View source for Gangotri

{{Short description|Town in Uttarakhand, India}}
{{Other uses}}{{Infobox settlement
| name                     = Gangotri
{{Break}}
| native_name              =
| settlement_type          = Town
| image_skyline            = Gangotri (ganga river).jpg
| image_alt                =
| image_caption            = Gangotri
| nickname                 =
| image_map                =
| map_alt                  =
| map_caption              =
| pushpin_map              = India Uttarakhand#India
| pushpin_label_position   =
| pushpin_map_alt          =
| pushpin_map_caption      = Location in Uttarakhand, India
| coordinates              = {{coord|30.994|N|78.941|E|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name         = {{flag|India}}
| subdivision_type1        = [[States and union territories of India|State]]
| subdivision_name1        =  [[Uttarakhand]]
| subdivision_type2        = [[List of districts in India|District]]
| subdivision_name2        = [[Uttarkashi district|Uttarkashi]]
| established_title        = <!-- Established -->
| established_date         =
| founder                  =
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| government_type          =
| governing_body           =
| unit_pref                = Metric
| area_footnotes           =
| area_rank                =
| area_total_km2           =
| elevation_footnotes      =
| elevation_m              = 3415
| population_total         = 606
| population_as_of         = 2001
| population_rank          =
| population_density_km2   = auto
| population_demonym       =
| population_footnotes     =
| demographics_type1       = Languages
| demographics1_title1     = Official
| demographics1_info1      = [[Hindi]]
| timezone1                = [[Indian Standard Time|IST]]
| utc_offset1              = +5:30
| postal_code_type         = <!-- [[Postal Index Number|PIN]] -->
| postal_code              =
| registration_plate       = UK
| website                  = {{URL|https://badrinath-kedarnath.gov.in/}}
| footnotes                =
|module= {{Infobox mapframe|wikidata=yes|zoom=12|marker=village|coord={{WikidataCoord|display=i}}}}
}}

{{Use Indian English|date=July 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2023}}
<!-- See [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Indian cities]] for details -->{{Chota Char Dham}}
'''Gangotri''' is a town and a ''[[Nagar Panchayat]]'' (municipality) in [[Uttarkashi District|Uttarkashi district]] in the state of [[Uttarakhand|Uttarakhand, India]]. It is 99&nbsp;km from [[Uttarkashi]], the main district headquarter. It is a [[Hinduism|Hindu]] pilgrim town on the banks of the river [[Bhagirathi River|Bhagirathi]] – the origin of the [[river Ganges]]. The town is located on the Greater [[Himalayan Range]], at a height of {{Convert|3100|m|ft}}. According to a popular Hindu legend, the goddess [[Ganga (goddess)|Ganga]] descended here when [[Lord Shiva|Shiva]] released the mighty river from the locks of his hair.
[[File:Gangotri (ganga river).jpg|thumb|[[Bhagirathi River]] and [[Himalayas]] in Gangotri, [[Uttarakhand]]]]

== {{anchor|Gangotri Temple}}Significance ==

=== Ganga River ===
Gangotri is one of the four sites in the [[Chota Char Dham]] pilgrimage circuit. It is also the origin of the Ganges River and, per Hinduism, the seat of the goddess Ganga. The source of the Ganges River is the [[Bhagirathi River|Bhagirathi]] River, originating from the [[Gangotri Glacier]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kaushal |first=Sujay |date=2012 |title=A journey to the source of the Ganges |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41480008 |journal=Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment |volume=10 |issue=2 |pages=105–106 |jstor=41480008 }}</ref> Once the river confluences with the [[Alaknanda River|Alakananda]] River at a town called [[Devprayag]] it finally acquires the name ''Ganga''.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bhargava |first=Devendra Swaroop |date=1987 |title=Nature and the Ganga |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44518054 |journal=Environmental Conservation |volume=14 |issue=4 |pages=307–328 |jstor=44518054 }}</ref>

Near the river is a stone where [[Bhagiratha|King Bhagiratha]] performed penance to [[Shiva]] in order to bring the Ganga down to earth and absolve the sins of his ancestors.<ref name=":0" /> According to another legend, [[Pandava]]s performed the great 'Deva Yajna' here to atone the deaths of their kinsmen in the epic battle of the [[Mahabharata]]'''.''' Hindus believe that performing the ancestral rites on the banks of Bhagirathi frees the spirit of the ancestor from the cycle of rebirth and a holy dip in its waters cleanses sins committed in the present also past births.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-12-04 |title=Gangotri Dham – The Origin of River Ganges {{!}} RitiRiwaz |url=https://www.ritiriwaz.com/gangotri-dham-the-origin-of-river-ganges/ |access-date=2022-05-14 |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Gangotri Temple ===
The original Gangotri Temple was built by the [[Nepalis|Nepalese]] general [[Amar Singh Thapa]] and later restored in the 19th century.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Lochtefeld |first=James G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AbWazgEACAAJ |title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M |date=2002 |publisher=Rosen |isbn=978-0-8239-3179-8 |pages=240 |language=en}}</ref> The temple is closed from [[Diwali]] day every year and is reopened on [[Akshaya Tritiya]].<ref>[https://chardham.euttaranchal.com/gangotri.php Gangotri Dham] [https://www.bhaskar.com/jeevan-mantra/news/gangotri-yamunotri-dham-kapat-opened-in-the-auspicious-time-for-akshaya-tritiya-21-people-attended-127247410.html] [https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/gangotri-and-yamunotri-open-on-akshay-tritiya-with-1st-prayers-on-pm-narendra-modi-s-behalf/story-y2tJi0hH05taFaonbbOEoI.html] [https://www.jagran.com/uttarakhand/dehradun-city-gangotri-yatra-2020-first-worship-in-gangotri-dham-in-the-name-of-prime-minister-narendra-modi-20223112.html] [https://navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/state/uttarakhand/dehradun/doli-left-for-gangotri-dham-the-doors-of-gangotri-yamunotri-will-be-opened-in-abhijeet-muhurta/articleshow/75383535.cms]</ref> During this time, the idol of the goddess is kept at [[Mukhba]] village, near [[Harsil]]. Ritual duties of the temple are supervised by the [[Semwal]] family of [[pujaris]]. These pujaris hail from Mukhba village.

==Demographics==
According to the 2011 census of India, there are total 47 families residing in Gangotri. The total population of Gangotri is 110 out of which 97 are males and 13 are females. The literacy rate of Gangotri is 99.1%. The entire population of Gangotri identifies as Hindu.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Census: Population: Uttarakhand: Gangotri {{!}} Economic Indicators {{!}} CEIC |url=https://www.ceicdata.com/en/india/census-population-by-towns-and-urban-agglomerations-uttarakhand/census-population-uttarakhand-gangotri |access-date=2022-05-14 |website=ceicdata.com}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Gangotri National Park]]
* [[Harsil]]
* [[Yamuna]]
* [[Akshaya Tritiya]]
* [[Mukhba]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{official website}}
* {{Commonscat-inline}}
* {{Wikivoyage inline}}

{{Uttarkashi district}}
{{Hindu temples in Uttarakhand}}
{{Authority control}}

{{Uttarakhand}}

[[Category:Cities and towns in Uttarkashi district]]
[[Category:Hindu pilgrimage sites in India]]
[[Category:Hindu temples in Uttarakhand]]
[[Category:Chota Char Dham temples]]
[[Category:Tourism in Uttarakhand]]
[[Category:Hindu holy cities]]
[[Category:Ganges]]