A 70-year-old pilgrim from Karnataka’s Kalaburagi district has finished a tremendous spiritual pilgrimage on foot to Uttarakhand’s Kedarnath Dham. The senior pilgrim, accompanied by a group of fellow pilgrims, initiated the padyatra on March 3 and arrived at the holy shrine on May 1, covering almost 2,200 miles in two months.
A footage of their arrival at the Kedarnath Temple, one of the four sacred Char Dham pilgrim destinations has gone viral on X (formerly Twitter) since then, eliciting praise for their unflinching faith and endurance. The devotees undertook the journey on foot, traversing plains, dense forests, and mountain ranges before arriving finally at their destination in the Garhwal Himalayas.
Upon the arrival of the group to the shrine, festivities within them were filled with passion and devotion. Speaking to the camera in the video, the aged pilgrim said, “When one is blessed by God, such a journey is possible,” highlighting their spiritual strength that allowed them to endure their ordeal.
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The video was uploaded on May 15 and has so far received more than 2 lakh views. Social media users were left touched by the commitment shown. “Pure bhakti alone can result in such success. Har Har Mahadev,” one user posted. Another said, “All of them will reach heaven directly after dying. That is for sure.”
Several others also shared the sentiment, terming it as a “pure faith journey” and terming it as amazing: “Bowing down to such unshakeable faith, these old devotees trekked 60 days from Karnataka to Kedarnath for Baba Kedar’s Darshan.”Another user merely captioned it as “Unmatched Devotion.”
What Makes Kedarnath Special
Located at over 11,700 feet above sea level, Kedarnath is one of India’s most sacred sites for pilgrimage. It contains the ancient Kedarnath Temple, a temple of Lord Shiva, and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas. Situated amidst snow peaks and stunning landscapes, it draws thousands of pilgrims and trekkers each year as part of the Char Dham Yatra.