Badrinath Temple

Badrinath is one of the four Char Dham of India and the most important of the Himalayan Chota Char Dham. It is celebrated in the Puranas as the abode where Vishnu, as the twin sages Nara-Narayana, performed penance for the good of the world. Adi Shankaracharya's establishment of the shrine made it a cornerstone of Sanatan Dharma's pan-Indian pilgrimage. Devotees believe a single darshan of Badri Vishal grants liberation from the cycle of rebirth.

Badrinath is dedicated to Lord Vishnu in his form as Badri Vishal, seated in eternal meditation. The black-stone image in the sanctum is said to have been recovered from the Alaknanda by Adi Shankaracharya, who established the shrine as the northern seat of his four cardinal dhams in the 8th century. Just below the temple lies the boiling Tapt Kund hot spring, where pilgrims bathe before darshan despite the freezing mountain air. The shrine opens for only about six months a year, and its closing and reopening ceremonies are events of great emotion and devotion.