"Amarnath Yatra" Have to go even once in life says Puranas

Amarnath Cave Pilgrimage is an annual pilgrimage made to the Amarnath cave by lakhs of Hindu devotees on challenging mountainous terrain in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Located in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, Amarnath cave is a famous shrine in Hinduism. It is dedicated to Shiva. The shrine forms an important part of Hinduism, and is considered to be one of the holiest shrines in Hinduism. The cave is surrounded by snowy mountains. The cave itself is covered with snow most time of the year except for a short period of time in summer when it is open for pilgrims.

Inside the 130 feet high Amarnath cave that faces south, is the Shiva Linga, which waxes during May to August and gradually wanes thereafter. This lingam is said to grow and shrink with the phases of the moon, reaching its height during the summer festival.

According a Hindu legend, this is the cave where Shiva explained the secret of life and eternity to his divine consort Parvati. Two other ice formations represent Parvati and Shiva's son, Ganesha.

The cave is situated at an altitude of 3,888 m (12,756 ft), about 141 km (88 mi) from Srinagar, the capital of Jammu and Kashmir and reached through Pahalgam town.

The Lingam

The main purpose of the pilgrimage is to see the Lingam. In fact, the formation is basically an ice stalagmite. The water thawing from the roof does not fall on the lingam itself which brings in doubt the stalagmite theory.

History

The Amarnath Cave has been a place of worship since times immemorial. There are references to one Aryaraja (32BCE-17CE) who used to worship a lingam formed of Ice in Kashmir. The book Rajatarangini (Book VII v.183) refers to Amareshwara or Amarnath. It is believed that Queen Suryamathi in the 11th century AD gifted trishuls, banalingas and other sacred emblems to this temple. Rajavalipataka, begun by Prjayabhatta has detailed references to the pilgrimage to Amarnath Cave. Other than this there are further references to this pilgrimage in many other ancient texts.
Discovery of Holy Cave

It is believed that after the middle ages, this cave was forgotten by people before it was discover by a shepherd in the 15th century once again. However there are many stories about the discovery of this cave. One story states that once a Gujjar (Shepherd) named Buta Malil was given a bag full of coal by a holy man. When he reached home, he found that the bag contained not coal, but gold coins. Overjoyed he ran back to the place where the he had met the Holy man. However the holy man had disappeared and Buta Malik instead discovered the cave and the Lingam.

  Another story relates to Bhrigu Muni. Long time ago it is believed that The Vale of Kashmir was submerged under water and Kashyapa Muni drained it through a series of rivers and rivulets. Therefore when the waters drained, Bhrigu Muni was the first to have Darshan of Lord Amarnath. Thereafter, when people heard of the Lingam, it became an abode of Lord Bholenath for all believers and a pilgrimage which is done by lacs of people each year.

Yatra

The temple is a popular yatra destination for some Hindus. In 2011 it received about 634,000 persons, the highest recorded number for the site. Pilgrims visit the holy site during the 45-day season around the festival of Shravani Mela in July–August, coinciding with the Hindu holy month of Shraavana.

The beginning of the annual pilgrimage, called Amarnath Yatra, to the Himalayan cave shrine is marked by 'pratham pujan' to invoke the blessings of Shri Amarnathji.