There is no clear cut information of the discovery of the cave. The credit of discovery goes to a shepherd (Gujar) Buta Malik, it is said that he was given a bag full of coal by a saint. When the shepherd opened to see in his house it was a bag full of gold. The happy shepherd went back to thank the saint but found a cave with a lingam inside it . Then onwards this place has become the sacred place of Pilgrimage .Another legend says that Kashyap a sage drained the lake of Kashmir and found the cave along with the lingam in it. Hindu mythology says that this Amarnath cave is the cave which was used by Lord Shiva to tell about the secret of life and eternity to Goddess Parvathi. He was looking for a secret isolated place to tell this "amar katha" to goddess Parvathi. So he selected this cave. And as a preparation he left his vehicle Nandi, the bull in Pahalgam (Bhail Gaow), released the moon at Chandanwari, snake at Lake Sheshnag, Lord Ganesh at Mahagunas parvat, five elements of life at Panjitarni. Finally he created Rudra (Kalagni) and ordered him to set afire and eliminate every living thing in and around the holy cave. Then Lord Shiva took Parvathi Goddess inside the cave to tell the amar katha. It is a popular pilgrimage destination for Hindus - about 400,000 people visit during the 45-day season around the festival of Shravani Mela in July-August, coinciding with the Hindu holy month of Shravan. The Shivlingam has melted owing to the rise in temperatures. It is a normal phenomenon; weather affects its shape and size”The other ice lingams had not completely melted. Many environmentalists blamed global warming for the The Amarnath caves are one of the most famous shrines in Hinduism, dedicated to the god Shiva, located in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. The shrine is claimed to be over 5,000 years old and forms an important part of ancient Hindu mythology. Inside the main Amarnath cave lies an ice stalagmite resembling the Shiva Linga, which waxes during May to August and gradually wanes thereafter. This lingam is said to grow and shrink with the phases of the moon, reaching its height during the summer festival. According to Hindu mythology, this is the cave where Shiva explained the secret of life and eternity to his divine consort Parvati. There are two other ice formations representing Parvati and Shiva's son, Ganesha.
Safeties to be taken in Amarnath
There is more cool that’s why carry caps, glosses, jerkins, socks etc. compulsory. We feel un comfortable with less oxygen. Take some suggested items such as Halls, Vicks, Torch light or candle, match box etc. The climatic conditions are very uncertain. Rain or snowfall may take place at any time or place during the Amarnath Yatra. It is to be particularly noted that abrupt changes in temperature might occur. Sunny weather may turn into rain / snow fall in a short time . The temperature may fall up to -5° C.Importance of Amarnath Temple
Amarnath cave temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. An enshrined image of ice naturally formed in a cylindrical form which resembles Lord Shiva-Linga, begins to take its shape on the first day of the bright half of the month and reaches its full size on the full moon day (Poornima). After getting its fullest shape, it begins to wane and disappear on the new moon day. According to the tradition, the largest ice formation is considered as Lord Shiva Linga, one on the left side of the linga is an ice formation of Lord Ganesha, and on the right are formations of Parvati and Bhairava. The Amarnath temple is around 46 kms from Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir and 4500mtrs above the sea level. The time of pilgrimage to this holy shrine is between July and August. The guard of the absolute, lord Shiva, the destroyer, is present in the form of ice Lingam in this cave located at a more remote end of the valley of Lidder. This lingam is made naturally of a stalagmite of ice which awakes and weakens with the moon. There is no clear cut information of the discovery of the cave. The credit of discovery goes to a shepherd (Gujar) Buta Malik, it is said that he was given a bag full of coal by a saint. When the shepherd opened to see in his house it was a bag full of gold. The happy shepherd went back to thank the saint but found a cave with a lingam inside it . Then onwards this place has become the sacred place of Pilgrimage .Another legend says that Kashyap a sage drained the lake of Kashmir and found the cave along with the lingam in it. Hindu mythology says that this Amarnath cave is the cave which was used by Lord Shiva to tell about the secret of life and eternity to Goddess Parvathi. He was looking for a secret isolated place to tell this "amar katha" to goddess Parvathi. So he selected this cave. And as a preparation he left his vehicle Nandi, the bull in Pahalgam (Bhail Gaow), released the moon at Chandanwari, snake at Lake Sheshnag, Lord Ganesh at Mahagunas parvat, five elements of life at Panjitarni. Finally he createdRudra (Kalagni) and ordered him to set afire and eliminate every living thing in and around the holy cave. Then Lord Shiva took Parvathi Goddess inside the cave to tell the amar katha. It is a popular pilgrimage destination for Hindus - about 400,000 people visit during the 45-day season around the festival of Shravani Mela in July-August, coinciding with the Hindu holy month ofShravan. The Shivlingam has melted owing to the rise in temperatures. It is a normal phenomenon; weather affects its shape and size”The other ice lingams had not completely melted. Many environmentalists blamed global warming for the The Amarnath caves are one of the most famous shrines in Hinduism, dedicated to the god Shiva, located in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. The shrine is claimed to be over 5,000 years old and forms an important part of ancient Hindu mythology. Inside the main Amarnath cave lies an ice stalagmite resembling the Shiva Linga, which waxes during May to August and gradually wanes thereafter. This lingam is said to grow and shrink with the phases of the moon, reaching its height during the summer festival. According to Hindu mythology, this is the cave where Shiva explained the secret of life and eternity to his divine consort Parvati. There are two other ice formations representing Parvati and Shiva's son, Ganesha. The cave is situated at an altitude of 3,888 m (12,760 ft), about 141 km (88 mi) from Srinagar, the capital of Jammu and Kashmir. The Central Reserve Police Force, Indian Army and Indian Paramilitary Forces maintain a strong presence in the region due to concerns of security and hence prior permission is needed from the Government of India before making a pilgrimage (Note: as of June 2009, no permit was necessary to go to the cave, even for foreigners. The story narrated by people about the discovery of this Holy Cave is of a shepherd Buta Malik. He is given the credit of discovering this Holy Cave. Story goes like this, that a saint gave Buta Malik a bag full of Coal. On reaching his home when he opened the bag , to his utter surprise the bag was full of gold coins. This made him overwhelmed with joy. He ran to thank the Saint. But, what he found was that the Saint had disappeared. Instead, he found The Holy Cave and Shiv Lingam there in. He announced the discovery of this to the Villagers. Then onwards this has become the sacred place of Pilgrimage. The ancient epics narrate an other story which goes like this. The valley of Kashmir was under water. It was a big lake. Kashyap Rishi drained the water through number of rivers and rivulets. In those days Bhrigu Rishi came that way on a visit to The Himalyas. He was the first to have Darshans of this Holy Cave. When people heard of the Lingam, Amarnath for them became Shiva's abode and a Centre of pilgrimage. Since then Lacs of devotees perform the pilgrimage through tough terrain and avail eternal happiness. The trek to Amarnath, in the month of sharavan (July August) has the devout flock to this incredible shrine, where the image of Shiva, in the form of a Lingam, is formed naturally of an Ice Stalagmite, which waxes and wanes with the Moon's cycle. By its side are fascinating, two more Ice Lingams, that of Maa Parvati and of their son, Ganesha.
The annual Amarnath pilgrimage in Jammu and Kashmir kicked off on Thursday with over 15,000 pilgrims beginning the climb to the cave shrine dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva.
The cave shrine has a natural ice stalagmite that is worshipped as a Shiv Lingam, a symbol of Lord Shiva.
'More than 7,000 yatris began their uphill 14-km trek at 8 am on Thursday from Baltal to the cave. Another batch of 1,100 yatris has also left the Manigam transit camp for Baltal,' a senior police officer said.'All the pilgrims are safe. Adequate arrangements of security have been made at Baltal, Manigam and all along the yatra route,' he added.
Another batch of 8,000 pilgrims left the Nunwan base camp in Pahalgam town for Chandanwari, the first of the four stopovers in the 35-km trek from Pahalgam to the cave shrine, located at a height of 13,500 feet.Hari Prasad, 49, a resident of Haryana who left the Manigam transit camp for Baltal, said: 'We shall pray for peace in Kashmir and the rest of the country when we reach the holy cave.'
'This is the land of saints and 'rishis' (sages) besides being the abode of Lord Shiva. The people here are nice and hospitable. This is my third yatra and I know the locals have always helped the yatris in times of emergency,' he added.
Extraordinary security arrangements have been made for the pilgrimage this year .
Around 3,000 Border Security Force (BSF) troopers reached south Kashmir's Anantnag district Wednesday to provide security to the devotees.
Around 3,000 Border Security Force (BSF) troopers reached south Kashmir's Anantnag district Wednesday to provide security to the devotees.
While 1.5 lakh pilgrims have registered themselves so far, it is expected that the number of pilgrims will cross the half-million mark this year.The nearly two-month-long Amarnath Yatra (pilgrimage) ends August 25.
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