Gopinath Temple, Gopeshwar, Uttarakhand

Gopinath Temple, Gopeshwar, Uttarakhand

Gopinath Temple is a Hindu Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva located at Gopeshwar Town in Chamoli District in Uttarakhand, India. The Temple was built by Katyuri Kings between 9^th and 11^th century CE. The Temple and its nearby sites are under the control of Archeological Survey of India.

Legends

For brief details, please refer below link;

https://hindutemples-india.blogspot.com/2021/11/gopinath-temple-gopeshwar-legends.html

The Temple

The Temple follows Nagara style architecture. Presiding Deity is called as Gopinath. He is housed in the sanctum in the form of Lingam. Lord is a Swayambhu Moorthy. Nandi can be found facing the sanctum. The temple is unique due to its different worship tradition. Unlike the other Shiva temples, milk and water are not offered to Lord Gopinath. Instead of that only Bilva leaves are offered on the Shiv Linga.

There is a 5-meter-tall trident seen in the courtyard of the temple. The Trident is made of eight different metals. It dates back to the 12^th century CE. There are four inscriptions engraved in the trident. The names of the rulers like Skandnaga, Vibhunaga and Ganapatinaga are engraved in the trident. It boasts the inscriptions attributed to Anekmalla, the king of Nepal who reigned in the 13^th century CE.

The temple contains idols of Lord Vishnu, Lord Ganesh, Lord Hanuman, Lord Brahma, Goddess Kali, Saraswathi and Garuda. The images of Lord Bhairav and Lord Narayana can be found on the temple walls. The Temple houses of a number of the Shiva Lingas and a Kalpa Vriksha in the outer courtyard. The remains of broken idols found around the temple testify the existence of several more temples in ancient times.  There is a Vaitarani Kund around 200 meters away from the temple. It is believed that the water to the Kund comes from Rudranath Temple.

Festivals

The main festivals associated with this temple are Mahashivaratri and Jalabhiseka Yatra from Vaitarani Kund to this temple. Thousands of devotees visit the temple on the occasion of Maha Shivrathri.

Connectivity

The Temple is located at about 500 metres from Gopeshwar Bus Stand, 18 Kms from Nandaprayag, 59 Kms from Chamoli, 59 Kms from Joshimath, 208 Kms from Rishikesh Railway Station, 211 Kms from Rishikesh, 225 Kms from Dehradun Jolly Grant Airport, 231 Kms from Haridwar, 249 Kms from Dehradun and 457 Kms from New Delhi Airport. The Temple can be reached by the NH58 which runs from Rishikesh to Badrinath.

Location