Day – 10 (14/11/2024)
Our ninth day's itinerary: Baghnath, Baijnath and Satyanarayan Temple.
A recap of the ninth day's places of visit: Baghnath, Baijnath & Satyanarayan Temple.
Plans for the tenth day: Dhari Devi Temple, Dev Prayag - Raghunath Ram Mandir and Confluence of the rivers Bhagirathi and Alakananda, Haridwar - HarkiPouri for Ganga Aarti and night halt at Haridwar.
Have a seat and experience our Day 10 visit.
As it dawned, we checked out of the hotel, lugging our
luggage to the ever-dependent vehicle and handed it over to ever-obliging Sanjay, who
made sure that 'everything had a place and everything was in its place' inside the vehicle.
Our first stop was Dhari Devi temple, some 15 km, on our way to Rishikesh. The temple is on an island in Alakananda River where a
dam is constructed and the earlier temple was rescued from getting submerged
due to the construction of this dam. There is a lovely bridge walkway to reach
the temple but the climb is a tedious one. I was told by Suma Aunty that
because it was off-season, there was no crowd. Else there would be a long queue
to have darshana of the Devi.
For those who can't take this arduous route of the steps, there is a vehicle facility where you pay Rs. 100/- per person as return fare. The vehicle takes you close enough to the bridge from where you can walk to the temple and return by this vehicle.
Interesting information about this temple:
Dhari Devi Temple is a Hindu temple located on the banks of the Alakananda River between Srinagar and Rudraprayag.
The temple is home
to the upper half of the idol of the goddess Dhari, while the lower half of the
idol is located in Kalimath, where she is worshipped, in the form of Sri Yantra, as a manifestation of
the Goddess Kali. One can bring and offer small rice (Jeera Sambar Rice) to the temple that will be used to decorate the Devi.
She is considered to be the guardian deity of Uttarakhand
and is revered as the protector of the Char Dhams. Her shrine is one of
108 Shakti Sthals in India, as numbered by Shrimad Devi Bhagwat.
2013 Uttarakhand floods
On June 16, 2013, the original temple of the goddess was
removed and shifted to the concrete platform at a height of about 611 meters
from the Alakananda River, to give way to the construction of the 330 MW
Alaknanda Hydro Electric Dam built by Alaknanda Hydro Power Company Ltd
(AHPCL), a subsidiary of infrastructure major.
Dhari Devi Temple in 2002 (courtesy Wikipedia)
Dhari Devi Temple - November 2024
Incidentally, Hours after the idol was moved, the region
faced what would become one of the country’s worst natural disasters since
the 2004 tsunami. The 2013 North India floods were caused by a
multi-day cloudburst resulting in devastating floods and landslides
washing away the entire shrine town and killing hundreds of people. Locals
and devotees believe, Uttarakhand had to face the Goddess’ ire as she was
shifted from her ‘mool sthan’ (original abode) to make way for a 330 MW hydel
project that was left in ruins after the flood. A similar attempt in 1882 by a
local king had resulted in a landslide that had flattened Kedarnath.
The new temple is now constructed at its original location.[1]
Taking cue from my earlier request to the group, Suma Aunty
told me to rush to the temple first so that I could recite Durga Saptha Shati
beeja mantra, Aragala Stotra and meditate for some time too before others joined and so I literally ran down the steps. The experience of chanting and
meditating was unbelievably blissful. The
Devi’s idol has such a calming effect and oozes positive vibrations for those
who can perceive these subtle sensations. I could feel that my visit was
fruitful and complete with the divine Darshana of Maa Dhari Devi.
In front of Dhari Devi Temple Maa Dhari Devi
We had quinoa khichdi for breakfast, again thanks to Suma
Aunty while Sumithra and Dwarkanath had parathas and curd which Anil and I
shared with them.
Our next stop was Dev Prayag, a distance of around 50 km that took just over an hour to reach. Crossing the hanging bridge over the River Bhagirati, and a short walk brings us to the confluence of
Alakananda and Bhagirathi rivers. The main temple here is Raghunath Mandir and this temple houses Lord Rama without the usual company of Lakshmana, Seetha and Hanuman. It is said that Lord Rama
performed penance here for killing a Brahman (Ravana) and so is the reason for his
solo appearance. The climb of 110 steps to reach the temple is pretty steep and it
is a practice to wash your feet in the confluence of rivers before climbing up
to the temple.
Raghunath at Dev Prayag View of the temple 101 Steps to reach the temple
Maa Annapurna Temple Lord Narasimha
The confluence of Rivers Bhagarati on the right and Alakananda on the left
View of Bhagirati River from both sides of the hanging bridge
Other temples in the complex are of Lord Narasimha and
Goddess Annapoorna. It is
believed that the mystic river Saraswathi flows directly underneath the idol
and at times the foot of the idol is wet with water from the river.
The confluence of rivers creates the mighty river Ganga, as it is known downstream, from Dev Prayag onwards. This completes our visit to the Panch Prayag and the confluences of great rivers at each of these places.
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(Picture Courtesy FaceBook)Pictorial Presentation of Chaar Dhaam, Pancha Prayag and the Five Rivers Confluences
The group, except Suma Aunty, had a bite into the momos here
along with masala lime soda while Suma Aunty had just salted lime juice.
There is a Central Sanskrit University at Dev Prayag, that is housed in a beautiful structure, on the slopes of a mountain overlooking the town.
Central Sanskrit University, Dev PrayagWe then climbed back into our vehicle and proceeded to our
next destination, Haridwar, a distance of around 92 km that we covered in just under 3 hours and en route, had lunch at a roadside hotel. We were eager to
reach Haridwar before 17h00 to witness the much-celebrated Ganga Aarti. Sanjay
brought us in time for a quick check-in at the hotel as we freshened up and hastened towards Harkipouri, where we witnessed the famed Ganga Aarti, along with at
least a hundred thousand other people. The energy levels at the time of Aarti are something that has to be seen to be believed. The dedication and resolve of the crowd, at the time during the Aarti process, is something beyond ordinary!
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Ganga Aarati at Har Ki Pauri, Haridwar
Ganga Pooja and Aarti at Har Ki Pauri by Sumithra and DwarakanathAnil and I did some window shopping
while others returned to the hotel. I skipped dinner as I had a late lunch and
felt full.
Plan vs. Actual:
Visited Dhari Devi, Dev Prayag - Raghunath Ram Temple at the confluence of the Rivers Bhagirati and Alakananda, witnessed the famed Ganga Aarti at Harkipouri in Haridwar.
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Camp coordinates: Hotel Royal Central Shoolin Suites, Dudhadari Chowk, Bhoopatwala, Haridwar Phone: +91 7060363368, +91 6397583919
https://maps.app.goo.gl/hETZpzHyLYPwWPJv5
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Continued .... in The Conclusion
[1] From the website https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhari_Devi
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