As the plane took off from Kempegowda International Airport, I was assuaged by mixed feelings of excitement, anxiety and a sense of adventure. This was not a lazy or a laid back holiday trip. Instead, it was an adventure trip for me, my husband Arun and son Aniketh. We set off to the mighty Himalayas and were going on a pilgrimage to the holy cave of Lord Amarnath.
Situated at an altitude of 3888 metres, it is surrounded by icy mountains and covered with snow all round the year. It is accessible in summer for a short period of 45 days, commencing from the full moon of ‘shravan’. The cave measures 120 ft in height and 80 ft in breadth and is believed that it was accidentally discovered by a Muslim shepherd Buta Malik in the 15th century.
Another story relates to Bhrigu Muni. Long time ago, it is believed that the valley of Kashmir was submerged in water and Kashyapa Muni drained it through a series of rivers and rivulets. After the water was drained by the sage, he had the first darshan of Lord Amarnath, after which it became an abode of Lord Bholenath for all believers and it is now visited by thousands of pilgrims ever year.
Officially, this pilgrimage is organised by the State government in collaboration with ‘Shree Amarnath YatraTrust’. The government agencies provide necessary facilities all along the route during the ‘yatra’ period, which includes provision of ponies, dolis, telecommunication facilities. Devotees set up ‘bhandaras’ to provide free food and water to the ‘yatris’ as a ‘seva’. Every year, thousands of central police and state police personnel are deployed to provide security to pilgrims from the potential terror threats. This year, registration and health certificate was made mandatory.
When Goddess Parvathi asked Lord Shiva to impart the secret of immortality to her, he took her to the Amarnath cave and imparted the secret. But this secret of immortality was heard by a pair of pigeons, which still can be spotted high up in the caves.
There are two routes to the Gufa — one from Pahalgam,at a distance of 56 kms that takes five days and the shorter route from Baltal which is a 14 km stretch. The traditional route from Pahalgam is beautiful with icy glaciers. The shorter route is from Baltal via Domail, which can be covered within a day if the weather permits. There are helicopter services to Panjtarni which can be booked online. We decided to travel in the steep gradient of the Baltal route. We left early in the day on hired ponies. The journey on horseback is arduous as the route is very steep and dusty. The path is very narrow in some places and my heart skipped a beat when I peered down the deep valley where the river Amaravathi flowed along the gorge.
As we travelled, we could see the beauty of the mighty Himalayan peaks. We reached the Amarnath glacier after riding for 6 hours with our ‘ponywallah’ who was walking nimbly on foot. The hills were reverberating with the chanting of ‘Jai Baba Bholenath’ by thousands of devotees all along the way. We alighted and walked up the steps to the cave. The lack of oxygen hits you and it becomes difficult to breathe freely. We had the darshan of baba Amarnath or Barfili baba, which is a stalagmite formed by the water seeping in from the top of the cave. It was 12 ft in height and glistening majestically with small icy forms of Lord Ganesh and Goddess Parvathi on its right.
My heart was filled with joy on beholding this magnificent sight and it will be imprinted in my mind forever. I felt so small and insignificant in this huge canvas of nature. I hope to make this spiritual journey to this heaven on earth once again via the Pahalgam route.