Kedarnath Jyotirlinga

The story of this place

The tradition of the Panch Kedar says that after the war of Kurukshetra, the Pandavas came to the Himalaya seeking Lord Shiva, to be freed of the sin of killing their own kin. The Lord did not wish to meet them easily and took the form of a bull. When Bhima recognised him, the bull sank into the earth, and its hump remained at Kedarnath. That hump of rock is worshipped here as the Jyotirlinga. The other parts of the divine form appeared at four more places, and together these five shrines are the Panch Kedar.

The temple as we see it is centuries old, built of massive stone slabs on a high plateau beside the Mandakini river. Adi Shankaracharya came here in the 8th century, and the tradition holds that he took samadhi at Kedarnath; his samadhi sthal stands just behind the temple, rebuilt beautifully after the floods of 2013.

In those terrible floods of June 2013, the town around suffered greatly, yet the temple itself stood firm. Devotees see in this the grace of the Lord, and the darshan today feels even more precious for it. Kedarnath is both a Jyotirlinga and one of the four dhams of the Chota Char Dham of Uttarakhand, so it is the meeting point of two great yatras.

Darshan, timings and temple etiquette

Kedarnath is a seasonal temple. The doors open each year on the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya, in late April or early May, and close after Bhai Dooj, two days after Diwali, in October or November. The exact dates are declared by the temple committee on Maha Shivaratri. Through the winter, the deity is worshipped at the Omkareshwar temple in Ukhimath, so if you travel in winter, you can still have darshan there.

At Kedarnath, the day begins with the morning abhishekam and darshan continues through the day, with a break in the afternoon, and the evening aarti is deeply moving in the cold mountain air. Timings shift with the season and the crowd, so ask your consultant for the current schedule.

Dress warmly and modestly; it is cold here even in June. The queue can be long in May and June, so keep patience and keep chanting. Inside the sanctum, pujaris guide you; you may touch the Jyotirlinga during certain hours, which is a rare blessing among the twelve.

The yatra: how you go up

The motor road ends at Gaurikund. From there it is a 16 km climb on a well made path to the temple, which most pilgrims cover in 6 to 8 hours. Ponies, palanquins and porters are available at Gaurikund if you cannot walk the whole way. Start early in the morning, walk at your own pace, and stop for tea and Maggi at the small stalls on the way; this walk itself becomes one of the sweetest memories of the yatra.

If the climb is not possible for you, helicopter services fly to Kedarnath from helipads at Phata, Sirsi and Guptkashi. Book only on the official IRCTC Heli Yatra website, heliyatra.irctc.co.in. Please do not pay any agent who promises confirmed helicopter tickets outside the official portal; every season pilgrims lose money to such promises. Even by helicopter, there is a short walk from the helipad to the temple.

One rule is compulsory for everyone: registration for the Char Dham Yatra on the Uttarakhand government portal, registrationandtouristcare.uk.gov.in. Your registration QR code is checked on the way. We complete this registration for all our yatris as part of the package.

Best time to visit

May and June are the main season, when the doors have just opened and the weather is at its kindest, though the crowds are at their largest. September and October are quieter and the skies are often clearer after the rains, a lovely time for darshan.

July and August are the monsoon months. The mountains are green and beautiful, but landslides can block the road and the trek becomes risky, so we do not suggest these months for elders or families with children. From November to April the temple is closed and the deity is at Ukhimath.

How to reach

The nearest railway stations are Rishikesh and Haridwar, and the nearest airport is Jolly Grant, Dehradun. From Rishikesh, the road runs up the holy valley through Devprayag and Rudraprayag to Sonprayag, about 210 to 220 km, a full day of mountain driving. Private vehicles park at Sonprayag, and local jeeps take you the last stretch to Gaurikund, where the trek begins.

Most of our Kedarnath and Chota Char Dham journeys keep a night at Guptkashi, Sirsi or Sonprayag before the climb, so that you start fresh in the morning. If you are combining Kedarnath with Badrinath, the road route goes back through Rudraprayag, and we plan the nights so that no day becomes too long.

Tips from our travel experts

We suggest you keep one buffer day in your plan. Mountain weather changes quickly, helicopters get grounded, and a spare day saves the whole yatra. Carry woollens even in June, a good rain jacket, a small torch, and any regular medicines, and keep your registration QR code and ID handy.

Walk slowly for the first hour and let your body get used to the height; Kedarnath is at about 3,583 metres, and elders should climb only after a doctor's advice. Drink water often. If you feel heaviness in the chest or a strong headache, tell your group and rest; do not push.

Book your stay at Kedarnath well in advance in May and June; rooms near the temple are few and simple. And keep your evening free for the aarti; standing before the lit temple as the peaks turn pink behind it is the moment every yatri remembers.

For our NRI and OCI travellers

The Char Dham registration portal accepts passport details, so you can register from abroad before you fly; we do this for you when you book. Helicopter seats in May and June sell out quickly, so if parents or elders are travelling, tell us your dates early.

Plan at least 4 to 5 days from Delhi for a comfortable Kedarnath darshan, or 10 to 12 days for the full Chota Char Dham. Mobile network at Kedarnath is weak, so tell your family at home not to worry if you are unreachable for a day. Many of our overseas yatris tell us that this one darshan, done calmly and without rush, was worth the whole trip to India.