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केदारनाथ मन्दिर
Kedarnath (3,583 m), Uttarakhand · 30.7352°, 79.0669°
The highest and remotest of the twelve Jyotirlingas, open only about six months a year among glacier peaks at 3,583 m. Adi Shankara is held to have attained samadhi behind the shrine. In the 2013 Himalayan floods that devastated the valley, a massive boulder — now revered as Bhimshila — lodged behind the temple and split the torrent, leaving the 1,200-year-old shrine standing.
Seeking absolution after Kurukshetra, the Pandavas pursued Shiva, who dived into the earth as a bull; his hump surfaced here — the conical rock worshipped in the sanctum — while other parts emerged at the four other Panch Kedar shrines.
16 km trek from Gaurikund (ponies/palki/heli from Phata); registration via Uttarakhand tourist-care portal.
coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-26 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Katyuri era