Embarking on a spiritual odyssey to Kedarnath, where rugged mountains meet divine tranquility.

 

Embarking on a spiritual odyssey to Kedarnath, where rugged mountains meet divine tranquility.

On 28th of September I started my journey from Saharanpur for Shri Kedarnath Dham. I reached Haridwar where I was joined by 2 more members of our group. From Haridwar we departed at night for Guptkashi. By morning we were at Guptkashi. After taking some rest at Guptkashi and having done breakfast we Departed for Trijuginarayan Temple. This temple is thousands of year old and is the same place where Shiv Parvati got married. After this we came back to Guptkashi and prepared for our next day journey which was to Shri Kedarnath Dham.

Day 2 :-

Sharp at 4 am we all woke up and got ready where we were joined by rest of the members of our group. After joining them we were group of 11 people. We reached sonprayag where Mandakini coming from kedarnath meets Basuki river. After having our breakfast here, we took a shared taxi to Gaurikund the Base for Shri kedarnath Dham and started our trekking. We crossed bridges and and saw various waterfalls on our way to Shri Kedarnath. The ascend to Shri Kedarnath is not too steep.On our way we could see Himalayas getting closer and closer to us and the view was fantastic.On our way we faced intense hail Strom too. All of the sudden weather changed and temperature dropped. Hailstorm lasted for about 30 minutes. After trekking for about 7 hours finally we reached Shri Kedarnath Dham. The atmosphere at the temple was charged with reverence, and the energy of fellow pilgrims added to the sense of unity in faith. Everywhere we could hear the chants of Har Har Mahadev and all of my tiredness was vanished as soon as I Saw Kedarnath Temple. It was one of the most amazing experience of my life. We spent some time at the Temple and then after that we went back to our tent. It was extremely cold at night but thankfully we had heater facility inside our tent.

Day 3-:

Next Morning we woke up early and got in VIP que. It was a challenging task for us to get inside the time as the temple was extremely crowded. After few hours we finally were inside of the temple and got the chance to bow out heads in front of the the Jyotirling. Temple was not just beautiful from outside but also from inside. All the walls of the temple were gold plated from inside and it looked beautiful. After this we came out of the temple and clicked few photographs. Also we visited kaalbhairav temple located about a distance of 20 min from kedarnath Temple. On our way to kaal Bhairav Temple we saw Retas Kund. This kund was special and divine as it generates bubbles when we chant Har Har Mahadev near it. It is something very uncommon and amazing .Then after a small hike we reached kaal Bhairav Temple. The Temple of kaal Bhairav gave us a bird's eye view of Shri Kedarnath Dham. It is said that your journey to Shri Kedarnath isn't considered successful if you don't visit this Temple. After spending some time at the temple we departed for our way back home. Leaving the temple, I carried a sense of peace and fulfillment, knowing that this journey had enriched my soul and strengthened my spiritual connection.

Kharuhal : A Village in infinite deepness of Himalayas

Himalayas have always been the symbols of majestic beauty, the zenith and the formidable extreme of the world. Spread over the Asian continent through countries like India, Pakistan, Bhutan, Tibet and Nepal. On one side where the mountains are famous for their milky white snow, skiing, adventurous trekking and expedition destinations, which looks good, enjoyable (happy faces) and a good source of making money, but on other side there are some beautiful remote places which are not famous, people don't go there and they are not money making sites. 

The shining sun, the cooling breeze, the sounds of nature, the lush green hilly forests and a deep silence. Yes I am talking about a village "Kharuhal", located in very remote and isolated valley of Himalaya. This village is situated in Himachal Pradesh (a state in north India). The total population of this village is might be under 150. People are very simple but happy in their own isolated life and they don't even want any exposure. People are into agriculture for their livelihood and many people grow their own vegetables & other stuff in their small little gardens for their day to day needs. Young and educated youth are moving towards the big cities like Chandigarh, Delhi and other parts of country, because of unemployment in the state.  Life is very slow but peaceful, not easy to survive (not even for one day) if you are in habit of living a fancy urban life. But if you are tired of heavy, complicated and stressful city life & want to refresh your mood (and if you are looking for a quite and peaceful place for some mental peace) I would definitely recommend this place. But always keep one thing in your mind, you won't find any small or big hotel or any kind of home stay in this place, you have to make your own arrangements or you can ask locals if they permit you to stay with them. 

Language 

The residents of Kharul speaks Dogari, which is mix of Gurumukhi (Punjabi). 

Transportation 

You can use Government or private buses. Nearest bus station is Palampur, which is 30KM . Buses are not very frequent, only 2 or 3 buses are there. Locals have their own vehicle.

Lifestyle

People are very generous & helpful. Lifestyle is very simple. The only way of entertainment is TV. 

Food

Locals eat Rice, Pulse, Chapati, home grown vegetables/organic vegetables & also non veg food. They do use beverages like coffee and tea. 

Temples

The village has one temple, which is known as "Jagat Taarini Mata Mandir". 


The best time to visit in this village is October to April.