(

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

) comes from the two root words , meaning 'penance' and by extension 'religious mortification' and 'austerity', and more generally '

spiritual practice A spiritual practice or spiritual discipline (often including spiritual exercises) is the regular or full-time performance of actions and activities undertaken for the purpose of inducing spiritual experiences and cultivating spiritual developme ...

', and '','' meaning 'forest' or 'thicket'. then translates as 'forest of austerities or spiritual practice'. Though pronounced the same in Hindi, ''tapovana'' should not be confused with ''tapovan'' (from ''tapovat''), which means a person engaged in austerity. Traditionally in India, any place where someone has engaged in serious spiritual retreat may become known as a , even if there is no forest. As well as particular caves and other hermitages where sages and

sadhu ''Sadhu'' ( sa, साधु, IAST: ' (male), ''sādhvī'' or ''sādhvīne'' (female)), also spelled ''saddhu'', is a religious ascetic, mendicant or any holy person in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism who has renounced the worldly life. Th ...

s have dwelt, there are some places, such as the western bank of the northern

Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...

river around

Rishikesh Rishikesh, also spelt as Hrishikesh, is a city near Dehradun in Dehradun district of the Indian state Uttarakhand. It is situated on the right bank of the Ganges River and is a pilgrimage town for Hindus, with ancient sages and saints meditati ...

, that have been so used by hermits that the whole area has become known as a .

Tapovan (places)

The most well known in India is the area above the Gangotri Glacier at one of the primary sources of the

, 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 ...

. At the foot of Shivling peak, a barren area at about 4,463m (14640 feet) elevation, is a seasonal home to several sadhus living in caves, huts, etc. and it has become a trekking destination also. The trekking usually starts from Gomukh and the trek was considered moderate to difficult prior to the destruction of much of the trail from Gangotri to Gaumukh by the

2013 North Indian Floods In June 2013, a mid-day cloudburst centered on the North Indian state of Uttarakhand caused devastating floods and landslides, becoming the country's worst natural disaster since the 2004 tsunami. The rainfall received that month was far great ...

. The Tapovan area is base camp for several mountaineering expeditions including Shivling peak, Bhagirathi peak etc. The Tapovan area is full of meadows, streams and flowering plants and the meadows are considered one of the best high altitude meadows in India. In Tapovan, a stream named Amrit Ganga – the nectar of the Ganges – flows into the glacier. There is also a place named Nandanvan near Tapovan, and Nandanvan is also trekked by trekkers and pilgrims. Nandanvan is also a spacious meadow located at the base of Bhagirathi massif. There is a place bearing a similar name at Joshimath in Chamoli District, which has a sulphur spring known as the Tapovan Hot Springs. It is a part of the

Sapta Badri Sapta Badri constitutes a group of seven sacred Hindu temples, dedicated to god Vishnu, located in Garhwal Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. The Badrinath temple, called the Badri Vishal (altitude ) is the primary temple among the ...

br>Tapovan PDF

References

Tavovan Trek Team GAG
Uttarkashi Spiritual retreats {{Hinduism-stub

Tapovan (places)

See also

References