CHITRAKOOT

Nestled amidst several Hindu Temples, Kamadgiri is a forested hill that is considered to be the heart of Chitrakoot. Its name is taken from Kamadnathji which is another name of Lord Rama’s meaning, the fulfiller of wishes. Here at Kamadgiri, people come from all over the country to perform Parikrama around this hill with the faith that all of their problems and sorrows will end here and their dreams will come true. Explore several other temples that are located on the 5 km path of the Parikrama. The most visited and famous one is the Bharat Milap temple. It is the temple where Bharat met Lord Ram to persuade him to come back to his kingdom.

Gupt Godavari is a pair of caves with tiny entrance which is very difficult to pass. The water here flows down in streams with the help of other caves and rises up to our knees. It is believed that Lord Rama and Lakshman kept their secret meetings inside this cave and the throne-like structures can be seen as proof. Gupt Godavari is an unknown place for a large number of people in the world. Despite its mystic charm like the Ajanta and Ellora caves and Elephanta Caves, people do not know about this place. But Gupt Godavari is slowly coming out as a major attraction of Chitrakoot and do not miss this site when visiting Chitrakoot.

Ramghat is situated along the Mandakini river and is the ghat where Lord Ram, Sita, and Lakshman emerged in front of the very well-known poet Tulsidas. He used to sit on the Mandakini’s banks and write Ram Charit Manas. Visit the Ramghat and make your soul feel touched by the fragrance of incense sticks and the recitation of holy chants by the saints in saffron-colored clothes. You can enjoy a boating ride in the river and experience the beauty of this place until the evening. Don’t forget to attend the evening aarti with beautiful Diya illuminations, tones of bell and holy hymns.

Hanuman Dhara is a stream of water falling down on Lord Hanuman in a kund and houses several langurs in this place that well connected with Hanuman ji, the monkey god. Hanuman Dhara is the water stream which initiated from a rock when Lord Rama shot an arrow into the rock to calm down Hanuman as his tail was on fire after he returned from burning Lanka. This place has its own importance for Lord Rama and Hanuman devotees and is a must-visit in Chitrakoot.

Located between dense forests on the banks of Mandakini River lies two huge rocks which are said to have footprints of Lord Rama and Goddess Sita. It is also believed that Sita and Rama were once relaxing here when a crow pinched the feet of Goddess Sita. This made Lord Rama very angry and he took off the eyes of the crow. And later they came to know that the crow was actually Jayant, son of Lord Indra.