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THE
HOLY CAVE OF SHREE AMARNATH JI
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Kashmir
has, since times immemorial, been the abode of gods and a
goddesses. The most sacred and famous one is the holy cave of
Shree Amarnath, the Eternal Lord, which is situated at a height of
13,000 ft. from the sea level. It is about 45 kms. from
Pahalgam, the
famous tourist resort of Kashmir.
THE
ORIGIN OF THE PILGRIMAGE
The
origin of the pilgrimage is described in a Sanskrit book "Bringesha Samhita
".
Herein is stated that rishi Bringesha told his disciples the importance of
the Amarnath cave and instructed them to go to the holy cave and have darshan
of the sacred ice-lingam. The pilgrims, however, were harassed by the Rakhashas.
Thereupon, the rishi Bringesha prayed to Lord Shiva. The Lord gifted the rishi
a scepter to ensure safe journey. This has ever since been the symbol of protection.
to the caravan of the pilgrims and now it is called Chhari Mubarak. The traditional
Yatra (pilgrimage) generally arrives at the cave every year at Rakhsha
Bandhan Purnima (full moon), which occurs near the last week of August. The
Chhari is accompanied by a large number of pilgrims and sadhus chanting mantras.
DESCRIPTION OF THE
CAVE
The cave is quite large. Its entrance is about forty yards horizontally and
in height it is about 75 feet and is sloping 80 feet deep down inside the
mountain. In the cave is an ice-lingam of
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about five feet high and at the
top it forms a cone. This obviously symbolizes Lord Shiva and to the left
of the lingam is a small ice block which stands for Lord Ganesha and to the
left of the latter is a small ice formation representing goddess Parvati.
These ice formations are formed during, the summer days and wax and wane along-with
the moon. On the full moon day they are complete in form whereas on moonless
days they altogether vanish.
THE IMPORTANCE OF CAVE
Lakhs
of great men and common men, both old and young, have undertaken the hazardous
and exhausting trekking to the cave for centuries. Most notable among them
are Swami Vivekananda who visited the holy cave in 1898, Swami Ramatirtha
and, above all, Swami Shankaracharva, the great saint who journeyed from the
south to have darshan of the ice lingam. About Swami Vivekananda's pilgrimage
to the holy cave, Margaret Noble, better known as Sister Nivedita, gives interesting
details in her "Notes on the Wanderings of Swami Vivekananda". She says
that the Swami was much moved inside the cave so that his whole body shook
and he swooned with intense emotion. Sister Nivedita also writes that "the
place was vast, huge enough to hold a Cathedral and the great ice-Shiva was
in a niche of the deepest shadow, sacred as if throned on its base. The Swami,
she says, told her that he had a strange mystical experience in the cave.
Lord Shiva himself appeared before him and he granted him the boon that he
would die whenever he desired".
THE
DISCOVERY OF THE CAVE
There
are many legends regarding the Amarnath cave given in Amarkatha, a Sanskrit
text.
It also gives the significance of the Yatra. This Amarkatha is said to have
been narrated by Lord Shiva himself to his consort Parvati. The discovery
of the cave has been attributed to a shepherd who while searching for his
flock of sheep, saw the cave and on entering it found the ice-lingam. The
case was rediscovered by a Muslim of Balkote village, situated below Pahalgam,
at a distance of seven kms. The cave's location had been lost for over a century
and as a reward the family of the Muslim, Malik, continues to get one-third
of the share of offerings at the cave every year, while the rest is equally
divided between the Mahant of Dashamani Akhara, Srinagar and the Pandas of
Mattan, a village in South Kashmir. The pilgrimage is undertaken in the following
stages:
(i) Palialgam, the base camp; (ii) Chandanwari; (iii) Sheshnag; and (iv) Panchtarni.
PAHALGAM
Pahalgam
is a picturesque village surrounded by mountains covered with deodar and conifer
trees and is situated on the bank of' the river Liddar. It is said that in
the vicinity of Pahalgam is Mahadevgiri mountain and at its base is a big
flat stone. A stream runs besides it. "In the 9th century A.D. a saint named
Vasugupta had a dream in which Lord Shiva appeared to
him and told him the
whereabouts of a rock with a series of' teachings inscribed on it. These teachings
which were named as Shivasutras form the foundation of Kashmiri Shaivism.
Swami Mukhtananda who visited Kashmir found the rock. The intervening years
have wiped away the writings which were found on the rock but the feelings
remains". Kashmiri Shaivism describes one's own nature, the nature of the
world around him and God. Self-realization is the aim of this system of Kashmiri
Shaivism.
CHANDANWARI
The pilgrims leave for the next stage, Chandanwari, which is eight kms. from
Pahalgam, and one has to climb up the valley which, on both sides has thick
forests of tall pines and birches and green grass so that the whole panorama
looks like an enchantment of greenery.
SHESHNAG
From
here the pilgrims move to the next stage, that is Sheshnag, which is situated
about 13,000
feet above the sea level. Here the pilgrims stay for the night. One finds
a big lake here. It is about a mile long and a quarter of a mile broad. There
is a meadow overlooking the lake. Behind it rises a huge glacier with three
silent pinnacles of ice. There is a legend concerning this take. It is said
that a powerful Asura (demon) brought about a havoc among the Devas (gods).
In distress they prayed to Lord Shiva, but he could not help them as he had
granted a boon to the Asura (demon) that he would not be killed by the Lord.
He advised them to approach Lord Vishnu. They prayed to Lord Vishnu as a result
of which the mighty snake residing in the lake destroyed the Asura (demon)
at the command of Lord Vishnu. Thus the spot containing lake and the mountain
behind, is known as Sheshnag. The pilgrims bathe in this lake as it is considered
auspicious.
Then
the pilgrims have to climb the Mahagunus mountain which is about 13,000feethigh.
The mountain is covered with beautiful buttercups and here are heard the shrieks
of the marmot animals which cannot be seen as they run into the holes as soon
as they hear the footsteps of a human being.
PANCHTARNI
Then
from here one has to travel a mile's decline to Panchtarani. The whole scene
is one of barren mountains and no trees are found here; is covered with green
grass only. The pilgrims reach the plain of Panchtarani which is a mile long
and a quarter of mile broad. A stream runs here and four other streams also
join it. The tradition goes that Lord Shiva was performing Tandav Nritya,
the cosmic dance of destruction. "While dancing his locks got disheveled and
from them the five streams came down. These are considered holy and bathing
in them is considered as auspicious. Some very rare types of wild flowers
of variegated colors and kinds are found here. The pilgrims, leaving Panchtarani
behind, go up. Here goats and horses which belong to the 13hakarwals graze.
After passing this stage the pilgrims go up to the holy cave. At the left
of the cave flows the Amarvati stream in which the pilgrims bathe before entering
the cave.Outside
the cave are seen two pigeons which are present there throughout the year.
There is a legend that Lord Shiva was in deep meditation when he was disturbed
by his two devotees. Lord Shiva got furious and transformed them into pigeons
and now they are seen there since many years.
It
often happens that the weather gets overcast with dark clouds and it rains
excessively but in spite of the devotees with strong determination go up the
cave and are rewarded with the darshan of the Lord's ice lingam. Those who
have true devotion and faith in Lord Shiva never turn their back during the
Yatra but go steadfast up to the cave. |
