Haridwar The Gateway to God

Haridwar is considered a holy city blessed by the Hindu trinity, Brahma,Vishnu, and Mahesh. It is known to have existed at the time of the Pandavas in the Mahabharat. 

Haridwar is located at the feet of Shiva's hills – the Shivaliks, therefore Haridwar is a doorway to the Devabhoomi (Dev-Bhoomi), the abode of the Gods.

It is also the gateway for the four holy pilgrimage centres of India known as Char Dham:

• Badrinath
• Kedarnath
• Gangotri 
• Yamunotri

For centuries, devout Hindu pilgrims have walked to these mystical places.

Many religious stories are associated with this holy city.

The Story of King Bhagirath

According to a popular Hindu story, Haridwar was known as Kapilasthana because it was the location of the ashram of the great sage Kapil.

King Sagar had 60,000 sons. He defeated all the asuras (daemons)  in the earth and wanted to stage a Ashwamedha Yagya to declare his supremacy. For this as was the practice prevalent in ancient times, he sent his horse across the earth accompanied by his sons.

The King of Heaven, Lord Indra feared the power of King Sagar and to stop him, he stole the horse and tied it to the ashram of Sage Kapil. When the 60,000 sons saw the horse in Kapil's ashram they got furious, thinking that he had stolen it and started to attack the hermitage. Sage Kapil was in deep meditation and on hearing the disturbance he opened his eyes in anger and all the 60,000 sons of King Sagar were reduced to ashes, except for prince Asamanjas.  Anshuman the grandson of King Sagar brought  the horse back from the Sage and asked the sage to forgive. Sage Kapil told him that the sons can be brought to life only if Ganga is brought from heaven to earth. Neither Anshuman nor  his son Dilip were successful in this task.  But Dilip's son, Bhagirath was determined to get this task done. He started meditating intensly for several years and finally Ganga was pleased and descended to the earth. To prevent the earth from flooding, Lord Shiva received Ganga on his matted locks.  King Bhagirath then worshipped Lord Shiva and Shiva blessed him and released Ganga from his locks in seven streams.  The water of Ganga touched the ashes of the sons of King Sagar who rose to their eternal rest in heaven. The seven streams of Ganga are Bhagirathi, Janhvi, Bhilangana, Mandakini, Rishiganga, Saraswati and Alaknanda which merge into Ganga at Devprayag.

The source of Ganga is at Gaumukh (the shape of the ice formation is like a cow's mouth), where the mighty river emerges from the depths of Gangotri glacier. The river at this place is known as the Bhagirathi river, named after King Bhagirath.

Rising in the icy caves of Gangotri glacier, the gushing , tossing and gurgling Bhagirathi starts its long journey downwards where later it joins river 'Alaknanda' and becomes Ganga. It is at Haridwar that the river begins to flow across the plains of India.

The Foot of Lord Vishnu

Hari-ki-Pauri, which means foot of the Lord is the place where Lord Vishnu placed his foot and the impression is still visible.

Aarti is performed every evening in this holy spot and many pilgrims come here to deposit the ashes of their cremated loved ones and take a dip in its waters to wash away their sins. This most sacred ghat was built by King Vikramaditya in memory of his brother Bhatrihari, who is said to have meditated on the banks of Ganga in Haridwar. It is also known as Brahamakund and is the site of the famous Kumbh Mela.

Churning of the Milk Ocean

Haridwar is one of the 12 places were the nectar of immortality or ambrosia fell during the churning of the Milk Ocean, known as the Ksherasagar or Keshra Samudra. This connection gives Haridwar (Hara-Dwar) a very important position in the growth of Hinduism. It is because of this belief that the Kumbha (Kumbh) Mela and the Ardha (Ardh) Kumbha Melas are held here regularly.

 

Mansa Devi Temple 

The temple of Bilwa Parvat is dedicated to the Goddess Mansa Devi. 

The powerful imagery of the goddess is depicted with her having three mouths and five arms. The temple can be reached by the rope way or one can take the normal trekking route to the top. The top of the hill gives you an excellent view of Haridwar.

To visit the temple, pilgrims have to follow a queue for the 'darshan' of the Goddess. Mansadevi is said have born from the mind of Saint Kashyap. She is regarded as the wife of Nag Raja Vasuki. This temple is one of the most prominent temples of North India. Mansa Devi is one of the famous Siddh Peethas (Holy Places where one's wishes are fulfilled) along with Chandi Devi and Maya Devi in Haridwar.

People usually tie threads on a holy tree that is located in the vicinity of the temple asking the Goddess to fulfill their wishes. On the fulfillment of the wishes, people come to untie the thread from the same tree once again. The temple is of great importance to the followers of Hinduism. One can have a panoramic view of Haridwar from the top of Bilwa Hill. 

Chandi Devi Temple

This temple is on the top of a hill called the Neel Parvat which is on the other side of the river Ganga. The temple was constructed by the King of Kashmir, Suchat Singh, in 1929 AD. The temple is a 3-km trek from Chandi Ghat and it is believed that the Adi Shankaracharya established the main statue in eighth century AD. The Chandi Devi Temple is now also accessible by a ropeway, which starts near the Gauri Shankar Temple.

Chandi Devi Temple is known as one of the Siddha Peethas (Holy Places where one's wishes are fulfilled) together with Mansa Devi and Maya Devi of Haridwar. It is said that Goddess Chandi fulfills all the wishes of her true devotees. A temple of Anjana Devi (Mother of Lord Hanuman) is situated at a distance of 200 meters from the shrine of Chandi Devi. Every year, this temple receives millions of people from far and near.