SIDHH PEETH MEDANPURI DEVI TEMPLE
Uttarakhand is great place of trekking and pilgrimage .It is also called "DEVBHOOMI ".The hilly belt offers to captivate tourist with its mystic charm enveloped by spiritual air . Uttarakhand is blessed with deep cut breathtaking valleys , beautiful meadows , waterfalls in terms of its spirituality ..The land of holiest shrines , temples and majestic views , is drastically affected by migration, and now only popular among the natives .
I always have inclination towards our temples and the legend associated to them . Fascinated and inspired by remarkable story of our brood goddess Medanpuri Devi , for first time I visited the shrine which is really an excellent place of visit in terms of meditation and soothing environment .Situated at an elevation of 1657m, the temple is popularly known as Medanpuri devi temple , that stands erected in Dharkot village ,Patti - Udaipur , Yamkeshwar block , Pauri Garhwal..The Goddess basically is main diety of Pokhriyals of Marora..The temples has its devotees from surrounding villages named Kandai , Gundai , Kimsaar , Ramjiwala , Marora , Dharkot , Devrana , Amola and Kachunda.
The legend goes that the goddess used to call the head of a Pokhriyaal family and used to give pridiction of forth coming disasters with the remedies . She used to warn them from time to time And then she started demanding her settlement in the village .She told the head that she would appear as a Linga .She had appeared in curd bowl in the hearth of that family , at the same place .Since the era of Mahipal Shah ,the then jagirdar of the state declared this place as sidhh peeth .The word MEDAN means CURD . The goddess was named medan as she appeared in curd bowl .
The faith attached with the goddess is that she protects men and animals at night if they take shelter in the shrine from wild animals .Even the villagers can move safely at night while chanting her name .It is said that she takes special care of daughters and daughter -in- laws of the families who worship her . It is not only believed but also seen by the villagers that during Navratras Goddess rovers around the place besitted on her lion .Another belief is to donate curd and camphor on Fridays for the welfare of those children whose marriage is delayed by one or the other reasons. . Childless couples too are blessed with their wishes.
It is not known why the traditions of animal sacrifice came into being with this pious Devi of curd. It is believed that about 20 years back buffalo sacrifice and 10 years back goat was sacrificed in the name of goddess. But the new generation totally opposed this tradition and now Vaishnav tradition is followed and coconut , milk ,curd and ghee is offered. Thus goddess has regained its pious form .
This place not only has religious importance but also a place of eco - medicinal tourisim. There is lot to enjoy here . The cosmic blue , the simplicity of villagers , undulating meadows , incredible ranges , rich terraced fields , rich flora and fauna that provides glorious panaroma to soothe and invigorate those fatigued from the hectic city life .A holiday trip to be repeated again and again and has unlimited scope for research on flora as well as tourism . Its the land of meditation and salvation .
The committee under the supervision of sh Gajinder Pokhriyaal , the descendant of the said family , take care of the construction and maintainence of the temple who can be contacted for further querries and promotion of the temple by funding via mobile no. 09557489773. Its the duty of us to regenerate the holy spirit by spending some time ,energy in prpogating pilgrimage of those areas that are confined to its native people only.
Accessibility to Medanpuri Devi is by jeeps / taxies from Rishikesh (37kms) and from Haridwar (42kms).
Nearest airport is Jolly Grant (115kms).Via Kotdwar its well connected by roads to all the major cities of the region .
Accomodation is at present available in Tourist Rest House at Chila (36kms). In near future progress in this regard is expected with the help of the migrants of uttarakhand and the government.
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