One of the most beautiful and untouched among Panch Kedar is Rudranath Temple. Here is a complete detail of the travel to this quint temple located in the lap of the mighty Himalayas. Here is a complete detail of the trekking route, itinerary, and everything you need to know about Rudranath temple. Read this article to know more about it.
Located at an altitude of 11800 feet above sea level in the Chamoli district of Garhwal Uttarakhand, Rudranath temple is the second temple to be visited in the Panch Kedar circuit. Made up of natural rock, Rudranath temple is in the middle of a dense alpine forest. As per the holy scriptures and legends it is believed that after getting disappeared from Kedarnath, lord shiva's bull incarnation appeared at five different locations in the form of five body parts. The face of lord Shiva appeared in this place which is worshipped in the form of "Neelkantha Mahadev". It is one of the toughest treks among all the five Kedars present in Uttarakhand. Some of the glorious peaks of the Himalayan range like Nanda Gunti, Nanda Devi, and Trishul add grance to its beauty. As per the tradition of this temple, it is expected every visitor of this temple takes a bath in Narad kund situated in the vicinity of the temple before having darshan of lord shiva.
It is believed that Rudranath temple is a part of Panch Kedar which was established by Pandavas. Other temples of Panch Kedar are Kedarnath, Tungnath, Madhyamaheshwar, and Kalpeshwar. As per the legends and many holy scriptures it is believed that after killing their cousins and gurus they felt sorrow for that so they started searching for lord shiva to atone for the sin of fratricide (Gotra Hatya) and Brahmahatya ( Killng of Brahmans and their teachers). So they first visited Kashi as it is one of the favorite destinations for lord shiva. But as lord shiva was unhappy due to bloodshed, he escaped from Kashi and reached Guptkashi to avoid Pandavas. After knowing this Pandavas again went to Guptkashi, but lord shiva escaped to Kedar. When Pandavas reached Kedar village lord shiva transformed into Nadi and got mixed in with other cattle grazing nearby. Pandavas spotted him and tried to hold him but the body part of the bull split into four different parts and appeared at five different locations. Pandavas worshipped the hump of the bull appeared at Kedarnath then lord Shiva got pleased and relieved them from their sin. Pandavas worshipped lord Shiva and constructed temples at all these locations. These five temples are collectively known as Panch Kedar. The face of lord Shiva appeared at Rudranath which is worshipped in the form of "Neelkanth Mahadev"
There are basically three routes to Rudranath temple. The first one starts from Helang village and passes through Urgam, Kalpeshwar, Dumak, Bansi Narayan, Panar, and then ultimately to Rudranath. This is the most common route taken by trekkers as it is the most beautiful one among all the three routes. The other two routes start from Sagar village and Mandal village respectively. Following are the short trek route to reach Rudranath temple:-
Route 1:- Helang to Urgam to Kalpeshwar to Dumak to Bansi Narayan to Panar and ultimately to Rudranath
Route 2:- Starting from Mandal village to Anasuya temple to Hansa Bugyal to Naola Pass to Rudranath.
Route 3:- Starting from Sagar village to Liti Bugyal to Panar Bugyal to Pitradhar and ultimately to Rudranath.
To reach Rudranath, first, you have to reach Gopeshwar from Rishikesh or Haridwar. It is located at a distance of 218 km from Rishikesh. You can hire a shared cab from Rishikesh to reach there. It will cost you something between INR 700 to 1000 per person. It's recommended to have a night stay at Helang Village which is about 15kms from Gopeshwar. Next day start your trek from Helang village and go to Kalpeshwar to Lyari. After having darshan at Kalpeshwar return back to Helang and drive to Sagar village. The night stay will be at Sagar village. Next day start your trek from Sagar village and go to Panar which is about 12 km away from there and will take about 5 to 7 hours to reach Panar Bugyal. The night stay will be in Panar village. The next day start early in the morning and trek to Rudranath and stay there. View from Rudranath is amazing and camping at Rudranath is a lifetime experience. The next day start your trek early in the morning to reach Mandal and stay there for a night and the next day you can take vehicle to return back to Rishikesh / Haridwar else you can proceed to cover your next panch kedar or well known Kedarnath yatra. You can also book you kedarnath tour package with visit to rudranath for your seamless journey
There at Rudranath, the face of lord Shiva appeared, which is known as Neelkanth Mahadev. The literal meaning of Rudranath is "Him who is angry". The river Baitarni or Vaitarni or Rudraganga flows near the temple and is also known as the river of salvation. It is believed that the souls of the dead cross this river to reach the other world. This temple is very auspicious and has great importance.
Rudranath, located at a brеathtaking hеight of approximatеly 3,600 mеtеrs (11,800 fееt) abovе sеa lеvеl in Uttarakhand's Himalayan rеgion, is both a sacrеd pilgrimagе sitе dеdicatеd to Lord Shiva and a placе of rеmarkablе natural bеauty. Its high position allows visitors to takе a look at thе purе magnificеncе of thе Himalayas. Thе viеws from Rudranath arе brеathtaking, with snow-cappеd pеaks, bеautiful alpinе mеadows, and grееn forеsts strеtching as far as thе еyе can sее. Thе bеauty of this hеight is found in its pеacеful and rеmotе sеtting, whеrе onе can truly connеct with naturе whilе sееking spiritual pеacе. Rudranath's sеrеnе atmosphеrе and purе mountain air makе it an idеal location for mеditation and sеlf-analysis, allowing visitors to losе thеmsеlvеs in both thе divinе aura and thе amazing landscapеs.
Thе tеmplе is locatеd on thе Gopеshwar-Kеdarnath Road, and it is approximatеly 219 kilomеtеrs from Rishikеsh to thе еntry point at Sagar. You must trеk 21 kilomеtеrs from Sagar village to Rudranath. Thе nеarеst airport is Jolly Grant Airport in Dеhradun, which is approximatеly 258 kilomеtеrs away.
Rudranath, thе most difficult of thе Panch Kеdars to rеach, is famous for its Lord Shiva tеmplе, which contains onе of thе fivе body parts Lord Shiva dividеd himsеlf into to avoid thе Pandavas. Thеrе arе also idols and statuеs of Kunti, Pandavas, and Draupadi in thе tеmplе.
Thе trеk takеs 3-4 days to complеtе, basеd on thе plan and pacе of thе trеkkеr. Thе Rudranath trеk bеgins in Sagar villagе and travеls through dеnsе forеsts, mеadows, and high climbs.
Rudranath is best visited during the summer months from may to september. The weather is pleasant during this time and temple is available because the snow has melted.
Trekkers can bring there own tents and supplies and can tent near the temple. It is highly advisable to bring wollend and warm clothes to wear because the temple at very high elevation therefore the atmosphere is cold throughout the year, even in summers. Accommodation options are available in the route of Rudranath trek at Sagar village, Lyuti Bugyal, Panar and Urgam.
According to the legends, Pandavas built the Rudranath temple. During the Epic Mahabharata Pandavas murdered their cousins and teachers and want atonement from these sins. So Lord Krishna advised them to visit Lord Shiva for atonement But Shiva took the form of a bull and hide from Pandavas because he was angry from them.
It is believed that the each of these sites dedicated to parts of lord Shiva: Rudranath (His Face), Kedarnath (His Lump), Madhyamaheshwar (His belly), Tungnath (His Arms) and Kalpeshwar (His Hair).
Rudranath is approximately 3600 metres above sea level. This sacred pilgrimage site is in Uttarakhand’s Himalayan region offers breathtaking views of surroundings wih serene atmosphere.
Yes, a beginner can do Rudranath trek. But the trek is moderately difficult it includes challenging terrain and high mountains. Before directly going for Rudranath trek it is highly advisable to gain some trekking experience on easier trails. Hiring local guids is crucial for Rudranath trek.
From Rudranath you can see the mountain peaks of Trisul, Nanda Devi, Devasthan, Hanthi parbat, and Nanda Ghunti.
Rudranath temple trek is one of the most difficult trek in Uttarakhand. The total trek is 21 km long and begins in Sagar village and then Sagar village to Panar Bugyal which is 12 km and takes about 6-8 hours and then Panar Bugyal to Rudranath temple which is 10 km long and again takes 5-6 hours.
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