Yamunotri Dham- The seat of Goddess Yamuna
Yamunotri, the source of Holy River Yamuna. Yamunotri is the shrine devoted to the venerate Goddess Yamuna where a black marble idol of Goddess Yamuna is worshipped. the Yamunotri yatra is the holy journey at the height of 3293 meters at Uttarkashi district in Uttarakhand. The actual source of River Yamuna Originating from the frozen Champasar lake, Yamunotri Glacier at a height of 6,387 metres on the south western slopes of Banderpooch peaks in Har-Ki-Doon mountain range of Uttarkashi in the uppermost region of the Lower Himalaya Uttarakhand.
The venerated goddess Yamuna is said to be the daughter of Sun and twin sister of Yama (the god of death); in Vedas, Yamuna is called Yami (lady of life). A bath in the sanctified waters of Yamuna is said to cleanse all sins and protect from untimely or painful death. Such strong associations in Hindu mythology place Yamuna Devi (goddess) in high ranks of divinity.
The Yamunotri shrine is the first stop-over dham for the char dham pilgrims.There are two holy kunds near in the Yamunotri temple premises ‘surya kund’ and Gauri kund’.
Surya Kund, has boiling water nature. The kund makes special sound called “Om sound”. chardham pilgrims cook Rice and potatoes here as prasad in this water, tied in muslin cloth. on the other hand ‘gauri kund’ has lukewarm water nature which is suitable for the bathing. It was built by Jamunabai and in the memory named as Jamunabai lake.Pilgrims take holy dip in this kund before darshan in yamunotri temple. There is a shila called ‘divya shila’ outside yamunotri temple where pilgrims do worship before entering the temple.
History
Yamunotri as well described in Hindu Vedas and Puranas as Kurmpuran, Kedarkhand, Rig Veda. In mythology, Yamunotri is known as Yamuna Prabhav pilgrim. According to the Mahabharata, when Pandava came to Uttarakhand for pilgrimage they first moved to Yamunotri, Gangotri and then heading towards Kedarnath - Badrinathji. Since then Uttarakhand is the place for Char DhamYatra.
The shrine at the Yamunotri temple made of black marble was constructed by Maharaja Pratap Shah of Tehri Garhwal.
Mythology
A famous Hindu legend states that this place was the abode of a great sage called Asit Muni, who used to take a holy dip in the water of Ganga and Yamuna daily. When the sage became old and feeble, he was unable to visit Gangotri. Then miraculously a stream of the river Ganga appeared opposite of Yamunotri for the elderly sage to continue his bathing ritual.
How to reach Yamunotri...
The trek to Yamunotri temple is a full day excursion 5km walk from Janki Chatti which takes 2-3 hours from one side, pilgrims can also hire horses and ponies on rent to visit comfortably at yamunotri temple. The trek is covered by tough peaks and forests. The climate is unfiendly with major parts covered in snow for most time of the year. Pilgrims must carry light to heavy woollen whenever he is travelling to Yamunotri. There are govt bus services available for the Jankichatti from Dehradun and Rishikesh.
Yamunotri Temple Daily Opening and Closing Timing
The Yamunotri temple premises opens up for the devotees around 7-8 am in the morning. However, when the morning rituals begin After that, darshan hours continue till 1 pm. A short recess sort of period is maintained between 1 pm and 4 pm. After that, darshan hours resume again. The Yamunotri temple closing timings is 9 pm.
Opening and Closing Time of yamunotri Yatra
The Yamunotri temple is opened on the day of Akshaya Tritiya, which falls in April – May for the visit by pilgrims and closes on Diwali day during October – November every year. Following the closure of the temple after this season, the entire region is grappled in silence being covered by white snow all around.
Opening and Closing Date of yamunotri yatra 2024
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