Char Dham yatraa

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia For the religious sites in Nepal, see Char Dham, Nepal. For the Himalayan pilgrimage sites of Badrinath, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Yamunotri, see Chota Char Dham. Char Dhamvte Jagannath Puri Rameswaram Dwarka Badrinath Char Dham is located in IndiaPuriP uriRameswa ramR ameswa ramD warkaDw arkaBadrin athBad rinath Locations of the Char Dham The Char Dham (Hindi: चारधाम, romanized: Cārdhām transl. the four abodes), or the Chatur Dhama (Sanskrit: चतुर्धाम, romanized: Caturdhāma),[1] is a set of four Hindu pilgrimage sites in India,[2] consisting of Badrinath, Dwarka, Puri and Rameswaram.[3] Badrinath, Dwarka, and Puri are shrines of Vishnu, whereas Rameswaram is a shrine of Shiva. Defined by Adi Shankara, each dhāma represents a particular yuga, with Badrinath representing Satya Yuga, Rameswaram representing Treta Yuga, Dwarka representing Dvapara Yuga, and Puri representing Kali Yuga. Many Hindus believe that visiting these sites can help them achieve moksha.[4] The Char Dham is not to be confused with the Chota Char Dham which comprises Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, Badrinath. It is a Hindu pilgrimage circuit in Uttarakhand which was named by the religious tourism industry. Description According to Hindu legend, Badrinath became prominent when Nara-Narayana, an avatar of Lord Vishnu, performed tapas there. Many berry trees then grew in the area, so the site was initially named badarikāvaṇa, the forest of berries. Per legend, a large berry tree grew above Nara-Narayana to save him from the rain and sun. Locals say that it was Lakshmi who became the berry tree to save Narayana. After completing tapas, Narayana said declared that people should always invoke her name before his. Therefore, Hindus refer to "Lakshmi-Narayana." Within the satya yuga, the area came to be known as badrināth, the lord of the berry trees, in recognizance of Nara-Narayana’s penance. The temple to him is located on the banks of the Alaknanda River in the Chamoli district of Uttrakhand. The second dhāma, Rameswaram, has its origins in the Treta Yuga when Rama installed a lingam there and worshipped it to get atonement from Shiva for slaying Ravana, a devotee of Shiva.[5] It is believed that Rama's footprints are imprinted there.[6] The third dhāma, Dwaraka, was established in the Dvapara Yuga when Krishna made the city his residence.[7] At the fourth dhāma, Puri, Vishnu is worshipped as Jagannath, his avatar for the current epoch, Kali Yuga. The monk Adi Shankara organised four maṭhas to correspond to the four sites of the Char Dham: the headquarters at Dwarka in the West, Puri in the East, Sringeri Sharada Peetham in the South and Badarikashrama in the North.[8] The table below gives an overview of the four Amnaya Maṭhas founded by Adi Shankara.[9] Shishya (lineage) Direction Maṭha Mahāvākya Veda Sampradaya Padmapāda East Govardhana Pīṭhaṃ Prajñānam brahma (Consciousness is Brahman) Rig Veda Bhogavala Sureśvara South Sringeri Śārada Pīṭhaṃ Aham brahmāsmi (I am Brahman) Yajur Veda Bhūrivala Hastāmalakācārya West Dvāraka Pīṭhaṃ Tattvamasi (That thou art) Sama Veda Kitavala Toṭakācārya North Jyotirmaṭha Pīṭhaṃ Ayamātmā brahma (This self "soul" is Brahman) Atharva Veda Nandavala Sites of the Char Dham