U.P. Theerth Yatra - Day 5 (Part 2)

Ganga Aarti at Janaki Kund

The district of Chitrakoot is one of the holiest places in Uttar Pradesh. Chitrakoot is revered because Ram, Sita and Lakshmana stayed here for 12 long years during their exile. You come across temples and other places of immense religious importance at regular intervals.

Our hotel called “River Side Resort” was decent and located very near some of the holy spots of Chitrakoot. We reached around 4 p.m. and after some rest, a bath and evening prayers, we had some excellent tea at the restaurant. We hired  a local Electric Ricksha to take us around as they would be familiar with the places of interest and the best way to go around. He first took us to a place called Ram Darshan which is like a museum depicting various episodes from the Ramayana besides having a small shrine. This is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Chitrakoot. Unfortunately, this place got closed just as we reached there. We didn’t mind as we were keen to see historical & religious spots and not museums.

Our next halt was Spatikh Shila (Crystal Rock).  This is located on the banks of the Mandakini River which passes through Chitrakoot. This site is named after the crystalline rok formations found here. It is believed that Ram, Sita and Lakshmana came here during their stay at Chitrakoot and there is a rock which bears their foot prints. There are also several small shrines near this.

At Janaki Kund

We then went to Janaki Kund. Janki is another name for Sita Mata and this place has been named after her. It is believed to be the place where Sita Devi would bathe during her stay here. There are two temples located just behind the kund, namely, Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple and Shree Raghuvir Temple. In a small temple located here, you come across the footprints of Sita. The water of the Janki Kund is clear and transparent, and some pilgrims could be seen taking a dip in it. The silence in the surroundings makes it serene. It is especially a great place for those that are looking for some moments of peace and calm. There is a dense forest which lies across the river. We also saw the Ganga Aarti being performed at dusk by a group of young students from a nearby veda patshala.

Kamad Giri Temple

Our next halt was the famous Kamad Giri temple located on a hill which was a drive of about 4 kms from our hotel. It is believed that Bhagavan Ram fulfils all the desires of His devotees who visit this place. Pilgrims often perform a circumambulation of the hill (about 5 kms) to receive blessings. Many holy places lie along the religious route. The principal deity of Chitrakoot is Lord Kamtanath – another name for Shri Ram. According to one legend, Lord Brahma performed here His first yagna before beginning His work of creation. This is also  the place where Lord Rama and Goddess Sita spend twelve years of their exile. Due to lack of time, we only visited the main temple which could be reached after climbing a flight of about 30 steps. Here, we could see the idols of the entire Ram family. The place was crowded but not too much. We could have our darshan within 10 minutes of arriving here.

We then went to Ram Ghat which is located on the banks of Mandakini River and is among the most visited religious destinations in Uttar Pradesh. It is a beautifully developed area with ghats (bathing steps) on both sides of the river. There are lots of shops around and in the evening when we visited, we could witness the Ganga Aarti. This was a beautiful sight with many well-lit boats full of pilgrims witnessing the aarti from the river along with a large crowd witnessing it in the ghat area. The whole atmosphere was divine, and one can easily spend half a day here enjoying the ambience. It is believed that Bhagavan Rama, Devi Sita and Lakshman gave darshan to the contemporary Saint Goswami Tulsidas here. There are several shrines here and we visited a couple of them.

After this, we returned to our hotel. We then had dinner at the restaurant along with our driver. He was happy that we did treat him as one of us and relished the excellent meal while telling us about his personal life. After this, we were absolutely ready to catch up on our precious sleep which we did in our room which was perfect – right temperature & no mosquitoes.

Thus ended a long Day 5 of our Theerth Yatra.