Tungnath Temple is located in Rudraprayag District, Uttarakhand.
Tungnath is the highest Shiva temple in the world nestled at an altitude of 3680 meters.
It is the only ancient ‘Shivalaya’ of its kind located at the highest point above sea level in Asia.
It is one of the Panch Kedars and is believed to have belonged to an ancient era almost 1000 years old.
The Tungnath (Lord of the peaks) mountains form the Mandakini and Alaknanda river valleys. It is located at an altitude of 3,690 m, and just below the peak of Chandrashila.
It has a rich legend linked to the Pandavas, heroes of the Mahabharata epic.
In 2023, the central government had issued a notification declaring this ancient temple of Tungnath as a monument of national importance.
Panch Kedars
Panch Kedar is a group of five sacred shrines of Lord Shiva located in the Garhwal Himalayas, Uttarakhand.
The five temples are the Kedarnath Temple at an altitude of 3,583 m (11,755 ft), the Tungnath Temple (3,680 m or 12,070 ft), the Rudranath Temple (3,559 m or 11,677 ft), the Madhyamaheshwar Temple or Madmaheshwar (3,490 m or 11,450 ft) and the Kalpeshwar Temple (2,200 m or 7,200 ft).
Mythological Significance of Tungnath Temple
Tungnath Temple is actually associated with the Panchkedar temples which were built by the Pandavas.
The Pandavas were advised by sage Vyasa Rishi, that their sin of killing their cousin Kauravas during the war of Mahabharata can only be forgiven if they worship Lord Shiva.
Lord Shiva did not want to appear to the Pandavas, so he took the form of a buffalo.
But the Pandavas recognized Lord Shiva, on which the Lord disappeared into the ground at Guptkashi, but the Pandavas did not give up the chase and the arms of Lord Shiva appeared in Tungnath in the form of a buffalo, since then the arms of the Lord are worshiped here.
Facts also say that Lord Rama meditated on the Chandrashila peak around Tungnath.
It is also referred to as “Tritiya Kedar”, since it is part of the “Panch Kedar” cluster of Shiva temples spread across the Garhwal Himalayas.
The foundation of this temple was laid down by Arjuna who was the third of the Pandava brothers.
Geography
The Tungnath (Lord of the peaks) mountains form the Mandakini and Alaknanda river valleys.
It is located just below the peak of Chandrashila.
Tungnath is at the top of the ridge dividing the waters of the Mandakini River (raising from Kedarnath) from those of the Alaknanda River (raising above Badrinath).
The Tungnath peak on this ridge is the source of three springs, which form the Akashkamini River.
Ravana shila is above Tungnath temple, there is a small temple which is known as Chandra Shila.
Ravana Shila or Speaking mountain have his own historical importance related to the Ramayana.
After killing Ravana, Rama felt guilty for what he had done. He then started austerities for Shiva and requested Shiva to release him from the guilt of killing Ravana.
During his penance, he built the Ramanathaswamy Temple in Rameshwaram, in Tamil Nadu. The temple in Rameshwaram is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas.
