Located in the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, in fact high in the Garhwali Himalayas are some of Hinduism’s most significant sites, also called Chota Chardham - Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri and Yamunotri. The temples here marking the spiritual sources of the religion’s four sacred rivers - Ganga, Yamuna, Alaknanda and Mandakini, together making up one of the most prominent pilgrimage circuits in the country.

The time between April and November each year witnesses the coming of devotees in thousands who brave the harsh weather, the treacherous mountain roads and trails to get to them. The great philosopher and reformer, Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century brought together all these pilgrimages into a kind of spiritual circuit, one taken by generations after generations, keeping up the annual tradition of visiting these pilgrimages each year.