Himachal: 6 lakh devotees go on the 13-day Mani Mahesh Yatra

Himachal Pradesh: Around 6 lakh devotees took part in the 13-day annual pilgrimage to the Manimahesh lake, located at an altitude of 13,500 feet in Bharmour subdivision of Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh. Bharmour’s officiating additional district magistrate (ADM) Kulbir Singh Rana said that more than one lakh devotees took a holy dip in the Manimahesh lake during the “Bada Shahi Snan” (big royal bath) that began on Tuesday night till Wednesday morning. The ADM said that more than one lakh devotees visited to take a holy dip during the “Chhota Snan” during the first two days of the yatra. Rana, who is also the member secretary of the Shri Manimahesh Yatra Trust under whose supervision the pilgrimage took place, said that eight casualties were reported during the yatra. Three people died in a road accident, two died due to accidental fall or stone hitting and the rest due to illness.

However, no death was reported from high altitude areas including Gauri Kund and Manimahesh lake. The administration had deployed 700 policemen to maintain law and order and traffic management during the yatra, along with several teams of rescue workers deployed in crucial areas. This year, the initial days of the yatra witnessed a massive rush of devotees, resulting in long traffic jams on the Chamba-Bharmaur highway and huge crowds on the way to the lake. The yatra had to be postponed several times due to bad weather. The Manimahesh Kailash Yatra is one of the three major pilgrimages in Himachal, the other two being the Shrikhand Kailash and Kinnar Kailash pilgrimages. The pilgrimage begins on Janmashtami, the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna, and ends on Radha Ashtami. Every year, devotees undertake a challenging 14-km climb to the oval-shaped lake in search of a holy view of Mount Kailash, believed to be the abode of Lord Shiva, to offer their prayers. Starting from Hadsar in Chamba district at an altitude of about 6,000 feet, the climb is considered as challenging as the famous pilgrimage to the Amarnath cave temple in Jammu and Kashmir. A rock shaped like a Shivalinga on Kailash is considered to be a form of Lord Shiva.