Chitrakoot – Hill of many wonders
My vacation is still on. So far travelled Chitrakoot, Khajuraho, spent some time in Jhansi and now some relaxing time in Jaipur. Going to write about all these places and my travel experiences one by one.
This time its about Chitrakoot. Occasion was to attend Vijay’s marriage there. It was long journey to reach Chitrakoot. From Bangalore to Bhopal in Rajdhani Exp and then from Bhopal to Satna in Revanchal Exp. Gaurav and Rajdeep was also with me. We three started from Bangalore on Friday night, reached Bhopal on Sat night and then another overnight train to reach Satna on Monday Morning.From Satna we took one bus to reach Chitrakoot. 35 hrs journey by train and then 2.5 hrs journey by bus.
A (Bangalore) -> B (Bhopal) -> C (Satna) -> D (Chitrakoot)
Chitrakoot is actually divided in two state, one part of it is in Madhya Pradesh and another part is in Uttar Pradesh. One small bridge separate the two states. Chitrakoot is very beautiful town and has religious significance. one of the oldest pilgrimages in the country. Lord Ram, Sita and Lakshman stayed in the region for about 11 years of their 14 year exile. I will skip all the fun and memorable moments we had during Vijay’s marriage and other functions. Will write more about the tourist destinations we covered.
Very first day after taking lunch we visited the first place. Hanuman Dhara. Hardly 3 km from town, we took one auto, paid him 20 per head for taking us there and then returning back to town. Hanuman Dhara is in Kamadgiri mountain and to reach the main temple, you will have to climb 360 stairs. The temple gets its name due to a mythological legend associated with its natural spring of water.
After Hanuman had set fire to the entire kingdom of Lanka with his tail, his whole body was consumed in flames and he was burning in pain. Ram pierced an arrow in this mountain to spring up water which relieved Shri Hanuman. Since, then the spring is known as Hanuman Dhara. A narrow stream of water emerges from the rock crevice and falls directly on the idol. Apart from that, there is a nearby well that never dries up, which is also considered sacred. Views from the top of this temple is spectacular, panoramic view of Chitrakoot town.
Ramghat was our next destination and for me this one is the best place in Chitakoot. Its built on the banks of the Mandakini river.It was believed that Rama, Sita and Lakshman used to take bath here, during their stay at Chitrakoot.another common belief that Tulsidas, met Lord Rama at Ramghat and composed the “Tulsi Ram Charit Manas” sitting here. In the evening, aarti is performed by the priests and numerous lamps are lit, which creates a magical view against the backdrop of the calm waters of the Mandakini.
Next day our plan was to cover Char Dham, four sacred spots in the holy town of Chitrakoot,(Janaki Kund, Sphatic Shila, Sati Anusuiya and Gupt Godavari). We hired auto again and after some bargain we paid 400 rs to cover all the places.
Janaki kund is a bathing pool where Sita, believed to have taken baths during her stay here.There are steps leading down to the pool on the left bank of Mandakini river.
Sphatic Shila (crystal rock) was another 2 km from Janaki Kund, contains the footprints of Lord Rama. It is essentially a flat boulder, where Lord Rama was believed to have once rested upon, with his wife Sita.
Sati Anusuiya was the next place, 17 km from town and the temple is located in an ashram where Sati Anusuya was believed to have resided. The lush greenery, chirping of birds and small rivulets arising from the surrounding mountain create a very picturesque view. But be careful with the monkeys out there. There are so many and if they see you with some food items, you are in trouble.
Gupt Godavari, It has two natural caves. The first one is a high and wide cave where a cave temple is established. The insides of the caves are well lit. I liked the the second cave, it was longer and narrower, has a narrow stream flowing through it. The stream is believed to be Goddess Godavari who wished to meet Lord Rama, and thus took underground route to reach this place. On entering , the stream is only ankle deep, but when you are well inside the cave, it reaches up to knee level. The water was crystal clear and the cool sand under feet felt wonderful. unfortunately taking picture was not allowed there.
Though I am not very religious but visiting all these places were quite good actually. It gave me chance to look back and got more info about the Ramayan. The entire Chitrakoot town is spiritual and you can feel that vibe everywhere. We were in Chitrakoot for two days, third morning left the town and reached Khajuraho, Unesco world heritage site which is 170 km from Chitrakoot. I will write more about Khajuraho in next blog.
This time its about Chitrakoot. Occasion was to attend Vijay’s marriage there. It was long journey to reach Chitrakoot. From Bangalore to Bhopal in Rajdhani Exp and then from Bhopal to Satna in Revanchal Exp. Gaurav and Rajdeep was also with me. We three started from Bangalore on Friday night, reached Bhopal on Sat night and then another overnight train to reach Satna on Monday Morning.From Satna we took one bus to reach Chitrakoot. 35 hrs journey by train and then 2.5 hrs journey by bus.
A (Bangalore) -> B (Bhopal) -> C (Satna) -> D (Chitrakoot)
Chitrakoot is actually divided in two state, one part of it is in Madhya Pradesh and another part is in Uttar Pradesh. One small bridge separate the two states. Chitrakoot is very beautiful town and has religious significance. one of the oldest pilgrimages in the country. Lord Ram, Sita and Lakshman stayed in the region for about 11 years of their 14 year exile. I will skip all the fun and memorable moments we had during Vijay’s marriage and other functions. Will write more about the tourist destinations we covered.
Very first day after taking lunch we visited the first place. Hanuman Dhara. Hardly 3 km from town, we took one auto, paid him 20 per head for taking us there and then returning back to town. Hanuman Dhara is in Kamadgiri mountain and to reach the main temple, you will have to climb 360 stairs. The temple gets its name due to a mythological legend associated with its natural spring of water.
After Hanuman had set fire to the entire kingdom of Lanka with his tail, his whole body was consumed in flames and he was burning in pain. Ram pierced an arrow in this mountain to spring up water which relieved Shri Hanuman. Since, then the spring is known as Hanuman Dhara. A narrow stream of water emerges from the rock crevice and falls directly on the idol. Apart from that, there is a nearby well that never dries up, which is also considered sacred. Views from the top of this temple is spectacular, panoramic view of Chitrakoot town.
Ramghat was our next destination and for me this one is the best place in Chitakoot. Its built on the banks of the Mandakini river.It was believed that Rama, Sita and Lakshman used to take bath here, during their stay at Chitrakoot.another common belief that Tulsidas, met Lord Rama at Ramghat and composed the “Tulsi Ram Charit Manas” sitting here. In the evening, aarti is performed by the priests and numerous lamps are lit, which creates a magical view against the backdrop of the calm waters of the Mandakini.
Next day our plan was to cover Char Dham, four sacred spots in the holy town of Chitrakoot,(Janaki Kund, Sphatic Shila, Sati Anusuiya and Gupt Godavari). We hired auto again and after some bargain we paid 400 rs to cover all the places.
Janaki kund is a bathing pool where Sita, believed to have taken baths during her stay here.There are steps leading down to the pool on the left bank of Mandakini river.
Sphatic Shila (crystal rock) was another 2 km from Janaki Kund, contains the footprints of Lord Rama. It is essentially a flat boulder, where Lord Rama was believed to have once rested upon, with his wife Sita.
Sati Anusuiya was the next place, 17 km from town and the temple is located in an ashram where Sati Anusuya was believed to have resided. The lush greenery, chirping of birds and small rivulets arising from the surrounding mountain create a very picturesque view. But be careful with the monkeys out there. There are so many and if they see you with some food items, you are in trouble.
Gupt Godavari, It has two natural caves. The first one is a high and wide cave where a cave temple is established. The insides of the caves are well lit. I liked the the second cave, it was longer and narrower, has a narrow stream flowing through it. The stream is believed to be Goddess Godavari who wished to meet Lord Rama, and thus took underground route to reach this place. On entering , the stream is only ankle deep, but when you are well inside the cave, it reaches up to knee level. The water was crystal clear and the cool sand under feet felt wonderful. unfortunately taking picture was not allowed there.
Though I am not very religious but visiting all these places were quite good actually. It gave me chance to look back and got more info about the Ramayan. The entire Chitrakoot town is spiritual and you can feel that vibe everywhere. We were in Chitrakoot for two days, third morning left the town and reached Khajuraho, Unesco world heritage site which is 170 km from Chitrakoot. I will write more about Khajuraho in next blog.
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