Badrinath River Alakananda Lord Varaha Lord Narasimha Brahma Kapal Sri Garuda Sri Ganesha Sri Nara-Narayana Sri Narada Sage Markandeya Sage Vyasa Sri Adi Shankaracharya
• Vishnu: Lord Vishnu abides in Badrinath or Badarikashrama (which is a Swayam Vyakta Kshetra) as Badri Vishal.
- Badri Vishal Temple
- Charan Paduka
• Varaha: Lord Varaha stayed in Badarikashrama as a Shila after killing demon Hiranyaksha and recovering the Earth from the nether world (Varaha Shila).
- Varaha Shila
• Narasimha: Lord Narasimha stayed in Badarikashrama as a Shila after killing demon Hiranyakasipu and after being eulogized by the Devas to assume a benign form at Badari (Narasimha Shila).
- Narasimha Shila
• Shiva: Lord Shiva got freed from the skull of Lord Brahma which stuck to his hands (Brahma Kapal).
- Brahma Kapal
• Agni: Agni deva performed penance in Badarikashrama to get rid of his sins due to his omnivorousness.
- Tapt Kund or Agni Kund
• Garuda: Garuda performed penance in Badarikashrama to become the vehicle of Lord Vishnu.
- Garuda Shila
• Ganesha: Sri Ganesha is said to have transcribed the Mahabaharata in Badrinath as sage Vyasa dictated it.
- Ganesh Gufa
• Nara-Narayana: Sages Nara-Narayana is performing penance in Badarikashrama since long for the welfare of mankind.
(Srimad Bhagavatam - Skanda 3 - 4.22)
- Mata Murti (Nara-Narayana)
• Narada: Sage Narada performed penance in Badarikashrama and got the darshan of Lord Vishnu.
- Narada Shila
○ Markandeya: Sage Markandeya performed penance in Badarikashrama.
- Markandeya Shila
○ Vyasa: Sage Vyasa had his hermitage in Badarikashrama on the bank of river Saraswati in a place named Samyaprasa which is surrounded by Badari trees.
(Srimad Bhagavatam - Skanda 1 - 4 to 7)
- Vyasa Gufa
• Personages: Other personages associated with Badrinath:
• Dhruva: Sri Dhruva performed penance in Badarikashrama after ruling for 36000 years and ascended to his divine abode.
(Srimad Bhagavatam - Skanda 4 - Adhyaya 12 - 10 to 27)
○ Adi Shankaracharya (788 - 820 CE?): Sri Adi Shankaracharya wrote commentaries on Brahma Sutras, Gita and Upanishads in Badrinath.
आद्यं रङ्गमिति प्रोक्तं विमानं रङ्गसंज्ञितम् । श्रीमुष्णं वेङ्कटाद्रिं च साळग्रामं च नैमिशम् । तोयाद्रिं पुष्करं चैव नरनारायणाश्रमम् । अष्टौ मे मूर्तयः सन्ति स्वयंव्यक्ता महीतले ॥
- Swayam Vyakta Sthalams (Badarikashrama is a Swayam Vyakta Kshetra)
देवि सुरेश्वरि भगवति गङ्गे त्रिभुवनतारिणि तरलतरङ्गे । शङ्करमौलिविहारिणि विमले मम मतिरास्तां तव पदकमले ॥
- Ganga Stotram - verse 1 (River Alakananda which is a headstream of river Ganga flows through Badrinath)
- Badarikashrama is a Swayam Vyakta Kshetra where Lord Vishnu abides as Lord Badri Vishal.
- Badarikashrama is the place where Lord Varaha abides as Varaha Shila.
- Badarikashrama is the place where Lord Narasimha abides as Narasimha Shila.
- Badarikashrama is the place where Lord Shiva is associated with Brahma Kapal.
► Badrinath - Brahma Kapal (Chamoli district, Uttarakhand)
Brahma Kapal of Badrinath is identified with the place where Lord Shiva got freed from the skull of Lord Brahma which stuck to his hands.
• Temples and Places of Sages and Devas in Badarikashrama:
• Penance of sages Nara-Narayana: In Badarikashrama, sages Nara and Narayana, who are the incarnations of the Lord, has been undergoing intense long penance for the welfare of the world. (Srimad Bhagavatam - Skanda 3 - 4.22)
The Garuda Shila of Badrinath is identified with the place where Sri Garuda performed penance.
• Hermitage of sage Vyasa: In Badarikashrama, sage Vyasa had his hermitage on the bank of river Saraswati in a place named Samyaprasa which is surrounded by Badari trees. (Srimad Bhagavatam - Skanda 1 - 4 to 7)
Badrinath is a Swayam Vyakta Sthalam of Lord Vishnu where sage Vyasa had his hermitage. The hermitage is said to be in the region of Vyasa Gufa of Badrinath.
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