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How To Get There:-
The airport at
Bhuntar is 10km from Kullu, where taxis and buses are available. The
closest narrow gauge railhead is at Jogindernager, 95km from Kullu.
By road, the distance from Delhi via Mandi is 530 km and from Shimla
this is 240km. From Delhi and Shimla, luxury buses fly to Kullu.
In winter, the
temperature gets quite low when heavy woolens are required. It is
pleasant in summer and cottons are recommended.
Kullu (1220m) was
once known as Kulanthpitha- 'the end of the habitable world'.
Beyond rose the forbidding heights of the Greater
Himalayas, and by the banks of the shining river Beas,
lay the fabled 'Silver Velley.' Kullu got its first motor able
access only after Independence. The long centuries of
seclusion have however allowed the area to retain a considerable
measure of its traditional charm. Here is the core of an intricate
web of numerous valleys each of which is a visual delight and
seems more beautiful than the other. The 'Silver Valley' has
nature's treasures that lie carelessly scattered as flowers on
the high meadows. Here are riches which cannot be measured and echo
down the ages with the words of every myth and ancient legend-
and glow in the warm smiles of its gentle people. There is
pleasure in every step you take in these enchanted valleys and in
every gurgle you hear in the clear mountain streams.
Blessed with an
abundance of Natural beauty, the Kullu Valley, Himachal's prized
tourist destination, is rightly celebrated as the valley of the
Gods. Nestled between the Dhauladhar and Pir Panjal ranges, it is
the cradle of the great River Beas. About 80km long, this lush
valley extends from the gorge at Aut to the Rohtang pass. it
harbours forests, alpine meadows, gurgling rivulets and orchards
laden with fruit, and its Inhabitants are a joyful and
gentlepeople. Treat yourself to a glimpse of this Himalayan
paradise. Wander through the valley, succumb to its Magical charms
and discover Himachal at its best.
Places of
Interest in and around Kullu
Raghunath
Temple:
In the 17th century,
Raja Jagat Singh of Kulu committed a great wrong. To atone for
the sin he sent a senior counter to Ayodhya for statue of Lord
Raghunath- Lord Rama. This temple was built by Raja Jagat Singh to
house the image and even today, is greatly revered.
Bijali
Mahadev
(14 km)
There
is a strange phenomenon of nature, every year lightening takes place
on a particular plateau. It is so forceful that the entire locality
around resounds with violent howl. What is amazing is that no
destruction takes place. According to a legend Rudra, one of the
great gods has to spit its anger in the form of tremendous fire once
an year which damaged earthly life and material that the Saint
Vashishitha approached Rudra to shun away the habit but he was
refused with the reason that that was the nature of Rudra otherwise
tremendous energy stored in the body would destroy Rudra himself. It
was decided that a particular place might be chosen for that action
and some of the great gods must come forward for the rescue of the
people suffering due to that fire as there was no fault of the
inhabitants living on that spot. Lord Shiva was approached and was
requested that several times he had rescued the life on earth he
might suggest some way to avoid unnecessary destruction. Lord with a
serious thought, agreed upon the proposal and offered himself that
he would bear all the consequences of the lightening on his symbolic
structure of Linga but after the lightening some one from the
locality have to give a healing touch to the symbolic structure
enshrined on the top of the hillock. Thus the problem was sought
out. This was the strange phenomenon that Rudra was another aspect
of Lord Shiva and Lord Shiva was there to bear the consequences of
his wrath. There is a hymn in Rigveda (3/46/7)
"0 Rudra the lightening that apears
on earth from the sky may leave us, on This earth in peace". And
there is another hymn:
"Swapivat," oh great god there are
several cures in form of medicinal herbs don's destroy this earth. "Swapivat"
is term used for self affliction. It was the fire emitted by lord
Shiva and it should be engulfed by himself only. There was no other
god to face the thrust of that energetic emittance. With the result
that Rudra himself came to rescue and absorbed the powerful thrust
on himself in the form of Linga which was erected on a hillock on
the confluence of Parvati and Beas. There is a small temple known as
Bijali Mahadev or Bijaleshwar. It is said that the tenure of
lightening was changed from an year to once in twelve years. the
people and the priest of the temple narrate that after every twelve
years phenomenon of lightening is repeated and the Linga
shatters into pieces which are colleted piece by piece and glued
together with the help of butter collected from the public. The
butter is pure one and the people themselves offer in bits. The
priest while chanting the hymns recreates the Linga by assembling
small pieces glued together with the butter collected in this way.
The butter leaves behind its melting point and solidifies as stone.
This is a strange phenomenon and the scientists are baffled that how
this metamorphosis takes place.
The place is called as Mathana or
Thamana which is situated at about eight kilometres from the town
of Kullu, at the height of about 9000 feet. There is a small temple
erected on a plateau. It is a hill style of temple and the main
deity is of lord Shiva. One has to climb a steep path to reach the
temple. The narrow path twins along the apple orchids and virtually
ends on the top of the Kullu valley overlooking the vast span of the
lush green forests, the cascading waters of Beas shimmering in the
sun and the small box like huts as if toys are placed in the lush
green fields.
There are a number of anecdotes
prevalent in the valley about the mystic aspects of Bijali Mahadev.
According to one the deity was discovered from a field while
ploughing, The farmer took it along with him and kept the image in
his box of corn. It so happened that the corn overflowed from the
box the next day. The villagers were astonished to see the
phenomenon.
The next day when a dumb cowboy was
escorting the cows back from the grazing site he found that a cow
was missing. He searched for her and was astonished to find that she
was giving milk nearby a rock. He tried to explain the strange
process to the landlord but he did not believe him. On the second
day again cow was seen on the same spot giving milk that the cowboy
rushed to the house of the landlord to show the family members the
strange phenomenon but till then the cow had returned. In the night,
the landlord had a dream that the image of Lord Shiva be installed
on the place where the cow voluntarily showed her Pleasantries. The
landlord questioned the validity and asked in the dream to the
heavenly voice that he would agree to the proposal provided the dumb
cow boy gets his voice back. According to the old men of the
locality the cowboy got his voice back the next day and returning
from his toil he demanded the food in his voice instead of gestures.
Thus the temple of Bijali Mahadev came into existence.
Nearby the temple of Bijli Mahadev
there are a number of other religious places where the god rests a
while before it is carried to the assembly of the gods during
Dushera. The people from far and wide come there to offer their
homage and get their wishes fulfilled. Once in a year there use to
be a fair where the people from the locality and Kullu come there to
participate in the fare. There is a small inn by the side of temple
where the pilgrims can stay overnight.
[
Dr Ashok Jerath is the author of Hindu Shrines of
the Western Himalayas]
Bajaura (15
km) :One of the most charming temples in the Kullu valley, this
is renowned for its intricate stone carvings
Other Temples: The
Vaishno Devi temple (4 km) the Devi Jagannathi temple at Bekhi (5
km) and the Vishnu temple at Dayar (12 km) are other important
shrines around Kulu.
Kaisdhar
(15 km): A high meadow fringed by deodar trees. A pictureque spot.
Kasol (42
km) : An open glade by the banks of the river Paravti. Clean white
sand separates the lush green grass from the waters. A good spot for
trout. Himachal Tourism has a Tourist Hut here.
Manikaran
(45km) :
At 1737 m, here
are hot sulphur springs that bubble next to the icy waters of the
Parvati river. The place is revered by both Hindus and Sikhs. Treks
from here lead to Pulga, Khirganga and Mantalai- a strech of
considerable natural beauty. The route finally reaches the Pin
Parvati Pass (4802 m) which opens into the Sutlej valley. At
Manikaran Himachal Tourism runs the Hotel Parvati.
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ROERICH
Gallery
 Nicholas
Roerich was a Russian-born artist who became a cultural figure
of global significance, a passionate promoter through his art
and writings of an increased appreciation of the value to the
world of the cultural heritage of all nations, and of the ways
in which this appreciation can help to achieve peace in the
world.
"India,
we know the depths and the fineness of thy thoughts. We know
the great OM which leads to inexpressible heights. We know
thy great guiding spirit.
India
, we know thy ancient wisdom, thy sacred scriptures in which
is outlined the past, present and the future. And we shall
remem6er thee with the same tremor as the most precious first
flower on the spring meadow."
These are words of the Artist, Archaeologist,
Explorer, Philosopher and Humanist, Nicholas Roerich; born in
St. Petersburg (Russia) on 9 October, 1874. Apostle of
Beauty, Messenger of Culture, mighty Warrior of the Spirit,
Master of Himalayas -thus was Nicholas Roerich called by some
of his eminent contemporaries. His work comprises around 7000
paintings and sketches, which can be found in many famous
museums and private collections all around the world; he
created stage decorations, designs and costumes for the most
acclaimed theatres and opera houses in Europe and the USA; he
is an author of a great number of books, countless articles
and essays. His deep love for world culture has been
materialized in the unfurling of the Roerich International
Banner of Peace. It's main task was to guard and protect the
lofty monuments of artistic and scientific institutions and
collections of the creative spirit of human genius from the
havoc of war and acts of barbarity. The Pact was signed in
1935 in Washington by 21 countries in presence of the
President F. Roosevelt.
Under his leadership, several institutions and organizations
have been founded around the world, the avowed purpose of them
being promotion of art and culture. After returning from
Central Asiatic Expedition, N.
Roerich with his family settled in Naggar, near Kullu in
Himachal Pradesh and spent here almost 20 years, full of
incessant and creative work. He painted high peaks of
Himalayas, vast lands of Central Asia and its peoples -their
history, legends and spiritual traditions. His canvases
startle with harmony of composition and amazing consonance of
the colours.
"When I think of Nicholas Roerich I am astounded at the scope
and abundance of his activities and creative genius. A great
artist, a great scholar and writer, archaeologist and
explorer, he touched and lighted up so many aspects of human
endeavour. The very quantity is stupendous-thousands of
paintings and each one of them a great work of art. When you
look at these paintings, so many of them of the Himalayas, you
seem to catch the spirit of those great mountains which have
towered over the Indian plain and been our sentinels for ages
past. They remind us of spiritual heritage so much not merely
of the India of the past but of something that is permanent
and eternal about India, that we cannot help feeling a great
sense of indebtedness to Nicholas Roerich who has enshrined
that spirit in these magnificent canvases.
Jawaharlal Nehru
The
pursuit of refinement and beauty was sacred for Roerich. He
believed that although earthly temples and artifacts may
perish, the thought that brings them into existence does not
die but is part of an eternal stream of consciousness -- man's
aspirations nourished by his directed will and by the energy
of thought. Finally, he believed that peace on Earth was a
prerequisite to planetary survival and the continuing process
of spiritual evolution, and he exhorted his fellow man to help
achieve that peace by uniting in the common language of Beauty
and Nicholas Roerich died in Kullu on December 13, 1947. His
body was cremated and its ashes buried on a slope facing the
mountains he loved and portrayed in many of his nearly seven
thousand works.
ROERICH
GALLERY
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Fishing and
Adventure
The Kullu
valley has numerous places for trout fishing. These include Katrain,
Raison, Kasol and Naggar, then along the river Tirthan near
Larji, in the Sainj Valley and in the Hurla Khud.The valley is the
nucleus of several trek routes. Some major ones are over the Chander
khani Pass
Kullu Dussehra
When Dussehra
celebrations come to an end in the rest of the country, they begin
at Kullu. Over 600 local deities come to pay homage to Lord
Raghunath. This is a time when the valley is at its colourful best.
to Malana, over the Jalori Pass or Bashleo Pass to Shimla, and over
the Pin Parvati Pass to Sarahan
Pin Parvati Pass
to Sarahan
The river Beas offers excellent opportunities for while water
rafting.
Shopping:
Shawls, local tweeds, rugs ('namdas'), foot wear ('pullan'),
baskets, natural oils (almond and olive), caps.
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The
Great Himalayan National Park was set up in 1984 and
comprises the valleys of the Sainj and Tirthan, tributaries of
the Beas.
Read more....
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