[Editor’s Note: This and forthcoming parts are the report of pilgrimage visits made during October 2022.]
Baijnath Shiva/Parvati Marriage site
Baijnath is one of the most famous temple complexes in Kumaon. This is the place where Shiva is supposed to have married Parvati. The medieval complex dedicated to Shiva is directly on a bend in the Gomati River. The main temple commemorates the occasion and includes Ganesha, which is why it is called the temple of The Holy Trio. In front of it is a pond called “Golden Mahaseer,” which is an extension of the river. The goldfish in the pond are famous. The temple looks out at the surrounding mountains and hills, with the river, it would make an idyllic spot – prior to all the contemporary construction – for the legendary marriage to take place. There are eighteen shrines/temples of various sizes in the complex. One that was locked up while I was there, was dedicated to the Goddess Brahmani. This was perhaps the oldest of the group as it was constructed in the 9th c. The complex was built by the Katyuri kings, who ruled from the 7th to 13th c CE, and the area surrounding the temple complex was their capital, Karthikeypur. The majority of the construction probably occurred around 1150 CE. The main temple was built in a Dravidian style, which is a bit unusual for the region. It, and the Parvati temple, are the only two that are still functioning worship spaces, but the complex as a whole is an official Kumaon pilgrimage site.[1]
Dunagiri Devi
To get to the Dunagiri Temple, there is a turn off heading up the mountain from the main road. This road is somewhat smaller, but also in very good condition as it leads to another major pilgrimage site. The road ends after about 16 km at the base of the Dunagiri Devi Temple. Upon arriving, a small temple to Ganesha greets the visitor before they start the ca. 500 broad step climb to the temple complex. There is a path through the woods as well, but as it was raining, I chose the covered staircase lined with bells. Before going I didn’t know how many steps were involved, so it came as a bit of a surprise that the staircase never seemed to end. I wasn’t the only one who felt that way either given what the others at the site were saying.
There are many legends about the origin of the Dunagiri Devi Temple. One from the Mahabharata era (9-8th c BCE) states that the original site was built by the Pandava brothers during their exile. Later during the Ramayana period (5th-1st c BCE), Hanuman’s search for the Himalayan life-giving herb to save Lord Laxman led him to carry part of the mountain away and take it to Sri Lanka. A small piece fell to the ground at the spot of the later Dunagiri Temple. Dunagiri mountain is part of the Nanda Devi Mountain Group. Like Nanda Devi mountain, Dunagiri mountain has its own temple and both are dedicated to a form of the Goddess Durga. The temple is also known as Dronanchal or Dronagiri, which relates back to the Mahabharata story about how Guru Dronacharya of the Pandavas used to meditate here. Later other gurus and swamis were known to meditate under the Banyan tree in the middle of the courtyard.
The temple itself is a square building with a rather smallish shrine space. There is a poster of Durga on the wall and room for the priest to perform pujas. Along a side wall is a glass cabinet with puja offerings. Just below the main platform to the left is another puja site. The entire area is in the middle of the forest. Off the left side in front is a bench where one can sit and admire the view of the Himalayan peaks all the way to Mt. Kailash on a clear sunny day. Unfortunately, I was there in the midst of rain and clouds, so I wasn’t able to get the fabled view, but what I was able to see was still pretty amazing.
(To be continued)
[1] https://misfitwanderers.com/baijnath-temple-uttarakhand/ Accessed October 8, 2022.