High medieval · Hindu · India

Tungnath Temple

Tungnath, Uttarakhand · 30.4883°, 79.2167°

Shiva, worshipped here as his armsUndeterminedNorth Indian Himalayan (Katyuri)Panch Kedar

Sacred since

1000 CE

first attestation / structure

Standing structure

believed c. 1,000 years old

Undetermined

History & significance

At about 3,680 m this is one of the highest Shiva temples in the world and the third shrine of the Panch Kedar circuit in Uttarakhand. Adi Shankara is credited with setting its priestly traditions in the 8th century.

Sthala katha — the legend

Fleeing the Pandavas after the Kurukshetra war, Shiva took the form of a bull that broke apart when Bhima seized it, and his arms surfaced at Tungnath.

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