Badrinath Temple dedicated to lord Vishnu is located at Badrinath in Chamoli district, Uttarakhand. It is widely considered to be one of the holiest Hindu temples in the country. The temple is one of the four Char Dham pilgrimage sites in the country. The other three being Dwarika, Jagannath Puri and Rameshwaram. It is by far the most important of the four Char Dham sites and Badrinath receives many more visitors than the other three sites. Lord Vishnu is worshipped here. Hence, it is also called Vishnu Dham. It is also one of the 108 Divya Desams, holy shrines for Vaishnavites. It is one of the five Punyakshethras (Holy places) where the Hindus offer Shradddhakarmas (oblations) to their ancestors. Badrinath temple is one of five related shrines called Panch Badri that are dedicated to worship of Lord Vishnu and is known as Vishal Badri. The other four are Yogadhyan Badri, Bhavishya Badri, Vridh Badri, and Adi Badri.
The temple is located in the Garhwal hills, on the banks of the Alaknanda River near a hot water spring called Tapta Kund at an altitude of 3110 m above the sea level. Badrinath is located in the lap of Nar-Narayan Parvat, with the Neelkanth peak overlooking in the background.
Badrinath Temple History
It was originally established in 9th century by Adi Shankaracharya, the founder of the Advaita Vedanta School of philosophy. He discovered the Badrinarayan idol in the Alakananda River from the Narad Kund and installed it in the Garud Gupha near the hot water spring of Tapt Kund. The King of Garhwal moved the idol to the present temple in 16th century. The temple was expanded by the Kings of Garhwal in 17th century, before it again underwent damage in the great 1803 Himalayan earthquake. The temple was then rebuilt by the King of Jaipur.
Architecture of the Badrinath Temple
The temple is approximately 50 ft tall with a small cupola on top. It is built of stone, with arched windows and a stairway leads up to a tall arched gateway. At the gate opposite to the main Idol of the Lord one can find the idol of Bird Garud, the vehicle of Lord Badrinarayan, sitting in prayer with his hands folded. The temple resembles a Buddhist Vihara in its looks with the brightly painted facade and row of kiosks covered with curvy roofs. The temple is divided into three main chambers namely Garbh Griha (main sanctorum where the idol is placed), Darshan Mandap and the Sabha Mandap. The gate leads to a large courtyard with the main hall in the middle known as the Sabha Mandap. The Sabha Mandap has intricately carved pillars and walls. Inside this the Garbh Griha or main shrine area wherein one can find the idol of Lord Vishnu (Badri Nath). The idol is made of black stone (Shaligram) and seated in a Padmasan Posture. There are fifteen more murtis around the temple that are also worshipped. These include murtis of Nara & Narayana, Narasimha, Lakshmi, Narada, Ganesha, Uddhava, Kubera and Navadurga. Within the temple complex there is another shrine dedicated to Lakshmi the Goddess of Fortune. This shrine is situated to the left of the main temple building. Outside the exit door of the Badrinath Temple is the seating place of Shankaracharya, who meditated here.
Badrinath Temple in Uttarakhand remains open for six months, from the Hindu calendar months of Vaishaka to Karthik. For the remaining six months i.e. from Margashsish to Chaitra, the temple remains closed. The temple is closed during the winter season since the temperatures drop below zero. But according to Hindu customs since the pujas should take place uninterruptedly the Bronze images of Lord are carried to Pandukeshwar for the winter. The pujaris of Shri Badri Nath Temple are known as the Rawal, who are generally the Namboodri Brahmin of Kerala. Adi guru Shankaracharya was also a Namboodri Brahmin.
How to Reach Badrinath
The nearest railway stations to Badrinath are at Rishikesh, Kotdwar and Haridwar. Rishikesh is nearly 283 km, Haridwar is nearly 305 km and Kotdwar is nearly 330 km from Badrinath. Jolly Grant Airport in Dehradun is the nearest airport to Badrinath. This domestic airport is nearly 326 km away from Badrinath. Regular buses are available for Badrinath from Rishikesh, Haridwar, Dehradun and other important places.