Badrinath or Badrinarayan temple is situated on the banks of Alaknanda river in Chamoli district of state Uttarakhand, India on the foothills of the Himalaya. Badrinath dham is one out of holy four dhams (Char-Dham) in Uttarakhand. Others are Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri .
It is one the most famous Hindu temples of Bhagwan Vishnu. Badrinath temple is a part of Panch-Badri along with Yog Dhyan Badri ,Adi Badri, Bhavisya Badri and Vriddha Badri. This temple is situated between 2 famous hills of Himalaya named NAR and NARAYAN.
Geographic Features :
Location- Chamoli district, Uttarakhand
Elevation– 3130 meters above mean sea level, on banks of Alakhananda river
Tempreture- Less than 0 degree Celsius during November to March.
Visiting time- April to november
Badrinath temple is usually closed for six months during winter due to heavy snowfall in Himalaya. In april doors of badrinath temple are opened upto november.
The Legends of Badrinath :
Badrinath name came from Badri Itree or Jujube tree. Stories suggest that once a sage saw Maa Laxmi (wife of Bhagwaan Vishnu) was massaging Bhagwaan Vishnu’s feet. Sage thought that he is insulting a woman by doing such act for his physical pleasure. So he punished Vishnu and ordered him to go to Himalayas and meditate. So Vishnu came to Himalayas and meditated here and Maa Laxmi protected him from meat eating monks in the form of Badri tree.
According to “Vishnu Puran” Nar and Narayan were two brothers. He chose to spread religion and wed vallies in Himalaya and the came across and find cold and hot spring in Vishal Badri.
What to see in Badrinath Dham :
Beauty of Temple :
Badrinath temple is an amazing example of Hindu architecture. Temple was build during Vedic period and then renovated in 8th century by Adi Guru Shankaracharya. Buddhist architecture is also seen in the temple. At the entrance, the idol of lord Shiva is placed. Adiguru Shankaracharya’s idol is also placed inside the temple.
Tapt Kund :
A fresh spring of hot water. It is unbelievable that a spring of hot water is Himalaya mountains where the outer temperature is almost zero degrees. Tapt kund is one of the main attraction of badrinath dham. Read More
Festivals :
Kedar Badri Utsav, and “Mata Murti Ka Mela” are famous festivals here. Janmashtmi is also celebrated here.
Bheem Pul :
It is a natural stone bridge across the Saraswati River. This is located opposite to the Vyas Gufa in Mana village. It is said that when Pandavas were crossing the river, Bheem threw a huge rock to make a bridge between the two mountains.
Mana Village (Vyas Gufa) :
Mana village is 3 km away from Badrinath it is the last village if India in Indo-China border.
Famous vyas caves are main attraction here. It is believed that God Vyas lived in these caves.
