Amarnath temple is a shrine situated in Jammu and Kashmir. Amarnath temple has a cave with is located at the height of 3,889 metres or about 142 Kms from Srinagar. It is one of the famous holi shrine and most visited tourist places of Jammu and Kashmir. The cave of the temple is surrounded by snow mountains. The pilgrimage to Amarnath temple starts in summer. Thousand of people of hindu dharam and other devotees makes their pilgrimage to Amarnath temple or cave by crossing tough paths and roads during their journey.
Amarnath Yatra | Amarnath Temple
Amarnath Temple is about 29 Kms from Pahalgam. It is a holy place for the believers of Lord Shiva. There’s a trek to reach Amarnath Temple which is through the mountanious paths and roads after completing this trek, there’s a cave and inside a cave there’s Shiv Lingam (Stalagmite) which is formed by freezing of water droplets falling from the roof of the cave. It is mentioned in the ancient Hindu Puranas and text that the lingam is Lord Shiva. The yatra to Amarnath starts in the month of June and last till August.
History of Amarnath Temple :
It is believed that the place where Amarnath Cave has been established today is the place where Lord Shiva explained the true meaning of life to Goddess Parvati, his wife and to group of people who were his followers. The first person who discovered this holy cave was a famous sage, Bhrighu Muni. Once upon a time, the whole Kashmir Valley was under water and Kashyap Muni; who is another powerful sage, saved Kashmir Valley and drained water with his powers. When the water got drained, Bhrighu Muni was the person who had the first darshan of Lingam.
How to Reach Amarnath Cave or Amarnath Temple :
To start Amarnath Yatra, people from other states have to reach Jammu airport or Jammu Railway Station. After reaching Jammu, one can hire a private taxi, inter state transport buses are also available. After reaching Srinagar, the yatra starts from Chandanwari, Pahalgam. There are two to reach Amarnath Temple or Cave :
- Through Baltal (this is a shorter route than the traditional one i.e through Srinagar)
- Through Srinagar (the old one)
The Baltal route is shorter as it just 14 Kms long and covers the yatra in 1-2 days. The Pahalgam route which is traditional and the old one through Srinagar is longer and covers the yatra in 4-5 days.
ALSO READ : ( Machail Mata Temple In Jammu | A Pilgrimage To Machail Mata )
Services :
One can cover this yatra by foot or if people need to opt for any service, the services provided there are palkies and helicopter. Palki is a seater which is holded by a palki holder on their shoulders. If people want to go by helicopter then one need to reach Baltal first and from there you can avail helicopter services which will drop you at Panchtarni. From Panchtarni the distance towards the Amarnath cave is just 6 Kms and if still you don’t want to cover on foot you can opt for a palki or a horse.
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Our Review :
We went to Amarnath in the first week of July. We were amazed when we had the darshan of Baba Barfani (Lingam). The Amarnath Yatra is one of the toughest as well as the beautiful yatra through the snowy covered mountains. This yatra needs to patience and energy though once you start the journey you get the energy to reach the place within yourself. Though for us it was not that tough, we were four people and were very excited to visit the cave to seek the blessings of Lord Shiva. The scenic beauty we came across during our journey mesmerized all of us. One should go for Amarnath yatra once his/her lifetime.