itself – rocky and uneven. Lord Ganesh & Devi Parvati are in different parts of the Lingam. The Lingam is anointed with Sandal paste & Ghee, water is offered as are other pooja articles like sugar coated prasad, flowers & rice grains.  We even got to embrace the Lingam as part of the Pooja.

My wife had a sudden low-pressure problem within the temple while we were in the queue for the special darshan. She was on the verge of collapsing. Luckily, I had some toffees in my pocket which I gave to her and this stabilised her a bit. It was the Lords grace that she recovered to participate in the Pooja.

After a super fantastic darshan we returned to our room at 1 a.m. The path was almost deserted at that time but we could still see some weary trekkers coming in. We had 2 five bed rooms. All beds were joined together and had thick & unwieldly Rajais (blankets) to keep us warm. Despite blocked noses and difficulty in breathing, some of us managed to catch a few winks of sleep. We were waiting for the morning to come so that we could go to the helipad and take the return flight to Sersi. One of the ladies in the group had a sudden bout of vomiting in the night. Luckily it did not deteriorate from there and the night passed without further incident.

Thus ended a miraculous, magnificent & eventful Day 7 of our Yatra.

Chardham Yatra - Part 7 (Nayatala to Sitapur)

Day 6 (24th May, 2019) - We were woken up at 5 a.m. to have our morning coffee and then finish morning rituals which included packing our bags for the nth time. By 6 a.m. we were ready to proceed and by 6.30 a.m. we left Nayatala towards Sitapur, base camp of Kedarnath. It was a very long journey - about 250 kms.  Though the journey was very long, we didn't get much tired, as we were entertained to very good vintage songs being belted out by Rafi, Kishore, Lata, Asha, Mukesh and others through the music system (Caravan Saregama) brought by one of our group members.

On the way we stooped at an eatery which was situated next to a small temple and we had Upma & chutney for breakfast. The eatery was also serving Idli Sambhar which I tried and found it to be quite good – apparently the owner had spent some time in Tamil nadu where he learnt the art of making Idli & Sambhar. We also had tea there.

Driving on, we took a short cut which took us through small roads and scenic mountains with tiny villages on the way. This short cut saved us about a couple of hours of driving and brought us straight to Rudraprayag where we didn’t halt. After we crossed Rudraprayag, we noticed that a part of the highway was destroyed away by a landslide. It seems this happened during February 2019.  The Border Road Organisation (BRO), has built a temporary road on the riverbed.  The river Mandakini has been expertly diverted for this purpose but we could see that the pressure of the waterflow was slowly & steadily eating away the temporary road. Work on restoring the highway was on in full swing with many construction equipment being used. 

We then stopped at a very old Devi temple of Goddess Varahi.  As per tradition, the officiating priest of Kedarnath temple stays here for a night, alone, before proceeding to the holy temple at the beginning of the season. This practice has now been stopped. Some years ago, someone wanted to build a guest house in the temple premises. The local villagers told them not to do so.  Ignoring their objections, they went ahead and constructed it. Immediately thereafter the area experienced earthquake and the guesthouse was destroyed. Please find photos of the temple and destroyed guesthouse. We had tea at a small tea shop here. The owner of the shop is now taking care of the maintenance of this temple. The temple is so powerful that if one sits for a few minutes in meditation here, one can feel the vibrations in the body and mind. It is believed that whatever one prays for at this temple is granted by the Devi. Though I normally do not seek any favours at any temple, here I earnestly asked & prayed for Her grace & support of getting us all a good darshan at the abode of Her consort at Kedarnath. What happened to this prayer of mine will come in the next blog.

Finally, after a long drive during which we passed through GuptKashi, we reached our hotel at Sitapur at about 9.30 pm.  We lost more than an hour due to traffic jams on the way. Sitapur was once a sleepy little town. I was amazed to see its transformation now. There are many hotels – some of them star properties which have come up. To regulate & manage the traffic, the roads to the town & out from it are made “one way” and a huge parking lot has been built here. The parking lot can accommodate more than a few hundred vehicles at a time. Our rooms were very basic and not very comfortable. We had a dinner made by another cook that night. He was from another group of Srinivasan Tours which had arrived there the previous day. Dinner comprised of Chappatis, Kofta and Dal Kichadi. Dinner was nice & tasty but some of our group members didn’t eat as it was late and they were tired after a long ride. We decided to wake up late the next day – 6 a.m.

Thus ended Day 6 of our Yatra.

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.