Kedarnath

Kedarnath is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva — the most sacred abodes of Shiva in Hinduism — and is the holiest of all Char Dhams. The temple stands at a breathtaking altitude of 3,583 metres, surrounded by snow-capped Himalayan peaks including the Kedar Dome and Trishul.

The temple itself is an architectural marvel. Built from large grey stone slabs in the North Indian Nagara style, it was constructed by the Pandavas after the Mahabharata war and later restored by Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century. Shankaracharya is said to have attained samadhi at Kedarnath at the age of 32 — his samadhi shrine stands immediately behind the main temple.

The 2013 Kedarnath disaster — a devastating cloudburst — caused massive destruction to the surrounding area but left the ancient temple almost unharmed. A large boulder that came to rest directly behind the temple is credited with deflecting the floodwaters, which pilgrims consider a miracle of Lord Shiva.

Mythology

After the Kurukshetra war, the Pandavas sought Lord Shiva to atone for the sin of killing their own kin. Shiva, unwilling to meet them, disguised himself as a bull and hid in Guptakashi. When Bhima spotted him, Shiva dived into the ground. Bhima caught him by the hump. The hump (pinda) is worshipped at Kedarnath; the other body parts appeared at the four Panch Kedar shrines — Tungnath, Rudranath, Madhyamaheshwar, and Kalpeshwar.