The char dham are the four sacred sites having religious significance among the Hindu community people of the country. Considered to be the most sacred place for Hindus, the pilgrimage centres are regarded as the four abodes of god situated in four different parts of the country namely, Badrinath in the north, Rameswaram in the south, Dwarka in the west and Puri in the east. The renowned reformer and philosopher, Adi Shankaracharya founded the four cardinal points in the 8th century and grouped together to be named as char dham.
However, over the years, four other char dham pilgrimages in the Garhwal Himalayas garnered popularity and were collectively known as Chota char dham to differentiate it from the main char dham sites. The Chota char dham consists of four sites namely, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri. The three major Hindu denominations – Shaktism (Yamunotri and Gangotri), Shaivism (Kedarnath) and Vaishnavism (Badrinath) are represented by the four sites.
It is after the 20th century that the Chota char dham began to be referred as char dham and even today, char dham refers to Himalayan char dham due to infrastructural development by the Govt. of India. Believed to be the abodes of different incarnations of Lord Vishnu, char dham yatra holds special importance in a Hindu’s life. As per Hindu mythology, the sacred sites have to be visited in one’s lifetime.
Surrounded by beautiful hilly terrains along with picturesque rivers and streams, the whole atmosphere of char dham is very scenic and vivid. The yatra begins from Haridwar and proceeds to Yamunotri. It is dedicated to goddess Yamuna and the first of the four sites to be visited. The second dham to be paid a visit is Gangotri dedicated to goddess Ganga. Dedicated to Lord Shiva, Kedarnath is termed as the third dham whereas Badrinath, dedicated to Lord Vishnu, is the fourth dham to be visited.
Months between May to October is the period of char dham yatra annually. Numerous tourists make sure to pay a visit to the sacred sites due to its religious importance.
