Vaishno Devi
Spiritual tradition has propounded four Purusharth (objectives) of a human life. These being Dharm (Righteousness), Arth (Material Pursuits), Kaam (Contentment) and Moksh (Enlightenment). Shri Mata Vaishno Devi is believed to grant all the four boons to those who visit Her Holy Shrine. She is considered to fulfill anything and everything that a person wishes for in life, in a righteous way. It is an experience of all, that no one goes empty handed from Her Great Pilgrimage.
The journey to the Holy Shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi is thus an enchanting journey of the places where Mata Vaishnavi had spent some time while observing various spiritual disciplines and penances. The culmination of this journey is at the Holy Cave where She merged Her Human form with the astral form of Her creators, the three Supreme Energies.
Vaishno Devi is one of the holiest Hindu Pilgrimage site which is dedicated to Goddess Shakti. The temple is located around 12 km away from Katra in the Udhampur district. The temple is situated at an altitude of 1615 m on the Trikuta Hills of Shivalik Range. Pilgrims, especially Hindus from all over the world visit Vaishno Devi making it the second most visited shrine in India after Tirupati Balaji Mandir. There are three rock cut statues in the 100 feet long cave. The middle one represents Goddess Lakshmi, right statue represents Goddess Kali and left one represents Goddess Saraswati. All kind of people, whether they are rich or poor, young or old, sick or healthy take the challenging trek from Katra to get to this holy place. Just join any group that is climbing to the cave and feel the devotion run down your body with every breath you take.It is just an amazing experience to see so many people devoted to their devotion to the Goddess. There are many tea stalls and Dhabas along the way where you can stop for a while and take rest.
Vaishno Devi is considered to be the incarnation of Goddess Saraswati, Goddess Lakshmi and Goddess Kali. The main reason of birth of Vaishno Devi was the destruction of Demon Mahishasura. The divine girl was born to a man called Ratnakar who named her Vaishnavi. She was brighter than all other children of her age, in fact, at a young age itself, she acquired more knowledge than many famous scholars. She renounced all worldly ties and went into deep jungles for meditating. She used to worship Lord Vishnu and on directions of Lord Rama, she built an ashram for meditating. Soon, a man called Bhairon Nath came to know about her and when he saw her, he was smitten by her beauty and grace. He started to pester her to marry him. Vaishnavi decided to run away to jungles to evade him. After long time of this hide and seek, she confronted him on the entrance of a cave and beheaded him. Bhairon Nath after death realized his mistake and prayed for forgiveness. He was forgiven by the Goddess and was blessed that every devotee who comes to worship her will also have to visit the temple of Bhairon Nath without which their pilgrimage will be incomplete. Vaishnavi then left her human body and become a rock statue and went into meditation.
The climb is fairly steep and tiring, though there are regular resting areas where you can have some refreshments as well. But people who find it tough to move up hill, can take a ride on a pony or a palanquin. Make sure you hire them from an authorized person. On reaching the Bhavan, you will get a batch number on showing your yatra slip at the registration office. Keep The number with you as the number tells you your position in the queue for Darshan. Deposit all your offerings at the entrance of the cave and do not forget to collect the prasad on your exit.
It is said that one can only visit the sacred cave of Vaishno Devi only when the Goddess herself wants them to and beckons them. If you are reading this, probably this is your call for making the holiest trip of your life. Come prepared to lose your old self and find the new you who will be more wise and chaste.
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