Kedarnath opening date 2023: As India is celebrating Mahashivratri on Saturday, the date of opening of portals of Kedarnath temple, which is one of the most famous temples of Lord Shiva, has been announced. The temple will open on April 25 after nearly six months.
One of the 12 Jyotirlingas, the Kedarnath temple is situated in the upper Garhwal Himalayas in Uttarakhand's Rudraprayag district. The Char Dham temples, including Kedarnath, are closed every year in October-November due to extreme cold conditions. Registration for the Char Dham Yatra is likely to begin on February 20.
The gates of the Himalayan temple will be thrown open to devotees at 6.20 am on April 25, Badrinath-Kedarnath Mandir Samiti sources said. The timing and date for the reopening of the temple gates were announced at a ceremony at the Omkareshwar temple in Ukhimath on Saturday on the auspicious occasion of Mahashivaratri.
READ | Maha Shivratri 2023: Why do we celebrate the auspicious festival of Shivratri?
The ceremony was attended by BKTC officials, tirth purohits and officials of the district administration. The idol of Lord Shiva is brought down every year after the closure of Kedarnath to the Omkareshwar Temple in Ukhimath where it is worshipped during winter.
In Uttarakhand, four temples -- Badrinath, Kedarnath, Yamunotri and Gangotri -- are called Char Dham. Badrinath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri are already scheduled to open on April 27 and April 22.
(With inputs from PTI)
