Gaurikund

Village and sacred site (tirtha) in the
Himalaya Mountains of the state of
Uttar Pradesh. Gaurikund is located
about ten miles downstream from the
headwaters of the Mandakini River,
which is itself one of the Himalayan tributaries of the Ganges. Gaurikund is the
end of the motorable road on the way to
Kedarnath, and after this pilgrims
must travel on foot. Gaurikund’s mythic charter is connected with the god
Shiva and his wife Parvati. Parvati is
said to have performed harsh asceticism at Gaurikund in order to gain
Shiva as her husband; after a long time
Shiva is pleased with Parvati, reveals
himself to her, and the two become
lovers in that place. According to local
geography, the place at which Parvati
lived during this time is marked by a
group of hot springs, which are another
of Gaurikund’s attractions.