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The sacred Kedarnath Dham portals in Uttarakhand’s high Garhwal Himalayan region were closed for the winter on Thursday.
According to Badrinath Kedarnath Temple Committee sources, the temple doors were closed for devotees at 8.30 a.m. after prayers and chanting of vedic hymns.
More than 3,000 devotees attended the event, as did temple committee president Ajendra Ajay, teerth purohit, and Rudraprayag district administration officials, while the Indian Army’s 11th Maratha Regiment played devotional music.
This year, over 43 lakh pilgrims visited Chardham. In Kedarnath alone, 15,61,882 devotees visited the temple.
Dr. Harish Gaur, the temple committee’s media in-charge, stated that the Kedarnath temple opened its doors at 3 a.m. and that the process of closing the doors for the winter began at 4 a.m.
The temple’s sanctum sanctorum and main gate were closed after temple priest T. Gangadhar Linga covered the ‘jyotirlinga’ with Baghambar, Bhringraj flower, Bhasma, local dry flowers and leaves, and Lord Shankar’s ‘panchmukhi doli’ left for the Omkareshwar temple in Ukhimath.
On Thursday, the doors of Yamunotri dham in Uttarkashi district were also closed for the winter.
Suresh Uniyal, secretary of the Yamunotri Temple Committee, stated that after performing rituals, the doors of Yamunotri dham were closed at 12:09 p.m. According to Uniyal, over 2,000 devotees were present on the occasion and they also performed Tandi dance (folk dance of Uttarakhand) on the drum beat.
The goddess Yamuna’s ‘doli’ was removed from the dham and placed in Kharsali village, where devotees will be able to pay their respects to the goddess for the next six months.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami thanked the pilgrims and stated that this year’s Chardham Yatra had a record number of pilgrims.
The new Kedarpuri has been built under the supervision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with facilities for pilgrims, he said.
Dhami stated that the Prime Minister recently laid the groundwork for the Gaurikund-Kedarnath Ropeway, which will make the Kedarnath Yatra easier.
On the occasion of the Annakoot festival, the doors of Gangotri dham, one of the most famous temples of the Garhwal Himalayas known as Chardham, were closed on Wednesday for the winter season.
Yamunotri’s doors will also be closed on Thursday, while Badrinath’s doors will be closed on November 19.
The four Himalayan temples of Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri in Uttarakhand’s Garhwal region are closed for six months every year due to snowfall.
Every year, thousands of devotees flock to the Chardham Yatra, which is regarded as the economic backbone of the Garhwal region.
Source:FE
