The Artistic Yoga Podcast

Char Dham Yatra - The Four Stations Part 1 of 2

Bharat Thakur
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The Himalayas are an ongoing massive geological phenomenon as the Indian plate continues its 60 million year collision into the Eurasian plate, with its height going up by almost an inch every year. It's a young mountain chain that is made of material that  was once below the sea. And though it's gigantic, it is soft and delicate. Its rich topsoil has earthed millions of herbs and precious  minerals, its waters are considered to be pristine and healing. The Yogi have considered the Himalaya their natural habitat to an extent that the Himalaya are not just a mountain chain, but the  spiritual abode of the planet. 

This combination of active geology, youth, fertility and spirituality makes it a unique place to visit, travel and stay in. It is a heaven for a pilgrimage. The Char Dham Yatra, the Pilgrimage of four stations is special for the locations it includes for all the reasons mentioned above and for the way they combine on a single continuous journey. In this series of logs composed during such a trip Bharat takes us through this experience. 

In Blog 2, we understand the significance of each of the four stations, which for many are independent pilgrimage centers themselves. 


Segment 1

In this segment, Bharat gives us a glimpse of the four stations, what they feel like, the history they carry and the impact they are meant to have on the pilgrim.  The four are not very far from each other in terms of kilometers, but it’s the greater Himalayas. Distances tend to be both psychological and evolutionary. But perhaps your experience could also be transcendental.


SEGMENTS

  1. Yamunotri .. the abode of enchanting Yamuna
  2. Gangotri .. Ganga .. wild at her origins 
  3. Kedarnath .. the Challenge 
  4. Badrinath .. the mystic doorway