Short Pilgrimages In Uttarakhand

India is a land of culture,
traditions and a rich mosaic of colourful heritage that are very distinct from
one another. Some of these beliefs require the person to go on pilgrimages for
salvation and Uttarakhand is one of the top places for an enlightening
experience. There is no shortage of pilgrim destinations in Devbhoomi
Uttarakhand. From the Hemkund sahib Yatra for the Sikhs to the Char Dham Yatra
for the Hindus this place embraces all religions with open arms. However, these
pilgrimages require you to travel for a minimum of 10 days and is extremely
time consuming. If you are travelling from far away and do not have that much
of time to spare yet you wish to go on a pilgrimage then there are several
options available. Here are few pilgrimages that you could opt for if you have
limited time to experience the deep spirituality that this state has to offer:

This could be considered as a
time saving version of the holy char Dham Yatra where the pilgrimage takes you
to the 4 holy portals of Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri and Yamunotri. As the
name suggests this journey can take you to of the any four temples i.e. a do
Dham can be of Kedar – Badri or Gangotri – Yamunotri. To save even some more
time you could opt for the Do Dham
Yatra by helicopter that not only offers a quick pilgrimage but also
promises a very scenic and breathtakingly comfortable journey. Do Dham Yatra is
the perfect choice also for people planning on undertaking this tour as an
extended weekend plan as well.

The 5 temples dedicated to lord
Vishnu are nestled among some of the lushest green and scenic locations across
this hill state that can be completed in a minimum of 5 days. This Yatra
circuit can be very easily done especially due to the absence of teeming and
hurried crowd as compared to the other popularised pilgrimages that take
relatively longer duration to cover. The Panch Badri temples include –
Badrinath, Bhavishya Badri, Adi Badri, Yogdhyan Badri and Vridha Badri. All
these temples share the common feature of being located right next to the holy
Alaknanda River in the valley in the Garhwal Himalayan region. It doesn’t take
long for the pilgrims to go from one temple to the next since it covers only 5
out of the original 7 or Sapta Badri temples.

What better way of having a
spiritual experience than making your way through the 5 holy seats of river
confluences. These holy meeting spots of the rivers include Devprayag
(Alaknanda and Bhagirathi), Rudraprayag (Mandakini and Alaknanda), Nandaprayag
(Alaknanda and Nandakini), Karnaprayag (Pindar and Alaknanda) and Vishnu Prayag
(Satopanth and Bhagirath Kharak). All these places are located almost in close
proximity to one another and offer some of the most enriching spiritual experiences
due to their relevance in Hindu mythologies. Going to these sacred meeting
points of the rivers and taking a holy deep here is believed to be the way to
attaining salvation.

Uttarakhand is a well-known place
for famous Shaktipeeth in India. The story of these Shaktipeeth dates back to
the time when King Daksha (Parvati’s father) had arranged for a holy Yagya.
When lord Shiva arrived with his group of animals and ragged clothing the king
insulted him in front of everyone. Feeling humiliated at the disrespect shown
Sati jumped in the fire of the Yagya. Shiva carried her body from one place to
the next in mourning and Indra Dev decided to cut the body of sati into 52
pieces through the Sudarshan chakra. The places where her body parts fell are
now these Shakti Peeth. You could opt for a Shaktipeeth Darshan in Haridwar
itself and visit: Bhuvaneshwari Mandir, Mansa Devi Temple, Maya Devi Temple,
Chandu Devi Mandir etc.

Also referred to as the Chota
Kailash Yatra (not to be confused with Om Parvat) this is another one of the
most sacred Shiva place of worship in Uttarakhand. If you do not have time to
go to the full-fledged Kailash Mansarovar yatra then this is your next best
option. If you are able to carve out a few more days than required and manage
to get up to a week then this would be a great way of spending some time in the
quietude and peaceful hilly green surroundings. It will take you through
Pithoragarh, Dharchula, Lamari, Nabi, Kutti, Om Parvat and then back. Be sure
to book yourself horse rides to save some more time since trekking here is kind
of challenging. However, the resulting feeling of immense devotion and
enlightenment you get while reaching the Om Parvat or while making your way
through the surreal natural beauty is unparalleled and can only be experienced
first-hand.