Badrinath Dham – The Eternal Adobe of Lord Vishnu

The Vishal Badri temple is situated on the Garhwal hill tracks along the holy Hindu river Alaknanda in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand.  It is situated at an elevation of 3,133 m above sea level. Badrinath is among the most visited pilgrimage places where in the black stone idol of Lord Vishnu called Badrinarayan is 1 meter tall. The statue has been housed in a gold canopy placed under a Badri Tree. This idol is one of the eight self-manifested statues of Lord Vishnu. This spiritual place has been known by different names in all the different eras (Yugas). In satyuga it was called as Muktiprada, whereas in Tretayug it was named as gyana-peetha and in Dwaparyuga it was known as Vishalapuri. Now, in kalyug we all call it as Badrikashrama.

Lord Brahma resides to the north of the temple at Brahma Kapal where ceremonies for the souls who have left their bodies are performed. Near the foothills of Neelkanth Mountain around two miles from Vishal Badri temple towards the west is a large meadow where the footprints of the Supreme Lord Narayan can be seen etched on a large rock.

Badrinath is nestled among the Nar Parbat’s peaks which rise 6597 meters above the sea level so, there are various treks which lead to these mountains and these are a treat for thrill-seekers. Apart from this trek there are 2 another treks named as “Mana and Charanpaduka” which can also be experienced by the adventure lovers. Mana is located on an altitude of 3,200 meters.

The Vishal Badri temple has three structures called as the Garbhagriha, Darshan Mandap, and Sabha Mandap. The garbhagriha has conical shaped roof which is approximately 15 m tall and it additionally possess a small cupola covered with a roof of gold gilt on the top. The outer part of the temple is constructed with stones and it has the arched shaped windows. The main entrance of this holy shrine is a tall and arched gateway that can be reached by a broad stairway. The artistic architecture of Badrinath Sanctuary resembles the architecture of Buddhist temple. Moreover, the brightly painted outside of the temple also looks more like Buddhist temples. The main shrine or sanctum can be reached through a pillared large hall which is also called a mandap and these walls and pillars are covered up with the beautiful carvings.

In the temple the statue of Badrinarayan has a Shankha & Chakra in two arms whereas the other two arms of Lord Vishnu in this idol are rested on the lap in a Yogamudra. The Lord Vishnu idol isn’t the only one image in the temple but the sanctum of Bbadrinath also have images of Lord Kubera, Narada Ji, Uddhava Ji, and Nar & Narayan among others. However, there are some more idols & images that are worshipped here including Lakshmi Ji, Garuda Ji, and Navadurga Ji. These all idols are made up from shiny black stone.

The temple was present since the Vedic times even before the time of Mahabharata. However, with the spread of Buddhism, it was converted into a Buddhist shrine and the idol thrown in the river Alaknanda. Around the 9^th century, Adi Shankara restored this Buddhist temple to its original honor of being a Hindu temple. He had found the idol of Lord Vishnu in the Narad Kund and installed it near Tapta Kund in the Garuda Gupha.  The idol was placed here for nearly seven centuries till saint Varadarajacharya, inspired the King of the time to make a temple at the spot. He made the present temple and installed the idol of Lord Vishnu therein.

Lord Vishnu is in meditation at this place. However, earlier this place belonged to Shiva. One day, searching for a place to meditate, Lord Vishnu came to Badrinath. Realizing that the place was occupied by Lord Shiva, he thought of pastime. He took the form of a child and started crying. Mother Parvati heard his loud cries and tried her best to make him quiet. However, he would not stop crying, so she took him inside her house. Lord Shiva recognized the child and asked Parvati to leave him outside, but she wouldn’t listen. She took the child inside and put him to sleep. Mother Parvati came back outside and Lord Vishnu bolted the doors from inside. He called to Shiva and told him that He liked this place, so He will meditate here and give darshan to His devotees from here. He asked Shiva to make His residence in Kedarnath. And thus Shiva went to Kedarnath and this place became the abode of Lord Vishnu. Once, while meditating here, Lord Vishnu was oblivious to the harsh weather, so Goddess Lakshmi offered him protection by taking the form of a Badri/berry tree. As a result, this place came to be known as Badrika Ashram and Vishnuji as Lord Badri.

Badri Vishal Kshetra is the land extending from Nandaprayag to Satopant. It is the land where sages Nar and Narayan do austerities even today standing as the two mountains Nar and Narayan Parbat. They took birth as Arjun and Krishna during the Mahabharat. At that time, Arjun and Krishna lived at this place for a long time during exile. The great sage Vyas also has a cave dedicated to him near the temple where he wrote the Mahabharat with the help of Lord Ganesha who was his scribe. Rishi Vyas collected the Vedas here, dividing them into four parts and taught them to his four main disciples. Even sages like Kanwa and Vasishta meditated at this place. Guru Vasishta told his wife Arundati, that only those who have prayed to Lord Narayan for hundred births will get the opportunity to have darshan at Badrinath and the one who does, will get freedom from all his sins.

Maya Murti ka mela is the most eminent festival that is held at Badrinath Temple. During this festival the descent of the River Ganga is honored. The mother of Badrinath is worshipped during this festival, which has divided the river into several channels. Another festival is the Badri Kedar festival which is celebrated in both the temples i.e. in Kedarnath temple and in Bardinath temple as well during the month of June. However, this festival is celebrated for 8 days where the artists who came from all over the country present their performances during this function. Apart from these festivals, Shree Krishna Janmashtami is also a notable occasion when several pilgrimages arrive in Badrinath.

Moreover, the poojas that are performed every morning in the Badrinath temple are mahabhishek, bhagvat pooja, and gitapath. Whereas in the evening some poojas are held that includes the geet govinda and aarti. After the aarti is over, priests remove the decorations from the image of Badrinath and then the paste made of sandalwood is applied to it. Next day, the paste from the image removed and it is given as a prasad to the devotees during the nirmalaya darshan.

The temple of badrinath is closed during winter months and it is closed on Vijayadasami. However, an akhanda Jyothi, is kept to last for six months. On the day of closure, some special poojas are held by the chief priest. And then, the idol of Badrinath is transferred to the Narasimha temple which is located at Jyotirmath for these 6 months. The Badrinath temple gets reopened in April on the auspicious day of Vasant Panchami. After the winter months, the pilgrims gather on the day of opening of the temple so that they can witness the Akhanda Jyothi.