Jageshwar Dham

Getting there

• By air

  Pantnagar Airport is one of the nearest airports to the temple.

• By train

  The nearest railhead is Kathgodam, 125 km away.

• By road

  Direct roads link Jageshwar with Almora, Pithoragarh (88 km), Haldwani (131 km) and Kathgodam. State buses, jeeps and taxis run regularly from these places.

Why devotees come here

Jageshwar Dham is a group of ancient temples dedicated to Shiva, 36 km northeast of Almora in the Kumaun region. The complex holds about 125 temples, and estimates of their age vary widely. It is one of the Dhams of the Shaivism tradition.

Stories say Adi Shankaracharya, an 8th-century philosopher, restored the original temple. Another prevailing theory says he built some of the temples, but there is no textual or epigraphical evidence for that claim.

Estimates for the temples and steles range from the 7th to the 12th century, and they vary widely. The Archaeological Survey of India has numbered some 151 protected monuments here, built before the 12th century. Monks and migrants from places such as Gujarat are thought to have settled in the high mountains and made Jageshwar once a centre of Lakulish Shaivism.

The Jageshwar Temple is in the pan-Indic Nagara style, and some accounts date it to the 8th century. The site evidence suggests the main temple was likely built in the 12th or 13th century and rebuilt a few times. Most of the sanctums are only about 3 square feet, too small for a priest to sit inside.

Festivals

• Shravan month, AugustJageshwar Monsoon Festival

  A monsoon festival held in the holy month of Shravan.

• Usually February or MarchShivaratri Mela

  A colourful spring fair.

Tips for your visit

• Pilgrims traditionally bathe in the Brahm Kund before they begin at the main temple.
• The Archaeological Survey of India museum on site holds more than 150 sculptures found in the valley.

Questions people ask