The Char Dham Yatra, a significant Hindu pilgrimage, attracts numerous devotees annually to the Himalayan shrines of Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath. This revered journey always commences from Yamunotri, following a traditional and logical clockwise direction known as Parikrama, a practice deeply rooted in Hindu customs. Yamunotri, the starting point, holds great religious importance as the source of the sacred Yamuna River, believed to cleanse devotees of sins and fear of death through a holy dip.
The pilgrimage’s sequence is not only spiritually significant but also practical, with Yamunotri being the westernmost shrine among the four, followed by Gangotri, Kedarnath, and culminating at Badrinath in an eastward progression. Each shrine symbolizes a stage in spiritual evolution: emotional cleansing at Yamunotri, purity and mind cleansing at Gangotri, devotion and liberation at Kedarnath, and ultimate salvation at Badrinath. The Char Dham Yatra for this year began with the opening of Gangotri and Yamunotri shrines in Uttarakhand after a six-month winter hiatus, with around 19 lakh devotees registered so far, compared to over 51 lakh pilgrims last year.
