Gauri Kund is a

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

pilgrimage site and base camp for trek to

Kedarnath Temple Kedarnath Temple (Sanskrit: केदारनाथ मंदिर, IAST: ''Kēdāranātha Mandira'', ) is a Hindu temple roughly 1200 years old dedicated to Shiva. The temple is located on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini river ...

, in

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand ( , or ; , ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; the official name until 2007), is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" (literally 'Land of the Gods') due to its religious significance and ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

.Page 224, Hill Resorts of U.P. Himalaya: A Geographical Study, By Nutan Tyagi, Published 1991 by Indus Publishing, It is situated at an altitude of 6502 feet above mean sea level in the

Garhwal Garhwal may refer to the following topics associated with Uttarakhand, India: Places *Garhwal Himalaya, a sub-range of the Himalayas *Garhwal Kingdom, a former kingdom * Garhwal District (British Garhwal), a former district of British India *Gar ...

Himalaya The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...

s. Anekadhangavadeswarar is revered in the 7th century Tamil Saiva canonical work, the ''Tevaram'', written by Tamil saint poets known as the nayanars and classified as ''

Paadal Petra Sthalam The Paadal Petra Sthalam, also known as Thevara Sthalam, are 276 temples that are revered in the verses of Saiva Nayanars in the 6th-9th century CE and are amongst the greatest Shiva temples of the continent. The Divya Desams by comparison ar ...

'', the 275 temples reverred in the canon.

Legend

Gauri Kund is associated with Shiva's wife,

Parvati Parvati ( sa, पार्वती, ), Uma ( sa, उमा, ) or Gauri ( sa, गौरी, ) is the Hindu goddess of power, energy, nourishment, harmony, love, beauty, devotion, and motherhood. She is a physical representation of Mahadevi i ...

, who is also known as Gauri. In

folklore, Gauri committed to penance involving many ascetic and yogic practices to win over

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

's affections. Local tradition claims that Gauri Kund is the spot where Gauri lived while carrying out these practices and it was here that Shiva finally admitted His love for Her. They were married at Triyugi Narayan, which is located nearby. There are hot springs in Gauri Kund and they are converted to bathing places. This place is also associated with the legend of how

Ganesha Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu d ...

acquired his elephant head. While bathing in the ''kund'', Goddess Parvati fashioned Ganesha from the soap suds on her body, breathed life into him and placed him at the entrance as her guard. Lord

happened to arrive at the spot and he was stopped by Ganesha. Indignant at this affront, Shiva cut off Ganesha's head and Parvati was inconsolable. She insisted that the boy be brought back to life and Shiva took the head of a wandering elephant and placed it on Ganesha's body. Parvati had her son back and Ganesha acquired the persona by which he is known all over the Hindu world since then.

History

There are several inscriptions in the temple from historical times. One of the inscriptions states that the son of a

Devadasi In India, a devadasi was a female artist who was dedicated to the worship and service of a deity or a temple for the rest of her life. The dedication took place in a ceremony that was somewhat similar to a marriage ceremony. In addition to taki ...

vowed to kill himself if the temple could not be completed.

Saints and literary mention

Tirugnana Sambandar, a 7th-century Tamil ''Saivite'' poet, venerated the deity in one verses in ''

Tevaram The ''Thevaram'' ( ta, தேவாரம், ), also spelled ''Tevaram'', denotes the first seven volumes of the twelve-volume collection ''Tirumurai'', a Śaiva narrative of epic and puranic heroes, as well as a hagiographic account of early ...

'', compiled as the '' First Tirumurai''. He is believed to have rendered the verse while he visited the

Kalahast temple Srikalahasti is a holy town in Tirupati district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and the revenue division of Srikalahasti mandal & Srikalahasti revenue division. It is a part of Tirupati Urban Development Authority, wh ...

. As the temple is revered in ''Tevaram'', it is classified as ''

'', one of the 276 temples that find mention in the Saiva canon. There is a temple in

Kanchipuram Kanchipuram ('; ) also known as ''Conjeevaram,'' is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the Tondaimandalam region, from Chennaithe capital of Tamil Nadu. Known as the ''City of Thousand Temples'', Kanchipuram is known for its temple ...

, the

Anekadhangavadeswarar temple Anekadhangavadeswarar Temple (also called Anegathangavadham) is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva, located in the town of Kanchipuram, near Kailasanathar temple, Kanchipuram district in Tamil Nadu, India. Anekadhangavadeswarar is revered in the ...

carrying the same name.

References

{{HinduMythology Tourism in Uttarakhand Hot springs of India Landforms of Uttarakhand Padal Petra Stalam