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What is the story behind Shree Kedarnath Jyotirlinga
What is the story behind Shree Kedarnath Jyotirlinga – Legend depicted as below.
Shree Kedarnath Jyotirlinga is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, which are considered to be the holiest abodes of Lord Shiva in Hindu mythology. The temple of Kedarnath is located in the state of Uttarakhand, India, at an altitude of 3,583 meters (11,755 feet) above sea level.
According to legend, the Pandavas, who were the heroes of the Indian epic Mahabharata, wanted to seek the blessings of Lord Shiva to atone for the sins they had committed during the Kurukshetra war. However, Lord Shiva did not want to meet them, as he was angry at the Pandavas for their role in the death of their own kinsmen in the war.
To avoid the Pandavas, Lord Shiva took the form of a bull and went to Kedarnath, where he disappeared into the ground. The Pandavas, who were determined to seek Lord Shiva’s blessings, followed the bull’s tracks and found a hump-shaped rock. They realized that the rock was actually Lord Shiva in disguise and built a temple at the site to worship him.
It is also said that Adi Shankaracharya, the great Hindu philosopher, and theologian, visited Kedarnath in the 8th century and established a temple there, which still stands today. The temple is built in the traditional North Indian style of architecture and is made of large, heavy, and evenly cut gray stone slabs.
Kedarnath is also a part of the Char Dham Yatra, which includes the four holy shrines of Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath. The yatra is considered to be a journey of a lifetime for Hindus, and it is believed that undertaking this yatra will help one attain moksha.
Every year, the temple is closed during the winter months due to heavy snowfall and is reopened in the months of April or May. The temple of Kedarnath has been destroyed and rebuilt several times over the centuries, the most recent being in 2013, when the region was hit by a devastating flood. Despite the challenges, the temple remains a popular pilgrimage site, attracting thousands of devotees each year who seek the blessings of Lord Shiva.
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