Chardham Yatra Uttarakhand
The Char Dham Yatra, which means a Pilgrimage to four most sacred places in the India or abode of Lords, is a set of four pilgrimage sites in India. Hindus believe that visiting these holy sites helps achieve "Moksha" (salvation). It comprises Badrinath (in North), Dwarka (in West), Puri (in East) and Rameswaram (in South). It is considered by Hindus that every Hindu must visit the Char Dhams during one's lifetime. The Char Dham as defined by Adi Shankaracharya consists of four pilgrimage sites. Another circuit of four ancient pilgrimage sites in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, which is a very holy state because of the abode of Lord Shiva & Lord Vishnu in the Himalayas and its four most sacred sites call- Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath is referred to as Chota Char Dham (small Chardham) to differentiate it from this bigger circuit of Char Dham sites. These Chota Char Dham shrines are closed in winter due to snowfall and reopen for pilgrims with the advent of summer from April/ May onwards until October/ November.
