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Uttaranchal Pilgrimage

Har Ki pauri Haridwar, Uttaranchal

Uttaranchal, is also called 'devbhoomi' meaning the land of gods. One of the most enchanting states of the country, Uttaranchal, the abode of gods is a perfect place to relax and rejuvenate. It is the most preferred destination of every devout Hindu. At every turn and every sight, there is not a place which has been left untouched by the beauty of nature of spirituality of air. While geographically the entire landscape is dotted with deep valleys, gorges, beautiful meadows, snow capped peaks, ice laden glaciers, crystal clear lakes, springs and waterfalls, hidden in these or lingering close by are the shrines, temples and famous pilgrimages. The land of Uttaranchal is dotted with ancient tempels and shrines made thousands of years ago giving testimony to the rich religious heritage.

The holy cities of Rishikesh, Haridwar, Rudraprayag, Pauri Garhwal are on the itinerary of every Hindu who holds religion close to heart. However, what makes a trip to Uttaranchal all the more memorable and significant is the presence of Chardham. The four pigrimage destinations; Badrinath, Kedarnath, Yamunotri and Gangotri are the holiest four pilgrimages. According to the Hindu mythology, a trip to all four of these leads one to salvation. The temples at these places were set up centuries back by Adi Shankaracharya. Since then they have been time and again hit by natural calamities and rennovated by kings, queens and so on. What makes the faith strong in these institutions of worship are the mystic surroundings like the presence of hot water springs in the company of snow laden peaks thousand feet above the sea level. The faith runs strong since centuries, the spiritualness is unfaltered and the aura so pure that no soul comes back untouched. At every step you take there is a spring, shrine, a temple or an ashram. And all these are not alone, they come accompanied by legends which have been narrated since centuries from one generation to other.

Apart from Chardham, other holy cities like Haridwar and Rishikesh are home to shrines like Neel Kanth Mahadev (Rishikesh) as well as hill top shrines of Mansa Devi and Chandi Devi (Haridwar). Other famous temples like Vishwanath (Almora) and Binsar Mahadev (Ranikhet) are also some of the major pilgrimage attractions in Uttaranchal.

Temples, shrines, holy cities are undoubtedly major pilgrimage attractions here in Uttaranchal but there is more to pilgrimage here than just these. It is the numerous ashrams on the bank of Ganga especially in Rishikesh, the meditation and Yoga, the daily aarti of Har ki Pauri, the daily Keertans in the temples and the fairs and festivals celebrated with zeal since centuries that make Uttaranchal such mystically enchanting pilgrimage destination.