Sri Mata Vaishno Deviji

The foremost itinerary of the Jammu and Kashmir pilgrim tourism includes the visit to the Sri Mata Vaishno Deviji. The temple is perched on the Trikuta Hill at an altitude of 5300 feet. The pilgrimage to the Sri Mata Vaishno Deviji is difficult due to the incline of the hill. Persevering all hassles, thousands of devotees and pilgrims flock the temple every year.

The goddess Vaishno Devi is said to grant the visitors of her religious sanctum the four boons of righteousness, contentment, material pursuits and enlightenment, which are the chief objectives of the human life according to the Hindu scriptures. The shrine is located in the place where the goddess abandoned her human form for her communion with the holy trinity. The 100 feet long sacred cave is placed at a distance of 13 kilometers from the base camp, which is situated in Katra. Katra is connected through roads to the city of Udhampur, which is 35 kilometers away from the shrine and Jammu situated at a distance of 50 kilometers.

Various legends have appeared about the discovery of the shrine by Pandit Shridhar who was a dedicated devotee of the goddess. The goddess appeared in the dreams of the pandit and showed him the route to the cave situated in the lap of the Shivalik Ranges. Since its discovery 700 years earlier, the shrine has become the holiest of pilgrims of the Hindu devotees. A stream of the holy River Ganga moistens the lotus feet of the goddess. The three aspects of creation, preservation and destruction which is a part of the divine power is represented in the temple of Sri Mata Vaishno Deviji in the form of the three pindies of the Goddess Maha Saraswati, Maha Lakshmi and Goddess Maha Kali.