PAHARPANI YOGINI GUFA

Herbert Daniel Gebauer - 06/01/2018

A modified natural sacred cave or rock shelter (temple cave) dedicated to a female saint or sourcer of the Hill of Springs. ETYMOLOGY: The Sanskrit -pahar- is a hill and -pani- means water while -yogini- is a female who pratices -yoga- (literally: joke) to harness onto the (cart of a) god or goddess: female goddess attendants (LONELY PLANET, India 2005: 1112). SITUATION: Compare –>Haidakhandi Babaji Gufa (Haira Khan). CULTURAL HISTORY - religious folklore: Beside Babaji's kutia or small hut [near Paharpani Gorakh Babaji Gufa], there is a large Yogini gufa, where a bagh or leopardess comes to nurture her cubs. Earlier, when Babaji’s kutia did not have doors, in his absence the leopardess and cubs would take shelter there. In this mahagufa, Mahavatar Haidakhandi Babaji, among other yogis have also done tapasya at a time when this was in the deep dense forests, before there was any village settlement here. Legend claims this was also used by the Pandavas in the days of the Mahabharat [ote 1]. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Haidakhandi Babaji would go on foot from this gufa via Kooni village to the river, Ghatkar, three kms below which later joins the Gautumi Ganga river in the Kumaon Kailash region, through Nain Gaon, onto his cave at Devguru Brihaspati. There is now a road from Paharpani to Mournaulla and onto Bherapani from where there is a 7 km trail to Devguru Brihaspati. From here he would take the trail to Tushrar village, and via Takura, would visit the Siddheshwar Mandir which is also known as Gautam Rishi’s ashram, and then onto Hariakhan where his cave was, from where he became known as Haidakhandi Babaji, by the nearby villagers (BUTALIA 2005).A modified natural sacred cave or rock shelter (temple cave) dedicated to a female saint or sourcer of the Hill of Springs. ETYMOLOGY: The Sanskrit -pahar- is a hill and -pani- means water while -yogini- is a female who pratices -yoga- (literally: joke) to harness onto the (cart of a) god or goddess: female goddess attendants (LONELY PLANET, India 2005: 1112). SITUATION: Compare –>Haidakhandi Babaji Gufa (Haira Khan). CULTURAL HISTORY - religious folklore: Beside Babaji's kutia or small hut [near Paharpani Gorakh Babaji Gufa], there is a large Yogini gufa, where a bagh or leopardess comes to nurture her cubs. Earlier, when Babaji’s kutia did not have doors, in his absence the leopardess and cubs would take shelter there. In this mahagufa, Mahavatar Haidakhandi Babaji, among other yogis have also done tapasya at a time when this was in the deep dense forests, before there was any village settlement here. Legend claims this was also used by the Pandavas in the days of the Mahabharat [ote 1]. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Haidakhandi Babaji would go on foot from this gufa via Kooni village to the river, Ghatkar, three kms below which later joins the Gautumi Ganga river in the Kumaon Kailash region, through Nain Gaon, onto his cave at Devguru Brihaspati. There is now a road from Paharpani to Mournaulla and onto Bherapani from where there is a 7 km trail to Devguru Brihaspati. From here he would take the trail to Tushrar village, and via Takura, would visit the Siddheshwar Mandir which is also known as Gautam Rishi’s ashram, and then onto Hariakhan where his cave was, from where he became known as Haidakhandi Babaji, by the nearby villagers (BUTALIA 2005).