Tapovan, above Gaumukh
Above Gaumukh and the Gangotri glacier, Bhatwari, Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand
The high meadow above the Gangotri glacier that Sadhguru calls one nest among many where yogis left their energies, simpler than Kedar but still a mixture of several kinds.
What the texts say
- Lineage text
The book's own introduction to this part places Tapovan above the Gangotri glacier, and Uttarkashi on the banks of the Bhagirathi. These lines are by the compilers, not by Sadhguru.
Himalayan Lust, Sadhguru, "Part Two: Life as Pilgrimage (Uttarkashi, Guptakashi, Tapovan)"
- Lineage text
A seeker says that sitting in Guptakashi and in Tapovan was beyond describing, and asks what the two places are. Sadhguru answers that they are very different in kind, that at Tapovan the altitude may account for feeling light-headed, and that it is a place many beings have graced, leaving behind what he calls their eggs wherever they go.
Himalayan Lust, Sadhguru, "Part Two: Life as Pilgrimage (Uttarkashi, Guptakashi, Tapovan)"
- Lineage text
He says yogis leave something of themselves wherever they sit, and that they went to hills and to places held as sacred so that what they left would be met rather than trampled. Tapovan, he says, is one such nest where many yogis chose to leave their work, though larger stores of it lie at Kedar and at Kailash. Beyond Tapovan he names another such place, Nandanvan, which he hoped to go and sit in for a couple of weeks.
“the bigger pits of eggs are Kedar and Kailash”
Himalayan Lust, Sadhguru, "Part Two: Life as Pilgrimage (Uttarkashi, Guptakashi, Tapovan)"
- Lineage text
What a person becomes open to in such a place depends on how they were initiated, he says: one is open to the colours of the bird one was initiated into and misses the rest. Tapovan he calls not as complex as Kedar, but still a complex mixture.
Himalayan Lust, Sadhguru, "Part Two: Life as Pilgrimage (Uttarkashi, Guptakashi, Tapovan)"
What you will find today
- Getting there
- Tapovan lies above Gaumukh, the snout of the Gangotri glacier, which the Uttarkashi district administration gives as a 17 km trek from Gangotri. The Ministry of Tourism places Tapovan above the glacier at over 4,400 metres, says a registered guide is required to extend a trek to Tapovan, and says anyone going beyond Gaumukh must carry proper high altitude camping gear.
- Timings and conduct
- The Ministry of Tourism warns that the whole park lies well above 3,000 metres, so altitude sickness is a real risk, and advises 24 to 48 hours at Uttarkashi or Gangotri first. It describes the monsoon here as heavy rain with a raised risk of landslides.
- Altitude
- About 4400 m
- Permits
- Entry into Gangotri National Park needs a permit from the Uttarakhand Forest Department. The Ministry of Tourism says permits for the Gaumukh trail are capped at 150 visitors a day and can be taken online or in person at the forest offices in Uttarkashi or Gangotri. Check the current process with the forest office before you travel.
- Best season
- The Ministry of Tourism gives May and June as the time for high altitude trekking here, and says the park and temple stay closed to visitors from November to April.
Last checked via Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism (https://www.incredibleindia.gov.in/en/uttarakhand/uttarkashi/gangotri-national-park); District Uttarkashi, Government of Uttarakhand (https://uttarkashi.nic.in/adventures/). Conditions change; confirm before you travel.
A practice for this place
This is a place to arrive at slowly. Walk at a pace at which you could still talk, drink water often, and give yourself a day at Gangotri before you go up. On the meadow, sit facing the Bhagirathi peaks for ten minutes with the eyes open and the breath left alone. If your head aches or you feel sick, go down rather than sit longer.