Who Built the Kedarnath Temple
Although there is no certain evidence of who built the Kedarnath Temple, some people believe that it was the Pandava brothers who built it. According to Hindu mythology, there is no reference to this place in the Mahabharata whereas Kedarnath is mentioned as Kedara in the Skanda Purana. Here are a few facts which will help you know more about its history.
We know that Kedarnath Temple is one of the Panch-Kedar temples that worship Lord Shiva. Kedarnath Temple is approximately 225 kilometers from Rishikesh and is on the shore of River Mandakini. It is a tribute to River Ganga and is nearly situated at a height of 3600m above the sea level. It is also believed that this temple is around 400 years old.
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Kedarnath is also referred to as the lord of the field and a text, Kashi Kedara Mahatmya also indicates that “the crop of liberation” grows there.
History states that this is the place where Lord Shiva released the holy water of Ganga from his dreadlocks. It is also said that after the war of Kurukshetra the Pandava brothers wanted to seek forgiveness from Lord Shiva for killing their kin in the war and that is the reason they came to Kedarnath, looking for Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva, on the other hand, didn’t want to forgive them, that is why he turned himself into a bull. When the brothers tracked him, Lord Shiva tried to disappear by going underground. One of the brothers held his tail to force him to appear and forgive them. After this, it is believed that different parts of the same bull were found at different places, hence the name Panch Kedar. The head of the bull is said to be found in the Pashupatinath Temple in Nepal.
Who built the Kedarnath Temple is still a mystery unsolved. Some people also believe that Adi Shankaracharya built this temple in the 8th century while some believe that it was Raja Bhoj of Malwa who built the Kedarnath Temple.
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