What is Char Dham?

 

Char Dham in Hindi means “four abodes” and refers to the four holy pilgrimage sites for Vaishnavite Hindus. It consists of four places, and Vaishnavite Hindus believe that completing the pilgrimage to the four sites helps attain salvation or “Moksha.” These four sites are located in the four corners of the country and require much travel to complete in one trip. Therefore, the Char Dham yatra is of vital significance amongst the Vaishnavites. To achieve salvation, hoards of Hindus (up to 200,000) visit these abodes yearly. Once the Hindus have visited these holy places, their sins are washed away, and salvation is achieved. Let’s read more about the trip and the different locations.

 

What Are The Different Locations?

 

As the name mentions, four different abodes make up the Char Dham: Dwaraka, Rameswaram, Puri, and Badrinath. Dwarka is in Gujarat, Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu, Puri in Odisha, and Badrinath in Uttarakhand. These places are distributed in the four corners of the country, and it takes a fair amount of effort to get to them. Redbus ensures convenient ways to get to these locations with its vast network of buses throughout the country.

 

What Is The Significance Of The Locations?

 

The four locations have their significance according to Hindu beliefs. In Badrinath's case, Nar-Narayan, an avatar of Lord Vishnu, did Tapasya there. While doing so, a berry tree protected him from the natural elements. Locals believed that Mata Lakshmi had donned the role of the tree and saved him. Post-Tapasya, he said that locals would always use her name before his, and hence, “Laksmi Narayan” became popular. This is why it was called Badrinath, Lord of the berry forest, and has since been the first Dham.

 

Rameswaram became significant when Lord Rama built a huge Shiva Lingam there to be able to worship Lord Shiva and receive his blessings. Rameswaram means Rama’s Lord.

 

Puri Dham became significant because Lord Vishnu was worshipped there as Jagannath, one of his avatars. As a result, the Jagannath temple is renowned all across the country.

 

The fourth and final Dham, Dwaraka, got its importance when Lord Krishna, instead of making Mathura, which was his hometown, his residence, chose Dwaraka instead.

 

These places hold great significance in the lives of countless Hindus across India. Although all these places are equally beautiful, the Char Dham pilgrimage makes the trip an absolute treat. Due to the development of tourism and the places being well connected by buses, it is straightforward to get to them and be able to continue your pilgrimage.

 

Locations And Bus Routes

 

redBus ensures that the transport system around the country is rock solid. You can travel from one place to another comfortably in any one of their state-of-the-art buses. You can also get good deals and discounts on tickets and hotel accommodations. Make sure you have researched the closest bus stations available, so you don’t have to travel too much. These buses may not take you to the exact location but to the nearest town that will allow you to travel to one of the four abodes.

How to go to Char Dham Yatra by bus?

You can travel to these four pilgrimage sites by state-owned RTCs as they are safe and affordable. To travel to these pilgrimage sites, you can also book HRTC, OSRTC, and UPSRTC buses on redBus.

How to go Char Dham yatra from Delhi?

You can start by booking UPSRTC or HRTC buses from Delhi to Badrinath at affordable rates via redBus. The road distance between Delhi and Badrinath is around 551 KM, and it will take 13 hours to cover this route by bus. You can then travel from Badrinath to Gujrat and cover the last two sites in South India. OSRTC buses will help you get to the pilgrimage sites in South India.

How to go to Char Dham yatra from Mumbai?

You can start your Char Dham yatra by traveling from Mumbai to Rameswaram (1610 KM) and then can book a bus from Rameswaram to Puri (1839 KM). From Odisha, you can take OSRTC buses to North India to visit the remaining pilgrimage sites.

How to go Char Dham yatra from Haridwar?

You can book a bus ticket from Haridwar to Badrinath via redBus to begin your Char Dham yatra. You can then travel to Dwarka (Gujrat) by bus from Badrinath. The rest of the pilgrimage sites can be visited after North India. redBus will help you book affordable bus tickets along the Char Dham yatra. You can plan your Char Dham yatra via redBus by pre-booking bus tickets.

Char Dham is an exciting and adventurous trip to make since you will be able to cover all four corners of the country and will also be able to experience the different kinds of culture that exist there. However, they are all in the same region. We have a comprehensive list below of the buses available from the closest major city. Use redBus to customize your trip based on your requirements and schedule so that it is not hectic. All the best with your trip, and make sure that you always stay safe!