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Kalpeshwar

Kalpeshwar temple is revered as the fifth Kedar among the Panch Kedar temples of Lord Shiva located in Uttarakhand. The Jatas of Lord Shiva is worshipped in the Kalpeshwar temple hence this temple is also known as Jatadhar and Jateshwar.

Kalpeshwar Temple is an ancient temple of Lord Shiva situated in the Urgam Valley, 28 km away from Joshimath, which was built by the Pandavas during the Mahabharata period. In addition to the fifth Kedar Kalpeshwar in the five Kedar temples of Lord Shiva, Kedarnath is the first Kedar, Madhyamaheshwar as the second Kedar, Tungnath as the third Kedar and Rudranath as the fourth Kedar are worshipped.

Among the five Kedar temples, Kalpeshwar is the only one that is open all the year for the devotees to visit. The rest of the four Kedar temples are closed to devotees during the winter season. Of all the Kedar temples, a visit to the Kalpeshwar temple is considered the easiest.

By the way, the Kalpeshwar temple is built inside a natural cave built in the Urgam valley. But devotees have to walk only a few meters to reach the temple on foot. Before some time, devotees had to trek 12 kilometres through Helang Valley to reach Kalpeshwar temple. Presently, the road near Kalpeshwar temple has been built, due to which the journey to the temple has become very easy and convenient.

During the journey of Kalpeshwar to the passengers coming from Joshimath, a few kilometres of the rough road remains. During the monsoon season, travelling from Joshimath to Kalpeshwar, this road becomes a bit slippery and risky. Therefore, while travelling to Kalpeshwar during the monsoon season, keep some extra caution on the road from Joshimath to Kalpeshwar.

History of Kalpeshwar Temple

The history of the construction of the Kalpeshwar temple is associated with all the rest of the Panch Kedar temples. According to the legend, the Panch Kedar temples were built by the Pandavas. According to the legend associated with the construction of Panch Kedar temples, the great sin of fratricide was inflicted on the Pandavas after the end of the war of Mahabharata.

The Pandavas went to the sage Vyas to find out how to get rid of the sins of the fratricidal fraternity, so he suggested to the Pandavas that if Lord Shiva blesses all the Pandav brothers then all of them can be freed from the sin of fratricide. As suggested by Rajguru Rishi Vyasa, the Pandavas left to seek blessings from God.

As soon as Lord Shiva came to know that the Pandavas were coming to him to get his blessings, he went to Kashi. But the Pandavas reached Kashi looking for Lord Shiva, Lord Shiva was very angry with the Pandavas, so he transformed himself into an ox and went to the Kedar mountain range of the Himalayas.

The Pandavas also reached Kedar mountain in search of Lord Shiva. Now to get away from the Pandavas, Lord Shiva divided his body into five different parts and appeared in five different places in the Himalayas. First of all Lord Shiva’s back appeared in Kedarnath because of this Kedarnath was worshipped as the first Kedar.

After that the second part of Lord Shiva’s body appeared in Madhyamaheshwar in the form of the belly (navel), so Madhyameshwar came to be worshipped as the second Kedar. Similarly, in the third part of Lord Shiva’s body, his arms appeared in Tungnath and Tungnath came to be worshipped as the third Kedar. The fourth part of Lord Shiva’s body appeared in Rudranath.

Because of this, Rudranath came to be worshipped as the fourth Kedar. In the end, the fifth part of Lord Shiva’s body appeared in Kalpeshwar, due to which, Kalpeshwar came to be worshipped as the fifth Kedar. The Pandavas visited all these places and worshipped Lord Shiva and established Panch Kedar temples at these places.

Pleased with the devotion and reverence of the Pandavas, Lord Shiva finally blessed the Pandavas to be free from the sin of fratricide. Kalpeshwar temple is also mentioned in many ancient scriptures of Hinduism. According to Shiva Purana and Kedar Khanda, Durvasa Rishi had done penance at this place sitting under the Kalpa tree, hence this place has been called Kalpeshwar in the texts.

According to another legend, when the gods were troubled by the atrocities of the Asuras. So at this place, all the gods performed Narayanastuti and received Abhay’s blessings from Lord Shiva. It is also believed that the sage Arghya did penance at this place and made Urvashi, the Apsara of heaven.

Architecture of Kalpeshwar Temple

Kalpeshwar Temple is the ancient temple of Lord Shiva and this temple is one of the Panch Kedar temples of Lord Shiva. Kalpeshwar Temple, located in the Uragam Valley of the Himalayas, is built in an ancient cave where the jatas of Lord Shiva are worshipped. For this reason, the Kalpeshwar temple is also called Jatadhar and Jateshwar.

Geography of Kalpeshwar Temple

Kalpeshwar Temple, located in the Urgam valley of the Himalayas, is just 1.5 to 02 kilometres away from the village of Urgam. The height of the Kalpeshwar temple is 2200 meters (7218 ft) above sea level. The Kalpaganga River flows near the Kalpeshwar Temple, which further merges into the Alaknanda River flowing near Helang.

Urgam valley is a dense forest area in the Himalayas but you can also see apple orchards and potato fields here. There is a holy tank near the Kalpeshwar temple which is known as Anadinath Kalpeshwar Mahadev. There is also another kund near the temple which is known as Kalewar Kund, the water of this kund is considered very sacred.

It is believed that after drinking the holy water of this tank, many types of diseases are treated. Apart from this, devotees and sadhus who come to visit Kalpeshwar offer Arghya to Lord Shiva with the water of this tank. Kalpeshwar Temple is located inside an ancient cave. One can easily reach the Kalpeshwar temple by crossing the bridge built on the Kalpaganga river.

Kalpeshwar Temple Timings

Among the Panch Kedar temples, the Kalpeshwar temple is the only temple that can be visited at any time of the year. Apart from this, a visit to the Kalpeshwar temple is considered the easiest among the Panch Kedar temples. For the Kalpeshwar temple located in the Urgam valley, you have to walk for about 02 km.

If you come to Kalpeshwar Darshan from your private vehicle, then you can take your car to the nearest temple. The chief priest of the Kalpeshwar temple is a member of the Dasnami and Gausai families. You can visit Kalpeshwar at any time of the day.

Kalpeshwar Temple Aarti Timings

In Kalpeshwar temple the morning Aarti is done at 06:00 am and the night Aarti is done at night at 07:00.

How to reach Kalpeshwar

How to reach Kalpeshwar by Air

The nearest airport to Kalpeshwar is the Jolly Grant Airport of Dehradun. Kalpeshwar is just 268 kilometres from Dehradun. From Dehradun, you will get a regular bus and taxi service to Joshimath. From Joshimath, you can reach Kalpeshwar very comfortably with the help of a taxi.

The Jolly Grant Airport of Dehradun is very well connected to many major airports in the country.

How to reach Kalpeshwar by Rail

The nearest railway station to Kalpeshwar is the Rishikesh railway station. Kalpeshwar is just 251 kilometres away from the Rishikesh railway station. From Rishikesh, you will get regular bus and taxi services to Joshimath. Apart from this, you can also reach Kalpeshwar from Rishikesh very easily with the help of a cab.

How to reach Kalpeshwar by Road

Not long ago Kalpeshwar has been connected to many major cities of Uttarakhand by road. Rest if you are coming to Kalpeshwar from Delhi or any other city of the country, then you have to reach Haridwar, Rishikesh and Dehradun in Uttarakhand first. Regular bus services and taxi services are available from these three cities of Uttarakhand to Joshimath. If you reach Kalpeshwar by your private vehicle, then you can reach Kalpeshwar by way of Joshimath.

Haridwar to Joshimath Distance – 275 Km

Rishikesh to Joshimath Distance – 254 Km

Dehradun ti Joshimath Distance – 290 Km

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