Amarnath
One of the most holy and widely visited pilgrimage places in India is Amarnath. Located 145 kilometers away from Srinagar, Amarnath is a place that every Hindu desires to visit at least once in their lifetime.
Amarnath is a great place to visit. It is considered as one of the must visit places in India. At this place, you will see an ice siva linga that changes its size according to the season and also according to waxing and waning of the moon. At the time of full moon day, the linga becomes 6 ft high. This place is located in the glacial valley at the height of 4,175m. The cave is around 150 feet high and 90 feet long. You will see the formations of four or five ice blocks that look similar to the form of gods. One of the biggest figures, for which many tourists visit this place, is of Shiva (Amarnath). The pratham pujan is considered as the time when lord Shiva gives his blessings to his devotees.
Situated amidst huge mountains, the Amarnath cave is the place where Lord Shiva, one of the Hindu Gods of the Holy Trinity, the other two being Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma, is worshipped. Legend has it that the Amarnath Cave was the place where Lord Shiva revealed the secret of immortality to his wife, Goddess Parvati.
In order to keep it a secret from any form of life on Earth, He chose this isolated place in the Himalayas. On the way, he left his bull, Nandi at Pahalgaon or Pahal gam, his moon at Chandanwari, his son Lord Ganesha was left at Mahagunas Hill and the snakes at Sheshnag. It was at Panchtarni that he finally left behind the five elements and entered the cave with Parvati. In order to safeguard one of the important theories of the lifecycle, he created a fire to destroy any sort of life present in the cave. But miraculously, two pigeon egg's survived under the deer skin in which the Lord was seated and they are the only ones that are believed to have overheard the secret. In recent times too, it is said that pilgrims can see a pair of pigeons nesting in the caves. The cave derived its name from the fact that the secret of immortality or Amar Katha was revealed here.
The cave is situated at an altitude of 3,888m and is visited by lakhs of devotees from distant places in the month of July and August. The journey is a tough one but it finally pays off with a glimpse at the Shiva lingam- the symbol of Lord Shiva formed in ice.
You must also go for a trek to Amarnath during the month of June to August. During this trek, you get to see the image of Shiva in the shape of the lingam. This lingam is made of an ice-stalagmite. This area is covered with snow during the month of September to June. During this time, the devotees have to struggle hard to reach this place because of heavy rain. A yearly pilgrimage also starts from Srinagar organized by the Chhari Saheb. If you are planning to visit Amarnath, make sure you get all the information on how to reach there and what is the good season to reach there. You can also visit Amaranth during the annual event where thousands of Hindus from many places visit Amarnath caves. You can also book your tour to Amaranth online or with the help of a travelling agent.