dwaja arohanam at most reverred Badrinath dham

 

It perhaps is the ultimate dream of a Srivaishnavaite – darshan at the most holy Sri Badrinath dham.  It is not easy even in the modern World.  As we travelled, the bus would stop – one would find scores  of vehicle in a line  (mostly disciplined !) – the gorges on the mountain   offer a very pleasant at the same time a fearsome view !  One could see river flowing all the way – yet the vehicle passing on a ridge could evoke fear.  

In most Srivaishnava temples, there is dwajasthambam and we start with prostration before the kodimaram.  This post is not about dwajasthambam but about the holy flag that flutters atop garbagraham at some temples and the hoisting of it.

At holy Puri,  for a pilgrim approaching Puri, the flag and Nilachakra can be seen from afar, even before entering the temple. Traditionally, therefore, the distant sight itself becomes a kind of first darśana — Jagannath's presence reaching the devotee before the devotee reaches Him.  Here - “the daily ceremonial changing of the Patitapāvana Bana atop the Nilachakra of Sri Jagannath Temple is a great spectacle.” “Every evening at Sri Jagannath Dham, a hereditary sevaka climbs the soaring śikhara and ceremonially replaces the sacred Patitapāvana flag above the Nilachakra — a spectacular act of devotion performed high above Puri.”

Sri Badrinath Dham — Badari Vishal — is among the most  reverred Vaishnava kshetras, set high in the Garhwal Himalayas of Uttarakhand at about 3,133 metres, on the bank of the sacred Alaknanda. The temple is dedicated to Sri Badarinarayana, Sriman Narayana  in a meditative posture, and stands amid the great mountain setting associated with Nara and Narayana.   When Narayana performed tapas here, Sri Mahalakshmi is   assumed the form of a Badari tree—a wild berry or jujube tree—to shelter Him from the harsh Himalayan elements. Hence the Lord became Badarinatha, the Lord of Badari. The region is also traditionally regarded as the tapas-bhumi of Nara–Narayana Rishis.     

In daylight, one sees the bright temple, rushing Alaknanda and immense mountains enclosing the valley. As evening descends, the character changes dramatically: the sunlight disappears behind the mountains, temperatures fall quickly, and the illuminated temple seems almost isolated in the vast darkness of the Himalayas. For a pilgrim who has actually stood there after nightfall, “Dham” begins to feel more appropriate than simply “temple.”

At Sri Jagannath Temple, Puri, the flag-changing ceremony atop the Nilachakra is a remarkable daily ritual. The temple flag, commonly called Patitapāvana Bana, is replaced every day, traditionally around sunset. The servitor climbs the towering temple spire barefoot and without modern climbing equipment, reaches the Nilachakra at the summit, removes the existing flag and fixes the fresh one. The act is not treated as ordinary hoisting and lowering of a national-style flag; it is a seva to Lord Jagannath, carried out according to temple tradition. Odisha Tourism even includes witnessing the evening “Flag Hosting ritual” as a specific part of its Puri pilgrimage itinerary

On 17.9.2026 was fortunate to have darshan at holy Badrinath – at around 5.20 pm, it was very cold – some reports put it around 2 deg C  .. .. and as we stood in the queue inside the temple waiting for Harathi darshan – we fortunately had the opportunity to see  Badrinath dhwaja-arohana  

Here is a short video  -  Jai Bolo Badrinath   :  https://youtu.be/NYs-PGG7BIY

adiyen Srinivasa dhasan

Mamandur Veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar

24.9.2026

The Divyaprabandha recital heard in the background of the video  is   Thirumangai Azhwar's pasurams on Thiruvathari Asramam (Badrinath), recited by Dr. M. A. Venkatakrishnan, myself, P Lakshmi Narasimhan and Dr. MA Madusudanan.