Badrinath Facts

Interesting Facts About Badrinath

1. Badrinath Temple is one of the four Char Dham pilgrimage sites in India. Char Dham pilgrimage sites are located in all four directions of India. Badrinath Temple is located in the northern part of India.

2. Badrinath Temple also forms one of the four Chota Char Dham pilgrimage sites in Uttarakhand. The other three sites are- Gangotri, Yamunotri, and Kedarnath. It is also a part of one of the Panch Badri temples dedicated to Lord Vishnu.

3. Badrinath Temple is the only temple among the four Char Dham pilgrimage sites which is situated in the Himalayas and surrounded by snow-clad mountains.

4.It is situated at an altitude of 3,300mts/10,826ft where the temperature is extremely cold.

5. Unlike the three Char Dham pilgrimage sites, Badrinath Temple remains closed for 6 months during winters due to extreme weather conditions and snowfall which makes it impossible to reach the site.

6. Badrinath Temple is mentioned in various sacred texts of Hindus such as Bhagavata Purana, Skanda Purana, and Mahabharata. The area around Badrinath Temple has been mentioned in Padma Purana as a spiritual site.

7. It is one of the 108 Vishnu Divyadesam or holy temples of Vishnu that is mentioned in the works of saints. 

8. Edwin T. Atkinson in his book The Himalayan Gazetteer has mentioned that dense forests of Badri were prominent in this region. Hence, the place got its name.

9. Sacred Hindu texts mention that Lord Vishnu meditated under the Badri tree and hence the place got its name.

10. Some version of the history of Badrinath accounts it to be a Buddhist shrine till the 8^th century. Adi Shankara converted it to a Hindu temple. The architecture of the temple resembles a Buddhist temple and the brightly colored exterior is similar to that of Buddhist temples, leading to the argument.

11. It is believed that the sculpture of Badrinath was established by Gods. It was thrown in the Alaknanda River by Buddhists during their era. Adi Shankara discovered the sculpture of Badrinath in the Alaknanda River and enshrined it in a cave near Tapt Kund hot spring. Later Ramanujacharya removed the sculpture from the cave and established it in the temple.

12. The 3.3 feet long statue located at the entrance of the temple is one of the main attractions of Badrinath Temple. 

13. The construction and expansion of the temple were undertaken by the kings of Garhwal during the 17^th Century. But in 1803, the Himalayan earthquake led to massive destruction of the temple. Later the king of Jaipur reconstructed it and it was completed before the First World War.

14. After the completion of the temple, the queen of Indore, Ahilyabai donated a gold umbrella on her visit to the temple.

15. When Garhwal was divided into two parts in the 20^th Century, Badrinath Temple came under British rule. However, the management committee was led by the king of Garhwal.