Architecture
The name “Kedarnath” means “the lord of the field“. It is derived from the Sanskrit language ‘Kedara’ meaning fields and ‘Natha’ meaning lord. According to mythology, Lord Shiva agreed to live here at the request of Nara-Narayana.Kedarnath is situated at the Rudra Himalayan Range on a mountain named Kedar, at a height of 12,000 feet. It is one of the 4 Dhams along with Yamunotri, Gangotri, and Badrinath. Kedarnath Temple is made from gray hunk of stones. The stone slabs are interlocked with each other with the use of iron clamps. No mortar has been used in the construction of the temple. The most striking feature of Kedarnath Temple is the magnicent Kedarnath. An unusual feature of the temple is the head of a man carved in the triangular stone fascia. Such a head is seen carved in another temple nearby constructed on the site where the marriage of Shiva and Parvati was held.A small hall in front of the Kedarnath Temple beams with images of Parvati and the five Pandavas. The hall at the entrance of Kedarnath Temple is decorated with statues of Lord Krishna, the Pandavas, Draupadi, Nandi, Virbhadra (one of the guards of Shiva) and other deities of the Hindu mythology. The grand statue of Nandi greets you outside the temple door. A “Garba Griha” for worship and a Mandap for pilgrims is placed inside the temple.
The head priest (Raval) of the Kedarnath temple belongs to the Veerashaiva community from Karnataka. However, unlike in Badrinath temple, the Raval of Kedarnath temple does not perform the pujas. The pujas are carried out by Raval's assistants on his instructions. The Raval moves with the deity to Ukhimath during the winter season. There are five main priests for the temple, and they become head priests for one year by rotation. The grand and impressive structure of Lord Shiva's shrine is made of grey stone. Steep climb stretching to 14 km from Gauri Kund brims with abundant beauty of nature. A large stone statue of Nandi Bull stares at the shrine, guarding it and sitting right opposite it. The temple has withstood natural calamities like avalanches, earthquakes and floods for over thousand years and still stands as strong and elegant as it must have originally been.
During winter the deity is brought down to a village called Ukhimat and the temple is closed. In summer when the weather improves, the deity is carried back to the temple amid much fanfare and rituals. With the onset of winters, the portals of the temple are closed on the 1st day of Karthik (Oct/Nov) amid elaborate rituals, and a moveable idol of Shiva is shifted to Omkareshwar temple in Ukhimath (Rudraprayag district). The Shiva idol is welcomed back and the temple is opened again after 6 months in the Vaisakh (Apr/May) period of Hindu calendar.
Religious Significance
LEGEND BEHIND THE KEDARNATH TEMPLE :After the Kurukshetra War, the Pandava brothers came here on the advice of sage Vyasa. They wanted to meet Shiva to seek forgiveness for killing their brothers. But, Shiva did not want to forgive them. Hence, he turned into a bull and hid among the cattle on the hills.When the Pandavas tracked him, he again hid by sinking his head in the ground. One of the brothers pulled his tail and war occurred then. The parts of Shiva’s body landed at four other locations. Hump of the bull was found in Kedarnath, navel emerged at Madhya-Maheshwar, two forelegs appeared at Tunganath, face in Rudranath, and hair came up at Kalpeshwar.The head of the bull landed in the location of Rudranath. These locations are collectively known as the Five Kedars (“Panch Kedar“). This forced Shiva to appear before the Pandavas and forgive them. Lord Shiva then turned himself into a Jyotirlinga and established himself at Kedarnath. It is believed that originally Pandavas built the temple of Kedarnath; the present temple was established by Adi Shankaracharya who restored and revived the glory of the shrine.
As per a legend, Goddess Parvati (also known as Gauri) meditated over here in order to marry Lord Shiva. It consists of natural thermal springs and offer refreshing bath to pilgrims before they embark for the holy darshan of Kedareshwar (the Lord of Kedar, Shiva). There is also an ancient Gauri Devi temple over here, honouring the goddess. Half Kilometre from Gauri Kund is the temple of Sirkata (headless) Ganesha. According to Skanda Purana, this was the place where Shiva beheaded Ganesha and then attached the head of an elephant on his headless body.
Another reference to Kedarnath occurs in the Skanda Purana. It contains mythology describing the origin of the Ganga river. According to which, Kedarnath is the place where Shiva released the holy water from his knotted hair. That holy water was river Ganga and it is flowing there since that time. It is also said that monuments marking the death place of Adi Shankara are located at Kedarnath.
History
It is said that the Pandavas constructed the Kedarnath Temple which was later restructured by Adi Shankara in 8th century A.D. It that essence, the incredible Kedarnath Temple which has stood the test of time is more than 1000 years old. It is claimed by geologists that Kedanath Temple was under the snow for 400 years during the Little Ice Age. The Little Ice Age constitutes the period between 1300-1900 A.D.
