New Delhi: The Panch Kedar consists of five temples dedicated to Lord Shiva and is located in the Garhwal Himalayan region of Uttarakhand. According to many legends, the Panch Kedars are directly linked to the Pandavas of the epic Mahabharata. The Panch Kedars are Kedarnath, Tugnath Temple, Rudranath Temple, Madhyamaheshwar Temple, and Kalpeshwar Temple.
The Garhwal region is also known as the Kedar-Khanda after Kedar, another name for Lord Shiva. Kedarnath is the first temple to worship in the Panch Kedars. Kedarnath is also part of the Char Dham (Uttakarakhand). While the Kedarnath Temple doors opened on May 2, the fourth Kedar of the Panch Kedar — Rudranath Temple doors opened to the public yesterday, May 18, 2025.
As Rudranath Temple in the Chamoli district is open to devotees, let’s learn some interesting facts about one of the Panch Kedar Temples.
Rudranath Temple is an important site among the Panch Kedar, known as the fourth Kedar, where devotees worship the ‘Ekanan’ form of Lord Shiva, representing his face. The temple doors have opened (May 18, 2025, Sunday), and regular worship will occur for six months. During this time, visitors from across India and around the world can come to this holy place and receive the blessings of Lord Rudranath. Devotees get a unique chance to see the ‘Ekanan’ form of Lord Shiva.
Rudranath Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva. It is located at 11,800 feet in a dense forest of rhododendron and alpine pastures. This temple is the fourth stop in the Panch Kedar pilgrimage circuit, which includes five Shiva temples in the Garhwal region. The Panch Kedar are Kedarnath at 11,755 feet, Tungnath at 12,070 feet, Rudranath at 11,500 feet, Madhyamaheshwar at 11,450 feet and Kalpeshwar at 7,200 feet.
The Rudranath Temple is believed to have been established by the Pandavas of the Hindu epic Mahabharata. After the Pandavas defeated their cousins, the Kauravas, in the Kurukshetra war, they wanted to atone for the sins of killing their relatives and Brahmins during the war. To do this, they gave their kingdom to their relatives and set out to find Lord Shiva and seek his blessings.
First, they went to Varanasi (Kashi). However, Shiva wanted to avoid them because he was upset about the death and dishonesty from the war. He changed into a bull (Nandi) and hid in the Garhwal region.
Not finding Shiva in Varanasi, the Pandavas travelled to the Garhwal Himalayas. Bhima, the second of the five Pandava brothers, stood between two mountains and began searching for Shiva. He spotted a bull grazing near Guptakashi. Bhima recognised the bull as Shiva. He grabbed the bull by its tail and hind legs. However, Shiva, in bull form, vanished into the ground and later reappeared in pieces: the hump appeared in Kedarnath, the arms at Tungnath, the face at Rudranath, the navel and stomach at Madhyamaheshwar, and the hair at Kalpeshwar. Happy about this, the Pandavas built temples to honour and worship Shiva at these five locations. This act freed them from their sins.
One version of the story says that Bhima caught the bull and prevented it from disappearing. Because of this, the bull was torn into five parts and appeared at five places in the Kedar Khand area of the Garhwal region. After building the Panch Kedar Temples, the Pandavas meditated at Kedarnath, performed a fire sacrifice and then took the heavenly path called the Mahapanth to reach heaven or salvation.
After visiting Lord Shiva at the Panch Kedar Temples, devotees commonly visit Lord Vishnu at the Badrinath Temple. This visit is a final confirmation that they have received blessings from Lord Shiva.
In winter, a symbolic image of Shiva is taken from Rudranath to Gopinath Mandir in Gopeshwar for worship. The Doli Yatra begins in Gopeshwar and goes through Sagar. The Doli Yatris cross Lyuti Bugyal and Panar and finally arrive at Pitradhar, where they honour their ancestors. After this, they move past Dhalabni Maidan, and the Doli reaches Rudranath. Here, they first worship Vandevi, who is believed to protect the area. Vandevi or Vandevatas safeguard the place.
At Nandikund (2,439 m or 8,002 ft), along the trek to Rudranath (when coming from Madhmaheshwar), devotees worship old swords stuck in the rocks, which are believed to belong to the Pandavas.
Many sacred water tanks, known as “Kund”, are near the temple. These include Surya-kund, Chandra-kund, Tara-kund and Mana-Kund. The famous mountain peaks of Nanda Devi, Trishul and Nanda Ghunti rise behind the temple.
The holy river Vaitarani, also called Baitarani or Rudraganga, flows near the temple and has a grey stone idol of Rudranath. This river is known as the “river of salvation”, where the souls of the dead cross to reach the afterlife. Because of this, many people visit Rudranath to perform rituals for the dead, like pind offerings.
Some believe that making a pind offering to ancestors here is as good as offering a hundred million in Gaya.
Rudranath is often considered the hardest Panch Kedar temple to reach.
Most people start their trek to Rudranath from Gopeshwar or nearby areas. A road goes up to the village of Sagar. After that, visitors walk through forests of oak and rhododendrons.
There are different trekking routes:
1) A steep 17 km walk from Gangolgaon, 3 km from Gopeshwar. This route goes through forests and past the shepherd settlements of Panar and Naila.
2) Another route from Gopeshwar goes through Mandal for 13 km and then continues for an additional 6 km to the Anusuya Devi Temple, followed by another 20 km to Rudranath.
3) There is also a 45 km trek from Joshimath, which is considered very difficult.
