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Cave Temple of Lord Amarnath ji
Name:	Cave Temple of Lord Amarnath ji
Creator:	unknown
Date built:	unknown
Primary deity:	Amarnath(Shiva)
Location:	Amarnath, Jammu and Kashmir

Amarnath is one of the most famous and holiest of Hindu temples, dedicated to Lord Shiva, located in Kashmir, India. The temple is reported to be around 5000 years old^[1] and is a popular pilgrimage destination for Hindus - about 400,000 people^[2] visit during the 45 day season around the festival of Shravani Mela in July-August, coinciding with the Hindu holy month of Shravan. Inside the Amarnath Cave lies the ice Shiva Linga (along with two other ice formations representing Ganesh and Parvati) a natural formation of an ice stalagmite in the form of lingam.^[3] This lingam, of Shiva is said to grow and shrink with the phases of the moon, reaching it's height during the summer festival.^[4] According to Hindu mythology, this is the cave where Lord Shiva told about the secret of Life and eternity to His divine consort Parvati,^[5] and hence this shrine holds a very special value to the Hindus.

The cave is situated at an height of 3888 m^[3] about 141 km from the Kashmir's capital city of Srinagar. The area is under the control of the Indian Army due to terrorism threats and hence prior permission is needed from the government before making the pilgrimage. Devotees generally take the 45 km piligrimage on foot from town of Pahalgam, about 96 km from Srinagar, and cover the journey in 4 to 5 days. There are two alternate routes to the temple, one the more traditional and the longer path from Srinagar and the other a shorter route from the town of Baltal. Some devotees, particularly the old, also use horse-back riding to make the journey.

Contents 1 The Linga 2 History 3 Terrorist threat 4 References 5 External links

The cylindrical ice formation resembling a Shiva-linga which waxes during May to August and gradually wanes thereafter is a stalagmite.

The temple is reported to be about 5000 years old^[1] and has been mentioned in ancient Hindu texts. The exact discovery of the cave is not clear, though it is commonly believed that a Gujjar (natives of Kashmir) shepherd found the cave and was given a bag by a saint in it. When he returned home he found them to be gold coins, and this got the entire village excited and believed that the cave is the home to the Lord. Another legend says that an Hindu rishi, Kashyap drained the lake of Kashmir and found the cave along with the lingam in it. This latter legend might be alluding to the geological transformation of this region, when the massive sea in this part was compressed by the Indian geological plate to form the Himalayas.^[6]

The Amarnath Yatra, according to Hindu beliefs, begins on Ashadha Poornima (Full Moon Day of Hindu Month 'Ashadha') and ends on Shravana Poornima (Full Moon Day of Hindu Month 'Shravana')

The cave is situated at a place where Muslim Kashmiri extremists have been very active recently and thus the pilgrimage is under the constant threat of terrorist attack. However, many pilgrims still continue to brave the attacks and visit the shrine each year. There were a number of terrorist attacks in the recent past and dozens of pilgrims die in them every year.^[7]

1. ^ ^{a b} New shrine on Amarnath route.
2. ^ Amarnath Yatra: court vests authority with shrine board.
3. ^ ^{a b} Amarnathji Yatra - a journey into faith.
4. ^ On the road again.
5. ^ Amarnath Cave - The legend.
6. ^ PBS - The birth of the Himalaya.
7. ^ BBC News - The pilgrimage to Amarnath.

• The temple's homepage managed by the temple trust
• Amarnath Virtual Tours with Gallery
• Jammu and Kashmir tourism page
• About.com article
• News article regarding 2006 journey commencement
• Amarnath travel guide from Wikitravel

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