India Guide
Uttarakhand
Badrinath
BADRINATH, "Lord of the Berries", just 40km from the Tibetan border, is the most popular of Garhwal's four main pilgrimage temples, and one of Hinduism's holiest sites. It was founded by Shankara in the ninth century, not far from the source of the Alaknanda, the main tributary of the Ganges. Although the temple boasts a dazzling setting, deep in a valley beneath the snowy pyramid of Nilkantha (6558m), the town around it is grubby and unattractive. All motorized transport from Joshimath is obliged to move in convoys; at night the road is closed, and Badrinath remains closed from mid-November to early April.
Badrinath is still presided over by a Nambudiri brahmin from Kerala, who also acts as the head priest for Kedarnath. According to myth, the two temples were once close enough together for the priest to worship at both on the same day. The temple itself, also known as Badri Narayan, is dedicated to Vishnu, who is said to have done penance in the mythical Badrivan ("Forest of Berries"), that once covered the mountains of Uttarakhand. Unusually, it is made of wood; the entire facade is repainted each May, once the snows have receded and the temple opens for the season.
This site, on the west bank of the turbulent Alaknanda, may well have been selected because of the sulphurous Tapt Kund hot springs on the embankment beneath the temple, which are used for ritual bathing. Immediately south, the old village of Badrinath is still there, its traditional stone buildings and a small market seeming like relics from a bygone age. The main road north of Badrinath heads into increasingly border-sensitive territory, but visitors can normally take local buses and taxis 4km on to the intriguing Bhotia village of Mana. It's also possible to walk to Mana along a clear footpath by the road. Past the village and over a natural rock bridge, a path leads up the true left bank of the river towards the mountain of Satopanth (7075m) on the divide between the Mana and Gangotri regions, to the base of the impressive high waterfall of Vasudhara.