Rudraprayag(Uttarakhand): After waiting for six months, the doors of the Kedarnath Temple, opened on Friday at 6.25 am, to begin the Chardham Yatra in Uttarakhand. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami along with his wife Geeta Dhami was also present on the occasion and offered prayers.
After the opening of the doors of Kedarnath Dham, the first puja was offered to Lord Shiva in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. When gates of the temple were opened, the entire Dham reverberated with the chants of Har Har Mahadev. Baba Kedar's Doli was brought to the temple premises with an army band and local musical troupe from the residence of the head priest of Kedarnath.
On the occasion of the opening of the doors of Kedarnath Dham, one of the country's 12 Jyotirlingas, thousands of devotees were present. The doors of the temple opened following the decades-old traditional ritual of Vedic chanting. The temple has been decked up with 15 quintals of flowers. The portals of the temple were closed for winter for six months on November 6 last year.
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Located on the banks of the Mandakini River, the revered shrine is the of the four ancient pilgrimage sites referred to as 'Char Dham' which also include Yamunotri, Gangotri, and Badrinath. Built-in the eighth century AD by Jagad Guru Adi Shankaracharya, Kedarnath Temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The annual Chardham Yatra began on May 3 on the auspicious occasion of Akshaya Tritiya with the opening of the portals of Gangotri and Yamunotri temples in the Uttarkashi district. Portals of Badrinath Temple will open on May 8.
Earlier this month, the state government capped the number of pilgrims visiting the Char Dhams. A total of 15,000 pilgrims will be allowed daily at Badrinath, 12,000 at Kedarnath, 7,000 at Gangotri, and 4,000 at Yamunotri. This arrangement has been made for 45 days. This year, it is not mandatory for pilgrims to carry a negative COVID-19 test report or vaccination certificate. Char Dhams draw lakhs of tourists and devotees every year from across the country and abroad.
(With Agency inputs)
