Portals of the Lord Madmaheshwar temple in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand will be thrown open on Wednesday at 11.30 am. Often referred to as the second Kedar, this temple is part of the Panch (five) Kedars.
Kedar is the local name given to Lord Shiva.
A Panch Kedar yatra starts at the best known of these five temples—Kedarnath. This is followed by prayers at the Tungnath, Rudranath, Madhyamaheshwar (or Madmaheshwar) and the Kalpeshwar temples.
The palanquin bearing the idol of Lord Madmaheshwar started its journey from Shri Omkareshwar Temple in Ukhimath on May 19.
The temple gets its name from the Madhya (middle) or belly or naval of Shiva which is worshiped here. It is believed to have been built by the Pandavas. It is accessible via a 16-18 kilometres trek, either from Aktolidhar or Ransi village near Ukhimath in the Rudraprayag district.
According to the epics, after their victory over their cousins, the Kauravas, the Pandavas were so struck with grief and remorse that they wanted to look for Shiva to seek forgiveness. The enraged deity took the form of a bull and entered the core of the earth. The Pandavas followed. This pleased Shiva and he appeared before them. Subsequently, the brothers built five different temples which represent five body parts of the God.
The hump appeared at Kedarnath and the arms at Tunganath. Shiva’s face appeared at Rudranath while his hair appeared at Kalpeshwar.
Located at the base of Chaukhamba peak at an altitude of 3,289 metre, the Madmaheshwar temple’s architecture is an amalgamation of North and South Indian styles. Here, it’s believed, the waters of the Ganga hold such divinity that just a few drops are enough to ensure salvation.
The entire Panch Kedar route is spread over 95 kilometres and requires 10-12 days to cover on foot.
