An ode to the divine. Review on Vaishnodevi

The moment you enter the holy town of Katra, the Trikuta Hills, on which the whole 14-kilometres long Yatra of Mata Vaishno Devi is spread, loom large in front of you. The vast expanse make you feel pious and peaceful at the same time.

It was 14th of November last year and the weather seemed just right, not too hot and a little bit colder than usual, the air around us provided just the right momentum to keep walking for the whole of Yatra.

The path winding through forests and various stopovers on way to the Bhavan was humming with devotees' voices singing paens to the Divine force.

Right from the Katra town to the beginning of the Yatra at Ban Ganga, where most of the devotees prefer to take a bath in the holy river ''Ban Ganga'' before embarking on the devotional sojourn, there is a long and unending line of shops, selling everything from ''red chunaris'' to prasad to be devoted at the Bhavan. There are also outlets, which provide comfortable walking shoes and sticks to help the pilgrims in completing their journey. This service is provided free of cost, however, most of the devotees make it a point to donate some nominal amount with the outlet owner by way of alms.

The journey, though pleasant throughout and enriched with spiritual energy, is marred by the fact that during the peak months, it is almost difficult to find your way through more crowded points and there is every danger that the more infirm pilgrims or children might lose their way or get pushed over into the deep ravine, which lines all the 14-km path.

Moreover, the ponies, resting on the sides of the path, more so at Ban Ganga and Adh Kunwari, sometimes create such a stench standing together that the pilgrims just wish to rush through the site and escape into fresh air. This might also be because of the rush of pilgrims, which sometimes runs into several lakhs per day, especially during Navratras.

On reaching the Bhawan, it is comparatively easier to attend the darshans at the original cave and the Mata's three avatars. The friend accompanying us told that early winters are the best time to visit the shrine since there is thin attendance of pilgrim-tourists during this time and darshans can be had at leisure without the usual hustle.

From then on, we have decided to visit the shrine around November-December only to be able to have more quality time with ''Mother Divine.''

The trip is an ideal weekend getaway for couples, families, friends and elderly couples, who can mix spirituality with a dash of adventure, which comes with a fourteen kilometre trekking to reach the Bhawan. Although, apart from paying obeisance at shrine, there is little else to do at Vaishno Devi but lately, Department of Tourism as well as local hotel owners are waking up to the idea to provide a package tour to the pilgrims, especially those from outside the state, who keep coming throughout the year.

So, besides having a spiritual time at the shrine, visitors can also spend a few leisurely days at a hotel or lodge in Patnitop or Kud, which are two main hill stations located close to Katra. Contact Department of Tourism for any further details and enjoy a spiritual, adventurous journey to the Divine.