Good morning.
Kedarnath Mandir is dedicated to god Shiva. It is on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini River in Kedarnath. Kedarnath is a Jyotirlinga temple and also forms part of the Chota Char Dham circuit. During the winters, the vigrahas (deities) from Kedarnath temple are brought to Ukhimath and worshiped there for six months. Lord Shiva i
s worshiped as Kedarnath, the ‘Lord of Kedar Khand’, the historical name of the region. The temple is at a height of 3,583 m (11,755 ft), 223 km from Rishikesh on the shores of Mandakini river. It is a tributary of Ganga and is an impressive stone edifice of unknown date. The structure is believed to have been constructed in the 8th century AD when Adi Shankara visited. The present structure is on a site adjacent to where Pandavas are believed to have built the temple. It has one Garbhagriha and a Mandapa and stands on a plateau surrounded by snow clad mountain and glaciers. In front of the temple, directly opposite to inner shrine, is a Nandi statue carved out of a rock.
The present Head priest or Raval of Kedarnath temple is Shri Vageesha Lingacharya. Shri Vageesh Ligaacharya belongs from the Village Banuvalli of Taluka Harihar of Davanagere district in Karnataka. During Pooja of Lord Shiva at Kedarnath, the mantras are pronounced in the Kannada language.
According to Hindu History, during the Mahabharata war, the Pandavas killed their relatives; to absolve themselves of this sin; the Pandavas undertook a pilgrimage. But Lord Vishweshwara was away in Kailasa in the Himalayas. On learning this, the Pandavas left Kashi. They reached the Himalayas via Haridwar. They saw Lord Shankara from a distance who tried to hide from them. Then Dharmaraj said: “Oh, Lord, You have hidden from our sight because we have sinned. But, we will seek You out somehow. Only after we take your Darshan would our sins be washed away. This place, where You have hidden will be known as Guptakashi and become a famous shrine.”
From Guptakashi (Rudraprayag), the Pandavas went ahead till they reached Gaurikund in the Himalayas valleys. They wandered there in search of Lord Shankara. While doing so, Nakul and Sahadev found a buffalo which was unique to look at.
Then Bheema went after the buffalo with his mace. The buffalo was clever and Bheema could not catch him. But Bheema managed to hit the buffalo with his mace. The buffalo had its face hidden in a crevice in the earth. Bheema started to pull it by its tail. In this tug-of-war, the face of the buffalo went straight to Nepal, leaving its hind part in Kedar. The face is Doleshwar Mahadev in Sipadol, Bhaktapur, Nepal.
On this hand part of Mahesha, a JyotirLinga appeared and Lord Shankara appeared from this light. By getting a Darshan of Lord Shankar, the Pandavas was absolved of their sins. The Lord told the Pandavas, “From now on, I will remain here as a triangular shaped JyotirLinga. By taking a Darshan of Kedarnath, devotees would attain piety”. A triangular shaped rock is worshiped in Garbhagriha of the temple. Surrounding Kedarnath, there are many symbols of the Pandavas. Raja Pandu died at Pandukeshwar. The tribals here perform a dance called, “Pandav Nritya”. The mountain top where the Pandavas went to Swarga is known as “Swargarohini”, which is located in Badrinath. When Darmaraja was leaving for Swarga, one of his fingers fell on the earth. At that place, Dharmaraj installed a Shiva Linga, which is the size of the thumb. To gain Mashisharupa, Shankara and Bheema fought with maces. Bheema was struck with remorse. He started to massage Lord Shankara’s body with ghee. In memory of this event, even today, this triangular Shiva JyotirLinga is massaged with ghee. Water and Bel leaves are used for worship.
When Nara-Narayan went to Badrika village and started the worship of Parthiva, Shiva appeared before them. Nara-Narayan wished that, for the welfare of the humanity, Shiva should remain there in his original form. Granting their wish, in the snow-clad Himalayas, in a place called Kedar, Mahesh himself stayed there as a Jyoti. Here, He is known as Kedareshwara.
Kedarnath Mandir is dedicated to god Shiva. It is on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini River in Kedarnath. Kedarnath is a Jyotirlinga temple and also forms part of the Chota Char Dham circuit. During the winters, the vigrahas (deities) from Kedarnath temple are brought to Ukhimath and worshiped there for six months. Lord Shiva i
s worshiped as Kedarnath, the ‘Lord of Kedar Khand’, the historical name of the region. The temple is at a height of 3,583 m (11,755 ft), 223 km from Rishikesh on the shores of Mandakini river. It is a tributary of Ganga and is an impressive stone edifice of unknown date. The structure is believed to have been constructed in the 8th century AD when Adi Shankara visited. The present structure is on a site adjacent to where Pandavas are believed to have built the temple. It has one Garbhagriha and a Mandapa and stands on a plateau surrounded by snow clad mountain and glaciers. In front of the temple, directly opposite to inner shrine, is a Nandi statue carved out of a rock.
The present Head priest or Raval of Kedarnath temple is Shri Vageesha Lingacharya. Shri Vageesh Ligaacharya belongs from the Village Banuvalli of Taluka Harihar of Davanagere district in Karnataka. During Pooja of Lord Shiva at Kedarnath, the mantras are pronounced in the Kannada language.According to Hindu History, during the Mahabharata war, the Pandavas killed their relatives; to absolve themselves of this sin; the Pandavas undertook a pilgrimage. But Lord Vishweshwara was away in Kailasa in the Himalayas. On learning this, the Pandavas left Kashi. They reached the Himalayas via Haridwar. They saw Lord Shankara from a distance who tried to hide from them. Then Dharmaraj said: “Oh, Lord, You have hidden from our sight because we have sinned. But, we will seek You out somehow. Only after we take your Darshan would our sins be washed away. This place, where You have hidden will be known as Guptakashi and become a famous shrine.”
From Guptakashi (Rudraprayag), the Pandavas went ahead till they reached Gaurikund in the Himalayas valleys. They wandered there in search of Lord Shankara. While doing so, Nakul and Sahadev found a buffalo which was unique to look at.
Then Bheema went after the buffalo with his mace. The buffalo was clever and Bheema could not catch him. But Bheema managed to hit the buffalo with his mace. The buffalo had its face hidden in a crevice in the earth. Bheema started to pull it by its tail. In this tug-of-war, the face of the buffalo went straight to Nepal, leaving its hind part in Kedar. The face is Doleshwar Mahadev in Sipadol, Bhaktapur, Nepal.
On this hand part of Mahesha, a JyotirLinga appeared and Lord Shankara appeared from this light. By getting a Darshan of Lord Shankar, the Pandavas was absolved of their sins. The Lord told the Pandavas, “From now on, I will remain here as a triangular shaped JyotirLinga. By taking a Darshan of Kedarnath, devotees would attain piety”. A triangular shaped rock is worshiped in Garbhagriha of the temple. Surrounding Kedarnath, there are many symbols of the Pandavas. Raja Pandu died at Pandukeshwar. The tribals here perform a dance called, “Pandav Nritya”. The mountain top where the Pandavas went to Swarga is known as “Swargarohini”, which is located in Badrinath. When Darmaraja was leaving for Swarga, one of his fingers fell on the earth. At that place, Dharmaraj installed a Shiva Linga, which is the size of the thumb. To gain Mashisharupa, Shankara and Bheema fought with maces. Bheema was struck with remorse. He started to massage Lord Shankara’s body with ghee. In memory of this event, even today, this triangular Shiva JyotirLinga is massaged with ghee. Water and Bel leaves are used for worship.
When Nara-Narayan went to Badrika village and started the worship of Parthiva, Shiva appeared before them. Nara-Narayan wished that, for the welfare of the humanity, Shiva should remain there in his original form. Granting their wish, in the snow-clad Himalayas, in a place called Kedar, Mahesh himself stayed there as a Jyoti. Here, He is known as Kedareshwara.
