5/5 Arijit D. 5 months ago on Google
For
4000
years
people
have
been
searching
for
the
head
of
the
Panch
Kedar
temples,
a
bull
who
was
Shiva
in
reality,
who
assumed
the
shape
of
a
bull
to
avoid
the
five
Pandava
brothers,
the
heroes
of
the
Mahabharat.
The
legend
goes
back
to
the
historical
battle
of
Kurukshetra
fought
between
the
five
Pandava
brothers
and
their
cousins,
the
100
Kaurava
brothers,
which
is
the
pivot
of
the
Mahabharata.
Many
folk
legends
related
to
the
Garhwal
region,
Lord
Shiva
and
the
creation
of
the
Panch
Kedar
temples
are
narrated.
A
folk
legend
about
Panch
Kedar
relates
to
the
Pandavas,
the
heroes
of
the
Hindu
epic
Mahabharata.
The
Pandavas
defeated
and
slayed
their
cousins
—
the
Kauravas
in
the
epic
Kurukshetra
war.
They
wished
to
atone
for
the
sins
of
committing
fratricide
(gotra
hatya)
and
Brāhmanahatya
(killing
of
Brahmins
—
the
priest
class)
during
the
war.
Thus,
they
handed
over
the
reins
of
their
kingdom
to
their
kin
and
left
in
search
of
lord
Shiva
and
to
seek
his
blessings.
First,
they
went
to
the
holy
city
of
Varanasi
(Kashi),
believed
to
be
Shiva's
favourite
city
and
known
for
its
Kashi
Vishwanath
Temple.
But,
Shiva
wanted
to
avoid
them
as
he
was
deeply
incensed
by
the
death
and
dishonesty
at
the
Kurukshetra
war
and
was,
therefore,
insensitive
to
Pandavas'
prayers.
Therefore,
he
assumed
the
form
of
a
bull
(Nandi)
and
hid
in
the
Garhwal
region.
Not
finding
Shiva
in
Varanasi,
the
Pandavas
went
to
Garhwal
Himalayas.
Bhima,
the
second
of
the
five
Pandava
brothers,
then
standing
astride
two
mountains
started
to
look
for
Shiva.
He
saw
a
bull
grazing
near
Guptakashi
(“hidden
Kashi”
—
the
name
derived
from
the
hiding
act
of
Shiva).
Bhima
immediately
recognized
the
bull
to
be
Shiva.
Bhima
caught
hold
of
the
bull
by
its
tail
and
hind
legs.
But
the
bull-formed
Shiva
disappeared
into
the
ground
to
later
reappear
in
parts,
with
the
hump
raising
in
Kedarnath,
the
arms
appearing
in
Tungnath,
the
face
showing
up
at
Rudranath,
the
nabhi
(navel)
and
stomach
surfacing
in
Madhyamaheshwar
and
the
hair
appearing
in
Kalpeshwar.
The
Pandavas
pleased
with
this
reappearance
in
five
different
forms,
built
temples
at
the
five
places
for
venerating
and
worshipping
Shiva.
The
Pandavas
were
thus
freed
from
their
sins.
It
is
also
believed
that
the
fore
portions
of
Shiva
appeared
at
Doleshwor
Mahadeva
Temple,
Bhaktapur
district
Nepal.
A
variant
of
the
tale
credits
Bhima
of
not
only
catching
the
bull,
but
also
stopping
it
from
disappearing.
Consequently,
the
bull
was
torn
asunder
into
five
parts
and
appeared
at
five
locations
in
the
Kedar
Khand
of
Garhwal
region
of
the
Himalayas.
After
building
the
Panch
Kedar
Temples,
the
Pandavas
meditated
at
Kedarnath
for
salvation,
performed
yagna
(fire
sacrifice)
and
then
through
the
heavenly
path
called
the
Mahapanth
(also
called
Swargarohini),
attained
heaven
or
salvation.
The
Panch
Kedar
Temples
are
constructed
in
the
North-Indian
Himalayan
Temple
architecture
with
the
Kedarnath,
Tungnath
and
Madhyamaheshwar
temples
looking
similar.
After
completing
the
pilgrimage
of
Lord
Shiva's
darshan
at
the
Panch
Kedar
Temples,
it
is
an
unwritten
religious
rite
to
visit
Lord
Vishnu
at
the
Badrinath
Temple,
as
a
final
affirmatory
proof
by
the
devotee
that
he
has
sought
blessings
of
Lord
Shiva.
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