Rudranath

Rudranath
Rudranath Location in Uttarakhand
Name
Proper name	Rudranath
Geography
Coordinates	30°32′0″N 79°20′0″E / 30.53333°N 79.33333°E / 30.53333; 79.33333Coordinates: 30°32′0″N 79°20′0″E / 30.53333°N 79.33333°E / 30.53333; 79.33333
Country	India
State	Uttarakhand
Location	Rudranath (village), Garhwal
Culture
Primary deity	Shiva
History and governance
Date built	unknown
Creator	Pandavas, according to legend

Rudranath (Sanskrit: रुद्रनाथ) is a Hindu temple dedicated to god Shiva, located in the Garhwal Himalayan mountains in Uttarakhand, India. Located at 3,600 metres (11,800 ft) above sea level, this natural rock temple is situated within a dense forest of rhododendron dwarfs and Alpine pastures. The temple is the fourth temple to be visited in the Panch Kedar pilgrimage circuit, comprising five Shiva temples in the Garhwal region. The other temples in the circuit includes: Kedarnath and Tungnath to be visited before Rudranath and Madhyamaheshwar or Madmaheshwar and Kalpeshwar to be visited after Rudranath. The face (mukha) of god Shiva is worshipped as "Nilkanth Mahadeva" here. Trek starts from Sagar village which is approx 03 km from Gopeshwar. The other trek starts from Mandal which is 12 km from Gopeshwar. This trek goes through Anusuya devi temple. Trek is very hard with a distance of approx 24 km.

The Rudranath temple is believed to be established by the Pandavas, the heroes of the Hindu epic Mahabharata. Legend has it that the Pandavas came to the Himalayan mountains in search of god Shiva, to redeem them of the sins of killing in the epic Kurukshetra war. God Shiva did not wanted to meet them and left in form of a bull in the ground and reentered in parts in the Panch Kedar places: the hump raising in Kedarnath, the arms appearing in Tunganath, the navel and stomach surfacing in Madhyamaheswar, the face showing up at Rudranath and the hair and the head appearing in Kalpeshwar. In winter, a symbolic image of Shiva is brought to Gopeshwar for worship. The Doli Yatra starts from Gopeshwar via Sagar. The Doli Yatris cross Lyuti Bugyal and Panar and finally reach Pitradhar. The worship of ancestors is done here. Then, after crossing Dhalabni Maidan, the Doli or the symbolic image of Shiva, reaches Rudranath.Here first the Vandevi is worshipped. The local belief is that Vandevi protects the area. The Kheshtra is protected by Vandevi or Vandevatas. The temple celebrates an annual fair on the full moon day in the Hindu month of Sravan (July–August) that is mostly on the day of Rakshabandhan. The fair is attended mainly by locals. The priests at the Rudranath temple are Bhatts and Tiwaris of Gopeshwar village.