Haridwar

Why it is one of the Sapta Puri

A verse of the Garuda Purana calls seven cities givers of liberation: "ayodhyā mathurā māyā kāśī kāñcī avantikā, purī dvāravatī jñeyā saptaitā mokṣadāyikāḥ". Meaning: Ayodhya, Mathura, Maya, Kashi, Kanchi, Avantika and the city of Dvaravati, know these seven as givers of liberation. Maya (today’s Haridwar) is the third name in the list.

We read the verse in two places in the Uttara Khanda (Preta Kalpa) of the Garuda Purana: chapter 38 (verses 5-6) and chapter 49 (verse 114), in the Venkateshvara Press text. In both places the context is the tirthas where dying brings liberation. In the Kashi Khanda of the Skanda Purana (first half, chapter 7) Shivasharman, a brahmin of Mathura, resolves to visit the seven cities (verses 42-43) and goes to the other six.

The names and why the city is holy

In the Kashi Khanda of the Skanda Purana (first half 7.113-116) Shivasharman reaches Mayapuri; the text says some call it Haridvara, some Mokshadvara, some Gangadvara and some Mayapura, and calls Haridvara a single flight of steps to Vaikuntha. According to Haridwar district the city’s old names are Mayapuri, Kapila and Gangadwar, and followers of Shiva and of Vishnu call it "Hardwar" and "Haridwar" respectively.

According to Haridwar district, drops of amrit fell into the Brahmakund at Har ki Pauri; the pot of amrit was set down at Haridwar, Prayag, Ujjain and Nashik, so the Kumbh is held at these four. At Haridwar the Maha Kumbh falls when Jupiter enters Aquarius, every twelve years; the Ardh Kumbh every six.

The main ghats and temples

Har ki Pauri ("the footsteps of the gods") is the city’s main ghat, where the Ganga aarti is held every evening (Uttarakhand Tourism); according to the district, tradition holds it to have been built by King Vikramaditya. Uttarakhand Tourism counts five tirthas: Gangadwar (Har ki Pauri), Kushavart Ghat, Kankhal, Bilva Tirtha (Mansa Devi) and Neel Parvat (Chandi Devi).

Mansa Devi stands on Bilva Parvat, reached by a walk of about 3 km or by ropeway; Chandi Devi stands on Neel Parvat; and with the Maya Devi temple these three form a triangle of Siddhapeethas (Uttarakhand Tourism). The Daksha Mahadev temple at Kankhal is held to be the place where King Daksha performed his sacrifice; it is crowded in Shravan (Uttarakhand Tourism).

How to reach Haridwar

• Air: Jolly Grant airport, Dehradun, 37 km from Haridwar (Haridwar district, Uttarakhand Tourism).
• Rail: Haridwar railway station, on the Northern Railway (Haridwar district).

Main festivals

Where the sources differ

• In popular recitation the second line is also heard as "purī dvāravatī caiva". The Garuda Purana text in which we checked it reads "purī dvāravatī jñeyā". The verse says "saptaitā" (these seven), so "purī dvāravatī" is one city, the city of Dwarka, not Jagannath Puri.
• The 1911 English translation of the abridged Garuda Purana by Ernest Wood and S. V. Subrahmanyam reads "Gaya", not "Maya", as the third name; the Sanskrit text reads "maya" in both places, and the Kashi Khanda of the Skanda Purana identifies Mayapuri with Haridwar.
• Distance to Jolly Grant: the district’s how-to-reach page and Uttarakhand Tourism give 37 km, some of the district’s place pages 72 km. On the district’s history page a printing slip gives "Hardwar" twice where "Hardwar and Haridwar" is meant.

Frequently asked questions