Patal Bhuvaneshwar Cave Temple | UNSEEN | Gangolihat | Uttarakhand

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The Patal Bhuvaneshwar is a cave complex which is as old as the earth itself. This fantastic relic dating from the Satyug denotes the story of the world as enshrined in Hindu philosophy and is a must – visit destination for anyone traveling to Uttarakhand. Discovering Pithoragarh cannot be complete without it. Dedicated predominantly to Lord Shiva, the cave is also home to all 33 Koti demi – Gods in Hindu belief. That is 33 unique Gods – not 33 crore, as ‘koti’ is typically confused with.
Patal Bhuvaneshwar is barely 11KMS from the Misty Mountains. On 31 Dec. Sanju, Simran, Ritika, Aditya (our 9 year old) and I hopped in to the Pajero to continue our quest for discovering Pithoragarh. Add the 3KM trek down and up the Misty Mountain trail, and it was a 26KM drive in all. Once we got onto the main road, instead of heading to Raiagar, we continued onwards on highway AH 309 which goes to Pithoragarh.
The drive is very picturesque affording panoramic views of the Nanda Devi range nearly all throughout. Over a distance of 10KMS, you descend from 2100 to 1350Mtrs, which is the altitude at which the cave is situated. We may not have ended up discovering all there is to Pithoragarh. However, the drive itself was a spiritually immersive experience.
Entering the cave is nothing short of an adventure in itself. The doorway is a small crevice that you crouch through. Once through, you are greeted with a 90 feet plunge down a steep 50 – 60 degree decline. Given the low ceiling, most of the path down must be covered crouching. If it wasn’t for the length of thick chain lining the pathway, I am pretty sure none of us would have made it down with our bones intact.

The Patal Bhuvaneshwar finds mention in the Skand Puran originally. In the 11th century AD, Adi Sahnkaracharya ended up re – discovering it when he visited Pithoragarh. I don’t know if this is ‘the’ Adi Shankaracharya though. For if he is, then the dates are way off. Apparently, he lived much before this date.
I can well imagine how he would’ve navigated his way down with no lights or assistance of any other kind. If you don’t believe in divine intervention, you should visit the cave yourself. Try imagining getting in with no material or Godly assistance!
Once inside, the cave is a marvel in itself. Right from Sheshnag, the king of serpents holding up the three worlds on his flaring hood, to the story of the Pandavas, tales of the Shiv Puran and various other deities, they all beautifully play out on the natural tapestry of rock formations on the walls of the cave. None of it appears to be manmade, yet, all of it makes perfect sense. In fact, it all seems extremely plausible when narrated by a well – informed guide. We’d set out on discovering Pithoragarh and ended up on touring a microcosm of the universe as stated in Hindu philosophy!
Legend has it that originally the cave had four entrances. With the passage of the Yugas, two doors have been shut. The ‘Paapdwar’ was shut first with Ravana’s death. The ‘Randwar’ was shut next at the end of the Mahabharata war. This left just the ‘Dharmdwar’ and ‘Mokshdwar’ open to humanity now.
Deep inside the cave is a passage which reduces in size till you can go no further. Or actually, wouldn’t dare go any further! Apparently, this is a subterranean passage connecting to the Kailash Parbat. The Pandavas took this route to get to Lord Shivas abode, and ascend to heaven from thereon. Or descend to hell, basis their karma.
There is a similar passage which descends down to hell, according it the nomenclature of ‘Patal Bhuvaneshwar’. This passage too is not accessible now, which isn’t a bad thing. I’m sure none of us would like to read inscriptions of “Bunty loves Sweety” scratched on the walls when we’re descending down the passage at the end of our mortal lives!
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