Badrinath Temple

The most prominent festival held at Badrinath Temple is Mata Murti Ka Mela, which commemorates the descent of the river Ganges on mother earth. The mother of Badrinath, who is believed to have divided the river into twelve channels for the welfare of earthly beings, is worshiped during the festival. The place where the river flowed became the holy land of Badrinath.

The Badri Kedar festival is celebrated during the month of June in both the temple and the Kedarnath temple. The festival lasts for eight days; artists from all over the country perform during the function.

Every puja must be preceded by a holy dip in the Tapta Kund. The major religious activities (or pujas) performed every morning are mahabhishek (ablution), abhishek, gitapath and bhagavat puja, while in the evening the pujas include geet govinda and aarti. Recital in vedic scripts like Ashtotram and Sahasranama is practiced during all the rituals. After aarti, the decorations are removed from the image of Badrinath and sandalwood paste is applied to it. The paste from the image is given to the devotees the next day as prasad during the nirmalaya darshan. All the rituals are performed in front of the devotees, unlike those in some Hindu temples, where some practices are hidden from them. Sugar balls and dry leaves are the common prasad provided to the devotees. From May 2006, the practise of offering Panchamrit Prasad, prepared locally and packed in local bamboo baskets, was started.

The Head Pujari of the temple, a Namboodri Brahmin, is known as the Rawal, and is appointed jointly by the former Maharaja of Tehri Garhwal and the Temple Committee. He is the only person who is allowed to touch the idol of the deity. He is assisted by a naib Rawal, who is also a Namboodri Brahmin and the Rawal’s successor. Well versed in Sanskrit and puja rituals, the Rawal must also be celibate.

Special booking of pujas can be done at Badrinath Mandir Committee by paying some fees. The procedures of daily pujas and rituals are supposed to have been prescribed by Adi Shankracharya.