Guarded by the twin mountain ranges of Nar and Narayan, and the splendid Neelkanth mountains as the backdrop, Badrinath is the holiest of the four main shrines and an important destination on the sacred itinerary of every devout Hindu. Once the spot was carpeted with ‘badris’ or wild berries and hence was known as ‘Badri Van’ or wild berries forest.

The temple of Shri Badrinathji on the banks of the Alaknanda river, dates back to vedic times. Situated at an altitude of 3133 metres (10,300 feet), the present temple is believed to have been built by Adi Guru Shankracharya – an 8th century’s philosopher-saint, who also established a ‘math’ here. Also known as ‘Vishal Badri’, Badrinath is one of the Panch Badris.

Yog Dhyan Badri
The temple of Yog Dhyan Badri, one of the five Badris is located at Pandukeshwar (1920 metres, 6300 feet) just 24kms. away from Badrinath. The image, depicting a meditative posture of the Lord, is worshipped here. The Pandavas are said to have retired here after handing Hastinapur to king Parikshit.

Bhavishya Badri
The temple of Bhavishya Badri is at an elevation 3641metres (11,950 feet), and surrounded by a dense forest. It is located at Subain near Tapovan, about 17kms. east of Joshimath. It is believed that a day will come when the present route to Badrinath will become inaccessible and Lord Badrinath will then be worshipped here. Hence the name “Bhavishya Badri” means the “Future Badri”.

Adi Badri
Approachable from Karnprayag on the way to Ranikhet, are remains of 16 small temples. Seven among them are ancient ones, belonging to the late Gupta period. The credit for building these temples is generally given to Shankaracharya. The main temple of Narayan is distinguished by a raised platform in the pyramidal from where the idol is enshrined. Sculpted out of black stone, the idol of Lord Vishnu is one metre high.

Best time to visit this area is in the summer when one should wear light woolen clothing.