Gurdwara Hemkund Sahib, Chamoli

Hemkund Sahib

The Lake the Guru Remembered

Fifteen thousand feet up, ringed by seven peaks, a star-shaped marble gurdwara mirrors itself in a glacial lake: Hemkund ("lake of snow") — where Guru Gobind Singh wrote that in a former life, as Dusht Daman, he meditated on the Formless until commanded to be reborn. Lost to Sikhs for two centuries, found by a retired soldier with a book in 1934.

What Is Here

• The lake and seven Nishan Sahibs — one saffron flag per peak; the water too cold for more than a dip
• The gurdwara: mid-1960s MES engineering marvel; no overnight stays — descend by 2 PM
• Lakshman temple: the Hindu shrine sharing the shore — Markandeya Purana's penance-ground, honoured by the same porters
• The trail: Govindghat → Ghangaria (13 km) → Hemkund (6 km climb); June–October only; winter kar seva repairs the path each May

Visiting

• Altitude demands respect: acclimatise at Ghangaria, carry water, start early; ponies and palanquins available
• Combine with Badrinath and the Valley of Flowers (UNESCO) across 3–4 days