Nearly 4000 perform darshan
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 4: On the 37th day of pilgrimage, nearly 4000 yatris drawn from different parts of the country paid obeisance at holy cave of Swami Amarnath Ji today while the Chhari Mubarak, the holy mace of Swami Amarnathji, was taken to historic Shankaracharya temple here for prayers and traditional Puja on the occasion of ‘Haryali Amavasya’.
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Officials said that 3905 yatris paid obeisance at holy cave in deep Himalayas of South Kashmir’s Anantnag district from twin tracks of Baltal and Nunwan Chandanwari, besides the special chopper services by this evening.
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Officials said with this a total number of 4,94,006 pilgrims visited the holy cave in last 37 days of 52 day annual pilgrimage which started from twin tacks on June 29.
Officials said among them majority of pilgrims have returned to their respective home States while others are on the way. The pilgrims who performed the darshan at cave shrine today also started their return journey towards Baltal base camp and Panchtarni the last haltage point on Nunwan-Pahalgam track to holy cave.
Officials said the pilgrims who had reached Baltal and Nunwan base camps of Kashmir valley from different parts of country yesterday also started their journey towards cave shrine early this morning.
Meanwhile, in connection with Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra-2024, Chhari Mubarak Swami Amarnath Ji led by Mahant Deependra Giri Ji, its sole custodian was taken to historic Shankaracharya temple, Srinagar, located at the Gopadri Hills today for prayers and traditional puja on the occasion of ‘Haryali-Amavasya’ (Shravan Amavasya) as per the age-old customs, a statement issued by the Dashnami Akhara, the permanent abode of the Chhari Mubarak, said.
Amidst the sound of conch shell and recitation of Vedic hymns, Sadhus accompanied the holy mace and participated in the prayers that lasted for more than two hours.
“Collective prayers were also offered for peace and prosperity of Jammu & Kashmir,” it said.
The Shankaracharya temple is located atop the Zabarwan hill range near the Dalgate area and overlooks the city. Some historians are of the opinion that the temple at the top was originally built by King Sandiman (2629-2564 BC).
This temple was earlier known as Jyeshteshwara or Jyoteshwara temple. It came to be known as Shankaracharya temple after Adi Shankaracharya visited there.
The Chhari Mubarak will be taken to the ‘Sharika-Bhawani’ temple, Hari Parvat, in the Old Srinagar to pay obeisance to the Goddess tomorrow after that Chhari Mubarak Sathapana will be held at Dashnami Akhara on August 7 followed by Chhari Pujan on August 9 before leaving for the last leg of pilgrimage to holy cave on August 14 from its abode Dashnami Akhara.
Meanwhile, a fresh batch of 1112 pilgrims left from Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas here early this morning towards the twin base camps of Nunwan-Pahalgam and Baltal, Sonamarg in Kashmir valley under tight security arrangements in a cavalcade of 40 light and heavy vehicles.
These pilgrims included 910 males, 159 females, 31 Sadhus and 12 Sadhvis. Among them 210 preferred the shortest and tough terrain Baltal -Sonamarg track while 901 opted for the longest and traditional Nunwan-Chandanwari route.
All these pilgrims have reached their respective base camps by this evening, officials said, adding that yatris on way to Baltal were stopped enroute due to the landslide at Cherwan in Kangan tehsil of Ganderbal district late last night. However, the road was cleared for traffic by this afternoon and the Yatris were allowed to proceed towards Baltal.
Officials said it also rained in Yatra area during the day but pilgrims proceeded smoothly. The 52 day -long pilgrimage will culminate on Shravan Purnima coinciding with festival of Raksha Bandhan falling on August 19 when holy mace will reach the cave shrine for darshan and traditional Puja.
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