Posted by Hills and mountains (Parvat) have special significance within Himachal Pradesh. Mountains have traditionally been regarded as abodes of gods. Mountains are also held sacred due to their association with deities, mythology and legends. Sri Khand Mahadev is one such revered mountain peak in Himachal about which not much has been written.
Kailash Parvat is considered to be the most sacred and important as per Hinduism, Jains and
Buddhism. In Sanskrit Kailash means crystal. According to Rudra Samhita of Shiv Maha Puran Once Lord Shiva vanished from the sight of Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu. Brahma transformed into the appearance of a swan and Vishnu transformed his appearance that of a boar with the purpose of commencing the process of creation. Brahma created the water. Afterwards an egg manifested which consisted of all the twenty four elements. This egg was enormous in size which made Brahma confused. He did penance for several years. Vishnu appeared and Brahma requested him to bring the egg to consciousness. Vishnu entered the egg. As a result Kailash Mountain, and all the seven worlds came into existence. Once Kubera The lord of wealth was doing tremendous penance. Lord Rudra became happy with his penance and appeared in front of him. When Kubera saw Lord Rudra before himself, he offered his seat. Rudra was so pleased with Kubera that he decided to stay near him. He called Vishwakarma and ordered him to conduct his abode at Kailash Mountain, so that he could live in the vicinity of his great devotee-Kubera. Vishwakarma constructed a beautiful city as per his instruction. An auspicious moment was chosen and Shiva went to live at Kailash Mountain. He was coroneted by the deities.
It is believed there are total seven Kailash mountains. The well known Mansarovar Kailash in Tibet, Adi Kailash in Pithoragarh district of Uttrakhand, Amarnath Kailash in J&K, Kinner Kailash in Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh, Mani Mahesh Kailash in Chamba District of Himachal Pradesh,Sri Khand Kailash in Shimla district of Himachal Pradesh. Seventh one is believed to be Boorha Kailash and is yet to be located.
The very fact of the thought of proceeding to Sri Khand Kailash is a call from within. Thousands of sages, ordinary mortals, and even the Gods have submerged in blissful trance at the very Bight of this divine grandeur. It is the SWAYAMBU – the self-created one. This point is considered as the point of spiritual renaissance. The entire area echoes with spiritual vibrations. Even the agnostics shall discover new Balance amidst that fathomless serenity. One has to experience it. The common belief is that those who are ordained only could be there.
Sri Khand Kailash is situated at 18500 feet above sea level. It is usually undertaken to coincide with the Ashada Poornima or, full moon day of June to July) as per the Vikrami calendar.It can be accessed from Bathad, Gushani, Jeori and Jaon. The easiest and most travel starts from Jaon Village of Kullu district which is 167 Km. from Shimla and can be reached by Car, bus or bikes. Jaon is the starting point of this trek, where temple of goddess Shakti is situated. It is a 90-km two-way track passing through dense forests, water streams, sprawling meadows and lofty mountains. The climb is difficult and offers a panoramic view. 2 Km. from Jaon there is village called Singh gad, which was named after a brave man who dared to live their and established a village. Singh gad is the last habitat of civilisation on this route and Sri Khand Kailash is a three full days trek from this place.
Read the second part
This is the first article of the three part travelogue. Pawan Thakur is a trekker from Shimla and has done the Srikhand Kailash trek 5 times. To put in his own words, he is never satiated with the magnificence of this entire area. This year in 2010 he completed the Yatra with his wife.
Related posts:
आपकी मार्गदर्शन से भरी मेल मिली आभार ! आपसे ज़रूर मार्गदर्शन लूँगा ! आज आपकी साईट पर आ कर अच्छा लगा! ज्ञान वर्धक जानकारी है ! आपको साधुवाद और नव वर्ष की मंगलकामनाएं !
बंधुवर
यहाँ पधारने के लिए धन्यवाद. हिंदी ब्लॉग का अलख जलाये रखने के लिए आपका आभार.
आप बहुत बदिया लिखते हैं.. लिखते रहिये.
आपको भी नव वर्ष की शुभकामनाएं.
Its a heven for me & our family . we are very very happy & proud to see the Holy Lord srikhand mahadev.
Srikhand Yatra Album also available, contact Rajender Goel –MESSAGE EDITED–
i want to go khand kelash soon
Dear Mr. Sihmar
Greetings !
Thanks for visiting here.Best of luck for your yatra,Please ensure to keep your self ready by all means as this is not a easy trekk.Also please contribute towards cleanliness and preserve holistic charm of this place.
JAI BHOLE NATH KI………………
By the grace of lord shiva and maa shakti i had been to shrikhand mahadev in 2008 july , (last year) . BY the grace of bhole baba i was was filled with enthusiasm n really i want to tell everyone that by doing this pilgrimage my life turned , at present in a swiss company working as an adminstrater n i m overseas , as the days of this holy pilgrimage are coming near from here i pray lord shiva and mata shakti to fill the life of all the people with blessing .
JAI BHOLE BABA KI
Dear Behl____ Greetings !__Thanks for visiting here.May God bless you also with his power.__Just wanted to know, where u from ?
__Jai Shankar
Sir, Thanks for the wonderful post on Srikhand Mahadev Yatra. I have a blog on hill temples and i included your travelogue on my blog with link to your site. Thanks
Rajesh http://hill-temples.blogspot.com
Dear Rajesh
Greetings ! Thanks a lot for visiting here and including my travelouge in your blog.
Jai Shankar !
Dear Pawan Ji.
Many thanks for this informative & inspiring & blissful post.
Sir, I am planning to go Shreekhand Mahadev this year around 15thJuly. Please give some specific instructions: what r d most imp things we shldnt forget 2carry along with?, what things we need to be careful of?, is this yatra life threatening as many of my friends say?
Since you being experienced to this yatra on past few occasions and me being a novice – Your guidance will be highly appreciated.
Dear Mr. Sharma____ Greetings and thanks for visiting here.Please consider following points :____1.Take a water proof trouser with cotton from inside + windcheater__2.Glucose+bottles for water above nain sarovar__3.Warm clothes for night haults(keep these clothes dry as there is lots of moisture and rain may wet these then these will be burden instead of help)__4.Pain Killer__5.Antiacidic tabs.__6.A good long and strong umbrella which can work as a stick also otherwise you have to carry a storng stick._
7.A good pair of shoes with nice grip and must have ability to dry faster as shoes gets wet on the way+ twothree pair of dry socks so that you can feel comfortable.__8.Start every day early in the morning so as to cover maximum distance and reach your destination well in time.__8.Acclamatize your body by taking night haults from starting points and climb gradually so as to avoid high altitude sickness.__9.Drink water so as to avoid fatigue and lack of oxygen__10.A good water proof bag so as to keep your belongings dry.__11. Enjoy that tiredness and balance your mental strenth as this is a yatra which tests your physical as well as mental strenth. __12.Keep your heavy belongings at bheem dwari if you want to comeback to bheem dwari.otherwise you may choose to stay at Parwati Bagh which is app. two hours away from Bheem Dwari.your night haults depends upon your stamina there.Minimum four night haults are advised for this yatra.__13.Number of stays for easy yatra are Singhgad,Thachdoo,Bheem Dwari,Parwati Bagh,Bhem Dwari or Kunsha ,Singhgad.__
14.Carry a sunscreen along with you for higher parts on sunny day.__15.Consult your doctor before you plan to go as highest point is at app. 18500 feet above sea level,if you have any cardiac , breathing and ortho problem then you should not go.16.Also please contribute towards the cleanliness and holistic charm of this place, don't let your God's place become dirty by all meansLast but not least May Bhole Baba bless you with his divine power
Dear Pawan Ji,
Thanks for your valuable guidance. Your tips will be highly useful to me.
My plan has changed a bit. Instead of going during the official yatra period i.e. 16th July-25th July, I am planning to go during the 1st week of August.
1) Is this yatra life threatening? Has anybody died during this yatra?
2) Is it safe to go during that time of the year?
3) Since official yatra will be over by Aug, do I need to carry my own tent?
4) Do I need to do a guide at the starting point: Jaon/Bagipur village?
Thanks,
maheep.
Dear Mr. Sharma
Greetings !
1) This yatra may be life threatening as this is most difficult trekking route.Few people has died in this yatra
2) It is not advisable for new person like you to travel at that time.
3) One must go during Yatra period so as to avoid many problems which may arise during yatra.
Thanks and Regards
Pawan Thakur
Greeting..
We were planning to visit in this Trip. Hope we will find good Environment during the trip.
Vikesh Sharma
Delhi
Dear Mr. Sharma
Greetings !
Thanks for visiting here and best of luck for your Yatra.You will find good environment there,hope you will leave good environment there also.
This is a humble request to all readers that Sri Khand Mahadev Yatra is not a easy Yatra.Therefore everyone willing to go on Yatra must consider hard and difficult efforts needed to survive there. As of now this year two young boys has been died, actual reason of death will be revealed after postmortem,but it seems biggest factor will be lack of oxygen and difficult situations of survival there. Boys who died were Sunil Kumar age 19 of Nirmond village of Himachal Pradesh & Abhishek aged 26 years from Lucknow (U.P.).
Hence it is requested to all beings that :
1. Please do not take this Yatra casually
2. Do not use liquor & other intoxicated or narcotic substances.
3.Climb gradually by taking night halts and acclimatizing your body.
4. Move in groups not alone
5.Visit in official Yatra period only, so that one can get any help needed.
6.There are not any provisions made by Administration yet so carefully plan your Yatra.
Kindly correct.. shrikhand kailash is not in shimla district… it is in kullu district.
The yatra starts from nirmand village in kullu district…
Dear Mr. Rana
Thanks for being here.I must tell you that,maximum or whole trekk lies in the boundry of Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh but Sri Khand Mahadev lies in the boundry of Shimla District of Himachal Pradesh.You may have a look at the maps provided by Himachal Tourism and other sources.
Thanks and Regards
Pawan Thakur
hello boom shankar….to one and all shiva devotees…….well i am a resident of jari ,kullu….so quite happy to see all shiva bhakts in the jaon region…..may shiva bless you all with all his blessings….boom bholenath sabke saath……..
JAI BHOLE KI…
Sir, its great to read all this about sri khand… M also a great devotie of LORD SHIVA…
I hav been to amarnaath 6 times, 2 times to mani mahesh, and many more sacred places n planing to visit sri khand next year… It gives me lots of internal peace n power… U r doing a grt thing…
JAI BHOLE KI…
JAI HIND…
Dear Mr. Kaushik
Greetings !
Thanks for being here. Your efforts are really amazing.Keep it up.
Jai Shankar
Excellent piece of work, Pawan ! Info to the minutest detail. Congrats
Dear Mr. Jaswal
Greetings !
Thanks for being here.