Patal Bhuvaneshwar

Patal Bhuvaneshwar is a tiny village in the Pithoragarh district set among the lofty peaks, of the western Himalayan Range in the Kumaon Division of Uttarakhand, India. Patal Bhuvaneshwar, one of the most fascinating places of the Kumaon region, is a limestone cave temple 14 km from Gangolihat in the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand state in India. It is located in the village Bhubneshwar.

Patal Bhuvaneshwar cave temple is at a height of 1350 meters above sea level.

The cave is 160 m long and 90 feet deep from the point of entrance. Limestone rock formations have created various spectacular stalactite and stalagmite figures of various hues and forms. This cave has a narrow tunnel-like opening which leads to a number of caves. The cave is fully electrically illuminated. There is a folklore that the Pandava brothers passed their time here during banishment. It is built due to the flow of water. It cut the rocks in such a fascinating way that it looks like that any artist had made those entire statues within the cave & on its wall. It has some cave opening and it is believed that these opening will be close as the centuries pass on. The scientific fact is it still being developed due to crystallization of the minerals which are dissolved in the water.

Patal Bhuvaneshwar is not just one cave, rather a cave city. There is a 1 km long cave in Patal Bhuvneshwar. This is 90 feet below the ground level. Caves within caves, steps leading to another, each one unmasking deep secrets from within. The motorable road ends half a kilometer away from the cave entrance. You have to descends nearly 100 steps into this narrow cave, to reach the sanctum sanctorum, which gives an overwhelming feeling that you’re entering the centre of the earth. Each stone, each stalagmite within each cave or doorway, in magnificent erection revels the story of Hindu pantheon in the shapes of Gods, Goddesses, saints and known mythological characters.

Mythology of Patal Bhuvaneshwar

Legend and folklore have it that this underground cave enshrines Lord Shiva and thirty three crore (330 million) Gods. According to belief King Rituparna of the Sun dynasty (Surya Vansha) discovered the cave in ‘Treta yug’. It has been described in the ‘MANAS KHAND’ of ‘SKAND PURAN’. As per believe, some doors which are now closed were opened thousand of years back. It is yet not been fully explored. It is also believed that this cave is internally connected to the four abodes / seats (Char Dham).