Our Vaishnodevi adventure - Jammu, Kashmir area

Vaishno Devi Temple of Mata Maha Kali, Mata Maha Lakshmi and Mata Maha Saraswati is one of the heavily visited Hindu shrines.  This is located in the Udhampur District in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. It is a shakti peetham. Who and when it was built? -  there was no information on that.

The facilities and cleanliness throughout are very impressive.

Reaching Vaishno Devi by railway is a relatively economical way and you can easily get the super fast and express trains for the various destinations of India including Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai. 

Road access to Vaishno Devi is very convenient also. The region has well-maintained network of state and national highways. We passed through destinations that connect Jammu (the nearest transit point of Vaishno Devi) namely Tarn Taran, Amritsar, Jallandhar, Ludhiana, Patiala, Chandigarh, Delhi, Jwalaji and Srinagar - of which Jalandhar and Jwalaji, we did it on our own, not with the group even though they were supposed to take us to those places. 

The shrine is at an altitude of 5200 feet and visited by millions of devotees each year. One can trekk, take a doley or a helicopter. We had the option of the latter two. Rao opted for the trekking the 12 to 14 kilo meters. I heard that you can do one way trekking also. The helicopter would take you to only a certain point and then we walk another 5 kms. So, Nirmala and I decided to go by the doley all the way, to and fro. Trekkers can hire a porter to carry our baggage, if any. The whole climb is a paved path and very clean with all neccessary fecilities for food, bathroom and so on.

Let me go back to the beginning. From Delhi, one can take an overnight train to Jammu and it is additional 3 hours by bus to Katra (the base camp) where the hike begins. Since we were travelling by bus from Delhi anyway, we did not have to look for alternate arrangements. Thanks to the useless Travel agency we picked, we had a long overnight journey by a very uncomfortable bus from Delhi to Jammu anyway..

We took an auto rickshaw to the office where you book the doleys. The cost was 3200 rupees total, out of which we paid 800 rupees there and the balance to be given to the doley group after our return. They are all registered with the Govt. and so you are safe and secure.

After approx 7 km of hike you'll reach AdhKawari (Ardh-kawari). This is where Mother Goddess meditated for 9 months in a cave attaining spiritual wisdom and powers. The pilgrims wait in queue to enter the holy cave.

A token is issued - one per family/group. The typical wait time after the token number varies.
The doley carriers stop at this midpoint for tea and snacks. You pay extra for this.

Some take a dip in the cold water here. We did not.

I felt that we walked alot after getting off the doley to reach the line that walked through the maze. Finally, when you reach the marble cave where the actual manifestation of Vaishno Devi resides, you are allowed to worship just for a couple of seconds. The crowd is so much that they cannot allow you to stand for longer than 5 seconds. Perhaps it depends on the season!!

Also, I bought a package of kumkum (sindhoor) to offer to Mata and to bring it back as prasadam to family and friends. But the security did not allow it even though it was a sealed package.

The pilgrims keep reciting "Jai Mata Di" all through out the journey from Katra to the Mandir and back. People much older than me were trekking and I felt ashamed for being carried in a doley.

Watch out for aggressive monkeys who can snatch any small bags that you are carrying.

After worshipping at this Temple, you may go over to Bhairon Temple. This is at a  further higher altitude and steep. This is at an elevation of approx 6600 feet. It is very scenic, but I did not carry my camera to any Temple this trip.

We had great darsan and there was another couple from Anantapur who tagged along with us. We were the only ones that took doley ride.

So far, things ran smooth. I will write about our adventure in my next post.