Nadeem Ahmed: new basic details from scratch!

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{{More footnotes|date=June 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Yamunotri
| native_name =
| native_name_lang =
| other_name =
| settlement_type = Glacier
| image_skyline = Yamuna at Yamunotri.JPG
| image_alt =
| image_caption = [[Yamuna River]] at Yamunotri
| nickname =
| image_map =
| map_alt =
| map_caption =
| pushpin_map = India Uttarakhand#India
| pushpin_label_position =
| pushpin_map_alt =
| pushpin_map_caption =
| coordinates = {{coord|31.01|N|78.45|E|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = India
| subdivision_type1 = [[States and territories of India|State]]
| subdivision_name1 = [[Uttarakhand]]
| subdivision_type2 = [[List of districts of India|District]]
| subdivision_name2 = [[Uttarkashi district|Uttarkashi]]
| established_title = 
| established_date =
| founder =
| named_for =
| government_type =
| governing_body =
| unit_pref = Metric
| area_footnotes =
| area_rank =
| area_total_km2 =
| registration_plate = UK
| website = {{URL|https://badrinath-kedarnath.gov.in/}}
| footnotes =
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-wikidata = yes
}}
'''Yamunotri''', also '''Jamnotri''', is the source of the [[Yamuna River]] and the seat of the Goddess [[Yami|Yamuna]] in [[Hinduism]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Lochtefeld |first=James G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GnmPzgEACAAJ |title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N–Z |date=2002 |publisher=Rosen |isbn=978-0-8239-3180-4 |pages=778 |language=en}}</ref> It is situated at an altitude of {{convert|3293|m|ft}} in the Garhwal [[Himalayas]] and located approximately {{convert|150|km|mi}} North of [[Uttarkashi]], the headquarters of the [[Uttarkashi district]] in the [[Garhwal Division]] of [[Uttarakhand]], [[India]]. It is one of the four sites in [[India]]'s [[Chhota Char Dham|Chota Char Dham]] pilgrimage. The sacred shrine of Yamunotri, source of the river Yamuna, is the westernmost shrine in the Garhwal Himalayas, perched atop a flank of the [[Bandarpunch]] mountain. The chief attraction at Yamunotri is the temple devoted to the Goddess Yamuna and the holy thermal springs at Janki Chatti which is 7 km away.

The actual source, a frozen lake of ice and glacier (Champasar Glacier) located on the Kalind Mountain at a height of 4,421 m above sea level, about 1 km further up, is not frequented generally as it is not accessible; hence the shrine has been located on the foot of the hill. The approach is extremely difficult and pilgrims therefore offer puja at the temple itself.
[[File:Yamunotri Temple - panoramio.jpg|thumb|left|190px| Yamunotri temple was built by Maharani Guleria of [[Jaipur]] in the 19th century.]] [[File:Surya kund 06.jpg|thumb|right|Janki Chatti hot water spring, ''Surya Kund''.]]

==Legends==
[[File:JumnotreeFraser.jpg|thumb|Yamunotri as depicted by [[James Baillie Fraser]] (1820)]]
According to Hindu legend, [[Rishi|Sage]] Asita had his hermitage here. All his life, he bathed daily both in the [[Ganges]] and the Yamuna. Unable to go to the Gangotri during his old age, a stream of the Ganges appeared opposite Yamunotri for him.

Sangya is the birthplace of the Yamuna in the Champasar Glacier (4,421 m) just below the Banderpoonch Mountain. The mountain adjacent to the river source is dedicated to her father, and is called Kalinda Parvata (Kalinda is an epithet of the sun god Surya).

==Geography==
Yamunotri is located at {{coord|31.01|78.45|}}.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fallingrain.com/world/IN/39/Yamnotri.html|title=Maps, Weather, and Airports for Yamnotri, India|website=www.fallingrain.com}}</ref> It has an average elevation of {{convert|3,954|m|ft}}.

==Yamuna River==
{{Main|Yamuna River}}
The actual source of Yamuna River lies in the Yamunotri Glacier, at a height of {{convert|6,387|m|ft}}, near the [[Bandarpunch]] peaks in the [[Lower Himalayan Range|Lower Himalayas]] and is dedicated to goddess Yamuna.<ref name=hy>{{cite book |title=Hydrology and water resources of India- Volume 57 of Water science and technology library |last=Jain |first=Sharad K.|author2=Pushpendra K. Agarwal |author3=Vijay P. Singh |year=2007|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-1-4020-5179-1|pages=344–354 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZKs1gBhJSWIC&q=Yamuna+River&pg=RA1-PA345 }}</ref><ref name=":0" /> It crosses the states of [[Uttarakhand]], [[Haryana]], [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[Himachal Pradesh]] and later [[Delhi]] before merging with the [[Ganges]] at [[Triveni Sangam]], [[Prayagraj]].

==Yamunotri Temple==
{{Main|Yamunotri Temple}}
Yamunotri Temple is situated in the western region of Garhwal Himalayas at an altitude of {{convert|3235|m|ft}} near the river source.<ref name="Yamunotri">{{cite web|author=India9.com|title=India9.com:Yamunotri|url=http://www.india9.com/i9show/Yamunotri-17147.htm}}</ref> The temple was built in 1839 by Sundarshan Shah who was the king of the cultural center of Tehri.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haberman |first=David L. |url= |title=River of love in an age of pollution : the Yamuna River of northern India |publisher=University of California Press |year=2006 |isbn= |location=Berkeley |oclc=}}</ref> There was a small shrine at the site prior to the construction of the temple. The Divya Shila and Surya Kund are located near the temple.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dalal |first=Roshen |url= |title=Hinduism : an alphabetical guide |publisher=Penguin Books |year=2010 |isbn= |location=New Delhi |oclc=}}</ref> The [[Yamunotri Temple]], on the left bank of the Yamuna, was constructed by Maharaja Pratap Shah of Tehri Garhwal. The deity is made of black marble. The Yamuna, like the Ganges, has been elevated to the status of a divine mother for the Hindus and has been held responsible for nurturing and developing the Indian civilisation.

There are hot water springs located close to the temple. Surya Kund is the most important. Near the Surya Kund there is a rock called Divya Shila, which is worshipped prior to offering worship to Yamuna.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rana |first=J. P. Singh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7obxhDgyDf4C&dq=yamunotri&pg=PA5 |title=Himalayan Heritage |date=1997 |publisher=M.D. Publications Pvt. Ltd. |isbn=978-81-7533-026-9 |pages=5 |language=en}}</ref> Devotees prepare rice and potatoes, tied in muslin cloth, to offer at the shrine by dipping them in these hot water springs. The cooked rice is taken back home as ''[[prasada]]''.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Pinkey |first=Andrea M. |title=Prasāda, the gracious gift, in contemporary and classical South Asia |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24488087 |journal=Journal of the American Academy of Religion |date=9 April 2024 |publisher=Oxford University Press |volume=81 |issue=3 |pages=744 |jstor=24488087 }}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Gangotri]]
* [[Chhota Char Dham]]
* [[Uttarkashi district]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{commons category}}

{{Hindu temples in Uttarakhand}}

{{Uttarakhand}}

[[Category:Hindu pilgrimage sites in India]]
[[Category:Yamuna River]]
[[Category:Geography of Uttarkashi district]]
[[Category:Hindu holy cities]]
[[Category:Glaciers of Uttarakhand]]

Yamunotri - Revision history

Nadeem Ahmed: new basic details from scratch!