Hrishikesh or Rishikesh means Lord of the five senses i.e. Vishnu. He appeared before sage Raibhya under a mango tree in appreciation of his penance. So this place is also called ‘Kubjamrak’. Rishikesh is the general name of the five hamlets on the banks of the River Ganges including the present city. The city is situated in Uttarakand state at an altitude of 356m and is the gateway of the Himalayas. Legend says that Rama did penance here to ward off the sins accrued by His killing Rawana, the demon king of Lanka, who was by birth a Brahmin. This was on the advice of Sage Vishvara, the father of Rawana. The story is narrated in Skanda Purana.
Also we can see a statue depicting Lord Shiva holding the Ganges on His locks. King Sagar’s 60,000 sons were cursed and destroyed by Sage Kapila when he was wrongly blamed for stealing the horse which had run away at the time the king performed the Ashwameta Yaga. Sagara’s grandson Bhagiratha did a severe penance to bring the Ganges from the Heavens in order to bring salvage to his ancestors. Lord Shiva caught Her on His locks to reduce the damage that could be caused to the Earth.
Rishikesh, the world capital of Yoga, is the spiritual center of India as great rishis (sages) meditated here. Swamy Vivekananda also lived here for some time. People from all countries come here for meditation. The turning point in Western spirituality was the meeting of the Beatles with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi here who propagated the Transcendental Meditation. A number of ‘ashrams’ exist here.
Gita Bhawan at Swarghashram on the banks of the river Ganges is well known for its spacious building and yoga classes. Thousands of pilgrims take a holy dip in the river, attend yoga classes and take part in spiritual programs.
Kailas Ashram Brahma Vidyapeetam is an institution 120 years old. Such great people like Swamy Vivekananda and Swamy Sivananda had studied Vedanta here.
Lakshman Jhula is the bridge created with jute rope to cross the river by Lakshman, Rama’s younger brother. It has since been restructured after being washed away by floods in 1942. Apart from the Lakshman Jhula on the river displaying Nature’s beauty, there are some famous temples too.
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi who propagated Transcendental meditation and was the turning point for Western Spirituality had an ashram here wich is now closed. The Beatles composed 48 songs here many of which are contained in the White Album. Listen to the ‘Happy Rishikesh Song!
Bharat Mandir is a Vishnu temple built by the saint Sri Adi Sankara in in the 12th century.
Kunjapuri Temple is one of the thirteen most important Goddesses of Shivalik range. The sunrise or sun set on the Greater Hiamalayan Peaks is a fascinating sight. Gangotri , the source of the Ganges is visible from here.
Vasishta Goofa, the cave is a beautiful place for meditation.
Triveni Ghat is the place where hundreds of pilgrims take a holy dip and enjoy attending Ganga Arti (lighting lamps in honor of Goddess Ganga) in the evening.
Rishikund has the very ancient Raghunath temple dedicated to Rama and His wife and a pond blessed by Yamuna.
Neelkanth Mahadev, about 12kms from Rishikesh, has a legend. It is the place where Lord Shiva drank the first venom which oozed out when the ocean was churned to get the elixir of Immortality.
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