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The word
Joshimath is derived out of ‘Jyotirmath’ (the
place of Jyotirlinga of Shiva). Joshimath is
famous for being home to one of the four Peeths
i.e. center for sanyasis. This Peeth was founded
by Shankaracharya, the famous Hindu Guru.
Joshimath is considered to be one of the most
sacred placed by Hindus since it is believed
that Lord Badrinath (Lord Vishnu) resides here
during winters. Surrounded by tall and majestic
snow covered Himalayas, Joshimath is an
important destination en route celebrated shine
of Badrinath which is about 42 Km from here.
Places to Visit >>
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Narasimha Temple In
Joshimath
The famous temple of Lord Narasimha is about
1200 years old and is dedicated to Lord Vishnu.
The Presiding deity of the temple, Lord
Narasimha, half-man and half-lion, is believed
to be the fourth avatar (incarnation) of Lord
Vishnu.
Like Badrinath, the Lord Narasimha too is seen
positioned in ‘padmasana’. Interestingly, the
left wrist of the deity is getting thinner day
by day. It is believed that when the deity hand
will fall off, the road to Badrinath will get
blocked as a result of a land slide.
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Vasudeva
Temple
This Temple of Lord Vasudeva is
situated some 30 yards away from the
temple of Lord Narasimha. The
presiding deity here is Vasudeva who
is identified with Lord Vishnu. It
is one of the most famous Vishnu
temples of north India. It was
considered very sacred by the ‘Alavars’,
the Tamil Vaishnavite Saints. The
deity’s idol here is carved out of a
piece of black stone, measuring 6
feet in height. |
Trekking
Around Joshimath
Joshimath is the base for the
trekking expedition to the famous
Valley of Flowers and Hemkund. The
season here, for trekkers is
short-lived: mid-July to August end.
Following are the two routes that
can be taken:-
1.
Joshimath - Govindghat - Ghangaria -
Valley of Flowers
The trek begins at Govindghat, which
is about 18 Km from Joshimath.
Ghangaria is the next stop which is
12.5 Km away. Valley of flowers is a
3.5 km trek from here.
2.
Joshimath - Govindghat - Ghangaria -
Hemkund
Hemkund which is a famous center of
Sikh pilgrimage can be reached after
a steep trek of 5.5 Km from
Ghangaria. Here, there is a
beautiful lake and a Gurudwara by
its banks. |
Accessibility :
By Air :
Jolly Grant airport near
Dehradun (25 km east of city) is the nearest
airport.It is 273 km away from Joshimath. In
fact this airport is closer to Rishikesh
(approx. 16 km) and takes roughly 20-30 minutes
to reach Rishikesh. From there you need to book
a taxi or take a bus to reach Joshimath.
Kingfisher Airlines connects Dehradun airport
with New Delhi through its Kingfisher Red
service leaving New Delhi airport at 11:35 and
03:20 pm and reaching Dehradun at 12:30 pm and
04:20 pm respectively.
By Rail
The nearest railway station to Joshimath is
Rishikesh, which is 253 km away. However,
Haridwar railway station, 25 km from Rishikesh
is better connected with New Delhi, Mumbai,
Ahmedabad, Amritsar and Howrah. There is a
passenger train that leaves Delhi station at
05:35 pm and reaches Rishikesh next morning at
04:30 am. There is another express train
connecting Jammu Tawi to Rishikesh (4610 Hemkunt
Express) leaving Jammu Tawi at 06:45 pm and
reaching Rishikesh next morning at 08:00 am.
By Road :
Joshimath is well connected
to the towns of Dehradun, Rishikesh and
Haridwar. Taxis and buses are easily available
to and from these locations. Generally buses
leave early morning from Haridwar and Rishikesh
for Badrinath and Joshimath comes en route. They
leave from "Yatra Bus stand" in Haridwar in the
morning starting at 04:30 am. The last bus from
Haridwar leaves by around 07:00 am. Normally it
would take around 9 – 10 hours to cover journey
from Rishikesh to Badrinath. Fare would be
approximately Rs. 350 one way. Another option is
to take shared taxis from Tehri bus stand in
Rishikesh. From New Delhi it is approximately
486 km to Joshimath and you need to just follow
NH -58 crossing Modinagar, Roorkee, Haridwar,
Rishikesh, Srinagar and Rudraprayag en route. |
Joshimath
