Bageshwar

Bageshwar

Situated at the confluence of rivers Saryu, Gomti and latent Bhagirathi, lies the holy township of Bageshwar; also revered as the pious land associated with Lord Sadashiva, the redeemer of all sins. As the puranas state, this undoubtedly is a place capable of liberating one from the eternal bondage of births & deaths. With the east and west flanked by the Bhileswar and Nileshwar mountains and surrounded by Suraj Kund in the north and Agni Kund in the south, this land of Lord Shankar is of great religious, historic and political significance. Since time immemorial, this place has been the symbol of faith for the entire Uttranchal region. Because of its spiritual magnetism, it has attracted many saintly men and numerous patriots who have always been ready to lay down everything for the sake of their revered motherland.

The temple of Bagnath situated here is venerated by one and all. Devotees gather here on every Monday of the holy month of Shravan to worship the Lord, who is also known as the remover of sorrows. During the fairs of Uttarayani and Shivratri, it becomes very difficult to control the hoards of devotees who come to attend these fairs from far and near.

The Nilaparvat, situated between the rivers Saryu and Gomti is inhabited by all the 33 crore Gods of the Hindu pantheon, the celestial being like Siddha, Gandharva, Vidyadhar, Urvashi etc. and manu sages. Irrigated by the Saryu, the Nilaparvat is held to be more important than the Vindhyachal. Those who desire to embrace death at place between Surya Kund and Agni Kund, become equivalent to the Gods by attaining salvation at the feet of Lord Shiva himself.

During the reign of the Chands, the Shiva temple was constructed at Bageshwar. Legend has it that when repeated attempts to install a Shiv Linga proved futile, it was Shri Manorath Pandey of Palayn village who succeeded in installing the idol after performing penance on the Shivratri. From then onwards, a massive fair is held on Shivratri each year to commemorate the event.To Top

General Information

Air – The nearest airport is Pantnagar

Rail – The nearest Railhead is Kathgodam

Road – The district of Bageshwer is located in the northern parts of province of Uttaranchal in India. In east lies the district of Pithoragarh bordering Tibet and it’s west lies the district of Chamoli and it’s North lie the the Great Himalayas and in the South there is the district Bageshwer. The location of the township of Bageshwer, the headquarter of the district, viz a viz some important cities of India are as given below in road Kms.

Hotel Siddharth
Hotel Rajdoot
Hotel Annapurna
PWD Inspection Bunglow
Jila Panchayat Dak Bunglow
Tourist Reception Centre, Kumaun Mandal Vikas Nigam
Forest Rest House

Temples

Bagnath Temple - At the junction of the rivers, Gomti and Saryu stands a large temple with it’s conical tower. Here is the shrine of Bageswar or Vyagreswar, the, “Tiger Lord”, an epithet of Lord Siva. This temple was erected by the Kumaun king, Laxmi Chand, about 1450 A.D., but there is an interesting Sanskrit inscription there of a far earlier date. Th temple is flooded with devotees on the annual occasion of Shivratri. This place has a cluster of temples. Prominent amoug these temples are the Bairav temple, Dattatrey Maharaj, Ganga Mai temple, Hanuman temple, Durga temple, Kalika temple, Thingal Bhirav temple, Panchnam Junakhara and the Vaneshwar temple.

Baijnath - The temples at Baijnath proper are situated on the left bank of the Gomti. On the way to the main temple, just below the house the Mahanta, is the temple of Bamani (A corrupt form of Sanskrit Brahmani). Tradition of the place says that it was built by Brahmin widow and was dedicated by her to God Shiva. Another story states that a Brahmin woman who was kidnapped by a Kshatriya built the temple in favour of Shiva for the expiation of her sins. There is an idol of Shiva inside the temple. It has no inscriptions. The construction of the temple does not differ from that of the Tailihata group, so it may also be said to belong the same period. The main temple, dedicated to Baijnath or Vaidhyanatha (a name of Shiva), which gives its name to the present village, is situated near the Gomti. The temple is approached from the riverside by a flight of steps made of stones constructed by the orders of Katyuri queen. The place was and is a bathing place of the inhabitants who have now made a Kachha pond near the temple. Baijnath is 19 KMs away from Kausani and 26 kms from Bageshwer. One it used to be the capital of the Katyuri dynasty of kings and the place was then called Kartikyapura.

Chandika Temple - A beautiful temple dedicated to Goddess Chandika stands at a distance of about half a kilometer from Bageshwar. Every year, the temple bustles with activity as the devout congregate here to offer pujas to the deity during the Navratras.

Sriharu Temple - Another important temple, the Sriharu temple, is situated at a distance of about 5 kms. from Bageshwer. The devotees believe that prayers for wish fulfilment here never go in vein. Every year, a large fair is organised on the Vijya Dashmi day following the Navratras.

Gauri Udiyar - This is sitiated 8 kms from Bageshwer. A large cave, measuring 20 X 95 sq mts is situated here, which houses the idols of Lord Shiva.

Other Temples Near Bageshwer