Rudranath

रुद्रनाथ

Shiva · Rudranath

The face (mukha) of Shiva

Gopeshwar, Chamoli district, Uttarakhand · Shaiva tradition

Shiva's face is worshipped here — one of the five parts of the bull-form Shiva that the Panch Kedar tradition places across the Garhwal Himalaya.

Read the story
Directions

At the gate

Walking and access
No road reaches the shrine: the Chamoli district page gives a 20 km trek from Sagar village. The shrine is closed in winter — in 2025 it reopened on 18 May and closed on 17 October (press). More on access
Getting there
Train: RishikeshAir: Jolly Grant Airport, Dehradun

Not yet confirmed: visiting hours, dress code, phone rules, entry for visitors of other faiths. Ask at the temple office or enquiry counter — and if you know, tell us. hello@aalayakatha.com

Full visiting details

Sthala purana

The story of this place

Told in: The Panch Kedar tradition, as published by the Shri Kedarnath Charitable Trust (Government of Uttarakhand)

The bull that would not be caught

The war at Kurukshetra is over, and the Pandavas have won it at the cost of their own kin. Krishna advises them to seek the blessings of Shiva and atone for the sins committed in the battle. They go to Kashi to find him.

Shiva does not want to be found. He is angered by the bloodshed, and he avoids the brothers: he takes the form of a bull — Nandi — and goes north into the Himalayas.

The Pandavas follow him there, and they recognise him in the bull. As they close in, the bull dives into the ground. Bhima catches hold of its tail and hind legs, but the bull vanishes all the same.

It does not come back whole. The body surfaces in parts across the Garhwal hills: the hump at Kedarnath, the arms at Tungnath, the face at Rudranath, the belly at Madhyamaheshwar, and the locks and head at Kalpeshwar. These five sites are the Panch Kedar, and a pilgrim who walks the circuit visits the god one part at a time.

Rudranath is the place of the face. The Chamoli district administration's account of the temple adds the other end of the story: only the face is worshipped here, while the whole body is worshipped at Pashupatinath in Kathmandu. That is why the shrine's deity is addressed by his face alone, and why the account reaches across the border into Nepal.

Where this account comes from

  • Government: Shri Kedarnath Charitable Trust (Government of Uttarakhand), Places to Visit: Panch Kedar shrikedarnathcharitabletrust.uk.gov.in · seen 2026-10-09
  • Government: District Chamoli, Government of Uttarakhand, Tourist Places: Rudranath Temple chamoli.gov.in · seen 2026-10-09

In one minute

Why Rudranath matters

Each line says who it comes from and how settled it is. What the labels mean

  1. Shiva's face is worshipped here — one of the five parts of the bull-form Shiva that the Panch Kedar tradition places across the Garhwal Himalaya.

    2 sources for: Shiva's face is worshipped here — one of the five parts of the bull-form Shiva t
    • Government: Shri Kedarnath Charitable Trust (Government of Uttarakhand), Places to Visit: Panch Kedar shrikedarnathcharitabletrust.uk.gov.in · seen 2026-10-09
    • Government: District Chamoli, Government of Uttarakhand, Tourist Places: Rudranath Temple chamoli.gov.in · seen 2026-10-09

  2. Locally the shrine is called the Chaturth Kedar, the fourth Kedar, although the Uttarakhand Tourism circuit itinerary visits it third.

    3 sources for: Locally the shrine is called the Chaturth Kedar, the fourth Kedar, although the
    • Press: Amar Ujala, "Rudranath Temple doors to close on 17 October for winter; doli to leave for Gopinath Temple" (Hindi, headline translated), 28 September 2025 amarujala.com · seen 2026-10-09
    • Press: Punjab Kesari, "Uttarakhand's Rudranath Temple reopens to devotees", 18 May 2025 english.punjabkesari.com · seen 2026-10-09
    • Government: Uttarakhand Tourism, Panch Kedar Circuit — itinerary Kedarnath → Tungnath → Rudranath → Madhyamaheshwar → Kalpeshwar, as recorded in circuits.json uttarakhandtourism.gov.in · seen 2026-09-18

  3. In winter the shrine closes, and its movable image (chal vigraha) is carried by doli to the Gopinath temple in Gopeshwar, where it is worshipped for six months.

    Source for: In winter the shrine closes, and its movable image (chal vigraha) is carried by
    • Press: Amar Ujala, "Rudranath Temple doors to close on 17 October for winter; doli to leave for Gopinath Temple" (Hindi, headline translated), 28 September 2025 amarujala.com · seen 2026-10-09

  4. Nanda Devi and the Trishul peaks are visible from the temple.

    Source for: Nanda Devi and the Trishul peaks are visible from the temple.
    • Government: District Chamoli, Government of Uttarakhand, Tourist Places: Rudranath Temple chamoli.gov.in · seen 2026-10-09

Shilpa

When you visit, look for…

Architectural style not yet identified

No published architectural study of the high-altitude shrine has been found yet. The ASI's protected monument 'Rudranath Temple, Gopeshwar' is the temple at the winter seat in Gopeshwar, not this shrine; it is listed among the nearby places.

  • Detail

    View of Nanda Devi and Trishul

    The Nanda Devi and Trishul peaks, which the Chamoli district page says are visible from the temple.

Yatra

Plan your visit

Darshan times

We could not confirm the opening times from the temple’s own notice, so we are not printing any. Please check with the temple office or the devasthanam before you travel.

Before you go

  • No dress code or entry rules have been confirmed for this temple yet. Traditional, modest clothing is always the safe choice; ask at the entrance.

Walking, steps and access

Wheelchair: not wheelchair accessible

No road reaches the shrine: the Chamoli district page gives a 20 km trek from Sagar village. The shrine is closed in winter — in 2025 it reopened on 18 May and closed on 17 October (press). Official altitude figures disagree: the Kedarnath trust gives 3,600 m, the Chamoli district page 2,290 m.

Getting there

  • By air: Jolly Grant Airport, Dehradun · about 258 kmDistance is to Gopeshwar, per the Chamoli district page; taxis and buses run on to Gopeshwar.
  • By train: Rishikesh · about 241 kmDistance is to Gopeshwar, per the Chamoli district page. Haridwar and Dehradun also have stations.
  • By road: Sagar village · about 219 kmRoad entry point, 219 km from Rishikesh, per the Chamoli district page.
  • On foot: Sagar village · about 20 kmA 20 km trek from Sagar to the temple, per the Chamoli district page.

The order of darshan

No published source gives the order in which to visit the shrines here, so we have not invented one. Follow the queue and the temple staff.

Festivals

  • Winter closing and doli to Gopeshwar

    October (17 October in 2025)

    On closing day the chal vigraha is worshipped at Brahma muhurta and its doli leaves for the Gopinath temple in Gopeshwar, the winter seat, where puja continues for six months.

  • Reopening after winter

    May (18 May in 2025)

    The shrine reopens to pilgrims each year after its winter closure; the 2025 reopening was announced by the state's Chief Minister.

Itihasa

Through time

Two registers, kept apart on purpose: what the Puranas tell, and what the historical record shows. They answer different questions and we do not force them to agree.

In the Puranas and tradition

  1. The face of the bull-form Shiva surfaces here

    The Panch Kedar account of the site's origin. It does not say in which yuga this happened.

    Source for: The face of the bull-form Shiva surfaces here

In the historical record

No dated history of this temple has been sourced yet — no inscription, survey or study we can cite.

Around here

Worth the detour

  • Temple

    Gopinath temple, Gopeshwar

    Winter seat of Rudranath's movable image. ASI-protected (listed by the ASI as 'Rudranath Temple, Gopeshwar'): a Nagara temple with a jala-pattern shikhara dated to the 8th century AD, with a metal trident in the compound carrying a late-Brahmi inscription of the 6th–7th century AD.

  • Temple

    Madhyamaheshwar

    The next temple on the Uttarakhand Tourism Panch Kedar itinerary, where the belly of the bull-form Shiva is worshipped.

Also in Chamoli district

Sources

Where this page comes from

  • Government: Shri Kedarnath Charitable Trust (Government of Uttarakhand), Places to Visit: Panch Kedar shrikedarnathcharitabletrust.uk.gov.in · seen 2026-10-09
  • Government: District Chamoli, Government of Uttarakhand, Tourist Places: Rudranath Temple chamoli.gov.in · seen 2026-10-09
  • Press: Amar Ujala, "Rudranath Temple doors to close on 17 October for winter; doli to leave for Gopinath Temple" (Hindi, headline translated), 28 September 2025 amarujala.com · seen 2026-10-09
  • Press: Punjab Kesari, "Uttarakhand's Rudranath Temple reopens to devotees", 18 May 2025 english.punjabkesari.com · seen 2026-10-09
  • Government: Uttarakhand Tourism, Panch Kedar Circuit — itinerary Kedarnath → Tungnath → Rudranath → Madhyamaheshwar → Kalpeshwar, as recorded in circuits.json uttarakhandtourism.gov.in · seen 2026-09-18
  • Archaeological Survey of India: ASI Dehradun Circle, centrally protected monuments of District Chamoli — Rudranath Temple, Gopeshwar (notification F-04-09/62-C-1, October 1962) and Trident, Gopeshwar asidehraduncircle.in

Cite this page

Aalaya Katha Foundation, “Rudranath”, Aalaya Katha, version last reviewed 2026-10-09. https://www.aalayakatha.com/temple/rudranath (accessed ).

Last reviewed 2026-10-09. How we label sources and confidence