From times immemorial, the Hindu pilgrims in thousands and thousands, from almost all parts of India have visited annually the celebrated temple at the Amarnath, on the full moon day of the month of Shravan. The orthodox Hindus make it a point to perform the arduous journey to amarnath by foot while the heterodox, use means of motor transport and from Pahalgam, they even make use of dandies, ponies, or palanquins. The journey from Pahalgam to Amarnath is covered by states, as the pilgrimage site lies through stiff climbs over rocks, across boulders fording torrential streams and amidst intense cold.
The pilgrimage takes place during July and August, when the path to the cave is open. From September till June, the area is generally covered with snow, which makes the pilgrimage site difficult for access. Therefore on each year, in the month of August, a pilgrimage is held on the day of Raksha-Bandhan, which rails on the Purnima (or full moon day) of the month of Shravan.
Not long back, Amarnath was very difficult to approach, and people who made the pilgrimage, seldom expected to return home to their kith and kin. There were accidental deaths during the course of journey from Pahalgam to Amarnath, due to intense cold, stormy winds and heavy snowfall. But with the improved conditions in the travel and the foolproof arrangements by the Govt. for the Yatris, hardly a few pilgrims now die on the pilgrimage.
The lofty mountain of Amarnath (Lat = 34013’ & Kibg = 750 32’) is situated on the confines of Kashmir, to the northeast near the source of river Sind. The holy cave of Amarnath, a pilgrimage site for Hindus, is an enormous fissure on the southern side of the Amarnath Mountain situated in a deep and narrow valley, which is bounded by steep and lofty mountains and traversed by a torrent which flows from a glacier. Amarnath stands at a height of 3888 meters and is 46 kms from Pahalgam and 141 kms from Srinagar.
Amarnath is one of the holiest temples of India, where Hindus from every book and corner of the country make a pilgrimage once a year during the month of Shravan (July-August). In Amarnath area, not a single tree or vestige of life is to be seen except crumbling Hills and icy regions.
The Amarnath cave is believed to be the abode of lord Shiva. He was an ascetic and yet married. A legend goes that once Shiva recounted to Parvati the secret of creation in a cave in Amarnath. A mating dove eavesdropped on their conservation and having learned the secret, is reborn again and again, and has made the cave their eternal abode. Many pilgrims report seeing the pair of doves, when they trek the rough, and tough route to pay obeisance before the Lingam (the phallic symbol of Shiva).
An ancient tale goes saying that there was once a Muslim shepherd, Malik by name, who was given a sack of coal there was gold in the sack. He was overjoyed and rushed back to thank the Sandhu, but on the spot of their meeting, he found a cave, and eventually this became a seat of pilgrimage for all by the pilgrims in the cave are given to the descendants of Malik of Butakote, and the remaining to the trust, which manages the temple.
Another legend has it that when water was drained out of valley of Kashmir, as it was believed to have been vast lake, during the region of Kasyp Reshi, the cave and the Lingam where discovered by Bragish Reshi, who was traveling in the Himalayas. When people heard about the Lingam, they began to visit the place as a pilgrimage site as Shiva’s abode.
Vigne, explains that “Amar” signifies the “immortal” while “Nath” is a Sanskrit word applied to the disciple Hindu divinities, as lords, chiefly to Vishnu, Krishna and Shiva, and also to the place where they worshipped and supposed to reside.
In the Amarnath cave, the object of worship is a stalactite, rather the shape of a lingam, formed by ice cold water dripping through the limestone roof of the cave, which is supposed to be the incarnation of Lord Shiva. The Linga (the emblem of Shiva) waxes and waves with the moon; two smaller Lingams are also formed closed to the Shiv Lingam, which represent Parvati (wife of Lord Shiva) and Ganesha (Son of Lord Shiva).
The distance from Pahalgam to Amarnath is 45 kms only. The rek from Pahalgam to Amarnath & back to Pahalgam is completed in four days with night halts at Chandanwari; Sheshnag (wawjan) and Panchtarni. On the 11th day of Sawan all pilgrims congregate at Pahalgam and leave for Chandawari on the 12th day, in a big caravan. The Pahalgam is just like a tented settlement, accommodating the pilgrims who are undertaking the journey to the Amarnath Holy Cave.
The district development commissioner, Anantnag, is the overall incharge of the Yatra. The departments of Revenue, Health, Tourism Police, Public Health Services, Water Works, Electric, Roads and Buildings together with security agencies are on the heels round the clock, to provide facilities to the Yatris en-route to the Holy Cave of Amarnath.
To conduct the Yatra both civil and military departments join hands to provide all basic necessities to the Yatris enroute to the cave.
The trek from Pahalgam to Amarnath is through rough & rugged snowy mountains, and the pilgrimage often proves fatal as the route is quite hard, harsh, and hazardous.