Kalpeshwar
Encyclopedia
Kalpeshwar is a Hindu temple
dedicated to Lord Shiva located at an elevation of 2200 m (7,217.8 ft) in the picturesque Urgam valley in the Garhwal
region of Uttarakhand
state in India. The temple’s ancient legend linked to the Pandavas, heroes of epic Mahabharata
eminence is the fifth temple of the Panch Kedar
s (five temples) of Shiva’s five anatomical divine forms; the other four temples in the order of their worship are Kedarnath, Rudranath
, Tungnath
and Madhyamaheshwar
temples; all in the Kedar Khand region of the Garhwal Himalayas
. Kalpeshwar is the only Panch Kedar temple accessible throughout the year. At this small stone temple, approached through a cave passage, the matted tress (jata) of Lord Shiva is worshipped. Hence, Lord Shiva is also called as Jatadhar or Jateshwar. It is approachable only by 12 km (7.5 mi) trekking from the nearest road head of Helong on the Rishikesh-Badrinath road.
epic history, while chasing Lord Shiva to seek his pardon for the fratricidal sins committed by them during the Kurukshetra war
, realized that Shiva, in order to distance himself from the Pandavas, took the incognito form of a bull. But when this form of Shiva was discerned by Bhima
, the second of the Pandava brothers, tried to hold on to the bull's tail and hind legs. But the bull vanished underground at Guptakashi. Subsequently it reappeared in five different forms: His hump appeared at Kedarnath, his bahu (arm) was spotted at Tungnath, his head surfaced at Rudranath, the stomach and navel were traced at Madhyamaheswar and his jata (tress) was divined at Kalpeshwar.
Another legend states that this place was much preferred by sages of folklore
for meditation. Particular mention is made of sage Arghya who through his austere penance created Urvashi, the famous apsara
(nymph
) at this place. Durvasa
, an ancient sage, son of Atri
and Anasuya
, considered an incarnation of Shiva, known for his short temper did penance and meditated under the Kalpavriksha
, the wish fulfilling divine tree in the precincts of the temple. Further, it is said that Durvasa had given Kunti, mother of Pandavas, a boon that "she could invoke any of the forces of nature and they would appear before her and grant whatever she desired". Once, when Pandavas, were in exile here, in order to test them Durvasa visited them along with his desciples and desired to be dined by them. Unfortunately, there was no food available with in the house to feed the surprise guests. Draupadi
, wife of Pandavas, sought Lord Krishna
's help. Krishna materialised on the scene and solved the problem.
Worship
The temple priests at this temple also are the Dasnamis and Gossains, desciples of Adi Shankara
. At Tungnath also the priests are Khasiya Brahmins. These priests hail from South India; the Namboodiri brahmin
sect who worship at Badrinath and Kedarnath from Kerala
, the Jangamas are lingayats from Mysore and the Dasnami Gossain
s belong to Adi Shankara
’s group. The priests at the Rudranath temple are Dasnamis and Gosains.
The Kalpeshwar temple is located in the Urgam valley of the Himalayan mountain range near Urgam village (2 km (1.2 mi) short of the temple). On the bridle path from Helang to Kalpeshwar, the enchanting confluence of the Alaknanda and Kalpganga rivers is seen. Kalp Ganga river flows through the Urgam valley. The Urgam valley is a dense forest area. The valley has apple orchards and terraced fields where potato is grown extensively.
The nearest airport is at Jolly Grant, Dehradun
at a distance of 272 km (169 mi) and the nearest railhead, Rishikesh, is 255 km (158.5 mi).
Boodha Kedar temple surrounded by potato fields is seen on the trek route. Also seen is the Dhyan Badri temple at Urgam Village, one of the Sapt Badri (seven Badri) temples.
Hindu temple
A Mandir, Devalayam, Devasthanam, or a Hindu temple is a place of worship for followers of Hinduism...
dedicated to Lord Shiva located at an elevation of 2200 m (7,217.8 ft) in the picturesque Urgam valley in the Garhwal
Garhwal Division
Garhwal is the north-western region and administrative division of the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand which is home to the Garhwali people. Lying in the Himalayas, It is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Kumaon region, on the south by Uttar Pradesh state, and on the north-west by...
region of Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand , formerly Uttaranchal, is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the Land of Gods due to the many holy Hindu temples and cities found throughout the state, some of which are among Hinduism's most spiritual and auspicious places of pilgrimage and worship...
state in India. The temple’s ancient legend linked to the Pandavas, heroes of epic Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
eminence is the fifth temple of the Panch Kedar
Panch Kedar
Panch Kedar refers to five Hindu temples or holy places of the Shaivite sect dedicated to god Shiva. They are located in the Garhwal Himalayan region in Uttarakhand, India...
s (five temples) of Shiva’s five anatomical divine forms; the other four temples in the order of their worship are Kedarnath, Rudranath
Rudranath
Rudranath is a Hindu temple dedicated to god Shiva, located in the Garhwal Himalayan mountains in Uttarakhand, India. Located at above sea level, this natural rock temple is situated within a dense forest of rhododendron dwarfs and Alpine pastures. The temple is the third temple to be visited in...
, Tungnath
Tungnath
Tungnath is the highest temple in the world and is one of the five and the highest Panch Kedar temples located in the mountain range of Tunganath in the Rudraprayag district of Tehri Garhwal, in Uttarakhand, India. The Tunganath mountains form the Mandakini and Alaknanda river valleys...
and Madhyamaheshwar
Madhyamaheshwar
Madhyamaheshwar or Madmaheshwar is a Hindu temple dedicated to god Shiva, located in the Mansuna village of Garhwal Himalayas in Uttarakhand, India. Situated at an elevation of , it is the fourth temple to be visited in the Panch Kedar pilgrimage circuit, comprising five Shiva temples in the...
temples; all in the Kedar Khand region of the Garhwal Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
. Kalpeshwar is the only Panch Kedar temple accessible throughout the year. At this small stone temple, approached through a cave passage, the matted tress (jata) of Lord Shiva is worshipped. Hence, Lord Shiva is also called as Jatadhar or Jateshwar. It is approachable only by 12 km (7.5 mi) trekking from the nearest road head of Helong on the Rishikesh-Badrinath road.
Legend
The epic legend narrated on the creation of the Panch Kedar temples is that Pandavas of MahabharataMahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
epic history, while chasing Lord Shiva to seek his pardon for the fratricidal sins committed by them during the Kurukshetra war
Kurukshetra war
According to the Indian epic poem Mahābhārata, a dynastic succession struggle between two groups of cousins of an Indo-Aryan kingdom called Kuru, the Kauravas and Pandavas, for the throne of Hastinapura resulted in the Kurukshetra War in which a number of ancient kingdoms participated as allies of...
, realized that Shiva, in order to distance himself from the Pandavas, took the incognito form of a bull. But when this form of Shiva was discerned by Bhima
Bhima
In the Mahābhārata, Bhima is one of the central characters of Mahabharata and the second of the Pandava brothers...
, the second of the Pandava brothers, tried to hold on to the bull's tail and hind legs. But the bull vanished underground at Guptakashi. Subsequently it reappeared in five different forms: His hump appeared at Kedarnath, his bahu (arm) was spotted at Tungnath, his head surfaced at Rudranath, the stomach and navel were traced at Madhyamaheswar and his jata (tress) was divined at Kalpeshwar.
Another legend states that this place was much preferred by sages of folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
for meditation. Particular mention is made of sage Arghya who through his austere penance created Urvashi, the famous apsara
Apsara
An Apsara , also known as Vidhya Dhari or Tep Apsar in Khmer, Accharā or A Bố Sa La Tư , Bidadari , Biradali , Widodari and Apson , is a female spirit of the clouds and waters in...
(nymph
Nymph
A nymph in Greek mythology is a female minor nature deity typically associated with a particular location or landform. Different from gods, nymphs are generally regarded as divine spirits who animate nature, and are usually depicted as beautiful, young nubile maidens who love to dance and sing;...
) at this place. Durvasa
Durvasa
In Hindu mythology, Durvasa , or Durvasas, was an ancient sage, the son of Atri and Anasuya. He is supposed to be an incarnation of Shiva. He is known for his short temper. Maledictions or curses he gave in his rage ruined many lives. Hence, wherever he went, he was received with great reverence ...
, an ancient sage, son of Atri
Atri
This article is about the sage named Attri. See also the gotra named Atri. For the Italian city, see Atri, AbruzzoIn Hinduism, Attri or Atri is a legendary bard and scholar and was one of 9 Prajapatis, and a son of Brahma, said to be ancestor of some Brahmin, Prajapatis, kshatriya and Vaishya...
and Anasuya
Anasuya
Anusuya Anusuya Anusuya (IAST: Anasūyā, sanskrit:अनसूया Sati Anasuya, also referred as अनुसूया or Sati Anusuya, in Hindu mythology, was wife of the sage Atri and mother of Dattatreya who is considered by some Hindus (in western India) to be an incarnation of the Divine Trinity Brahma, Vishnu and...
, considered an incarnation of Shiva, known for his short temper did penance and meditated under the Kalpavriksha
Kalpavriksha
Kalpavriksha , also known as kalpataru, kalpadruma and kalpapādapa, is a mythological, wish-fulfilling divine tree said to fulfill all desires. It was mentioned in Sanskrit literature from the earliest sources onwards...
, the wish fulfilling divine tree in the precincts of the temple. Further, it is said that Durvasa had given Kunti, mother of Pandavas, a boon that "she could invoke any of the forces of nature and they would appear before her and grant whatever she desired". Once, when Pandavas, were in exile here, in order to test them Durvasa visited them along with his desciples and desired to be dined by them. Unfortunately, there was no food available with in the house to feed the surprise guests. Draupadi
Draupadi
In the epic Mahābhārata, Draupadi, also known as ' is the "emerged" daughter of King Drupada of Panchāla and the wife of the five Pandavas. When Yudhisthira becomes the king of Hastinapura at the end of the war, Draupadi becomes the queen of Indraprastha...
, wife of Pandavas, sought Lord Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
's help. Krishna materialised on the scene and solved the problem.
Worship
The temple priests at this temple also are the Dasnamis and Gossains, desciples of Adi Shankara
Adi Shankara
Adi Shankara Adi Shankara Adi Shankara (IAST: pronounced , (Sanskrit: , ) (788 CE - 820 CE), also known as ' and ' was an Indian philosopher from Kalady of present day Kerala who consolidated the doctrine of advaita vedānta...
. At Tungnath also the priests are Khasiya Brahmins. These priests hail from South India; the Namboodiri brahmin
Brahmin
Brahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...
sect who worship at Badrinath and Kedarnath from Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, the Jangamas are lingayats from Mysore and the Dasnami Gossain
Gossain
The Standard Hindi word Gossain or Gosain or Gusain or Gussain may refer to:* The Goswami caste of Brahmins predominantly found in Assam, India....
s belong to Adi Shankara
Adi Shankara
Adi Shankara Adi Shankara Adi Shankara (IAST: pronounced , (Sanskrit: , ) (788 CE - 820 CE), also known as ' and ' was an Indian philosopher from Kalady of present day Kerala who consolidated the doctrine of advaita vedānta...
’s group. The priests at the Rudranath temple are Dasnamis and Gosains.
Geography
Access
Access to Kalpeshwar by road up to Urgam is from Rishikesh, a distance of 253 km (157.2 mi) on the Rishikesh-Badrinath road. Earlier the trek route existed from Helang to Kalpeshwar via Urgam village for a distance of 10 km (6.2 mi). But now a good jeep-able road is constructed from Helang to Urgam, so from Urgam it's just 2 km trek to reach Kalpeshwar.The nearest airport is at Jolly Grant, Dehradun
Dehradun
- Geography :The Dehradun district has various types of physical geography from Himalayan mountains to Plains. Raiwala is the lowest point at 315 meters above sea level, and the highest points are within the Tiuni hills, rising to 3700 m above sea level...
at a distance of 272 km (169 mi) and the nearest railhead, Rishikesh, is 255 km (158.5 mi).
Boodha Kedar temple surrounded by potato fields is seen on the trek route. Also seen is the Dhyan Badri temple at Urgam Village, one of the Sapt Badri (seven Badri) temples.