Surrounded by luxuriant woods, Chinmaya Tapovan is located near the Dhauladhar Mountain range in Sidhbari. The meaning of the word Sidhbari means the abode of the Siddhas and self-realized masters. It is said that this place was home to numerous saints and seers who once walked the earth and made every being pure and self-realized, who came their way. They did so by essentially teaching them practices related to yoga.
There are many ancient scriptures that give evidence describing the presence of great saints who flourished their wisdom here and helped many to attain liberation. Established by Swami Chinmayananda, this place is home to spirituality to everyone and anyone who wishes to drink the nectar of peace and contentment.
While visiting here, one can feel utmost peace around the beautiful nature. The depth and life-exuding energies can be felt all the way to a person's core here. Meditation and yoga are regularly practiced in the ashrams of Chinmaya Tapovan.
History of Chinmaya Tapovan
It was the year 1977 when Swami Chinamayananda came across a barren piece of land. Right then, he knew in his intuition that this place was a consecrated space with holy vibrations flowing through. It was then, that he founded the Chinmaya Tapovan Trust along with the ashram, that comes under the management of this trust.
After that, sometime in the year 1981, Swami Chinmayananda successfully established a Vedanta institute commencing a two-year intensive Vedanta course in the Hindi language which was quite similar to the course being offered in the English language. And today, the spiritual camps, for both adults and youth, are offered at the ashram.
Major Attractions in and Around Chinmaya Tapovan
1. Sandeepany HIM's Campus
The campus is established within the premises and has a magnificent and gigantic statue of Lord Shiva. Once you are into the beautiful premise you will naturally feel the bliss. It is stunningly vast and is also quite beautiful, and the Shivalingam present here is visible from miles.
2. A Special Bookstore
It is a must-visit store for Spiritual book lovers! Yes, this premise consists of many spiritual book stores where you can buy several books suiting your spiritual needs. Some of them might be a real eye-opener for a person.
3. Meditation
At Chinmaya Tapovan in Kangra, you can spend some quality time meditating and rejuvenating your soul right under the godly grace of the Yogis and Masters.
4. Yoga
While you are exploring the beautiful Sidhbari region, you can sit at the ashram for a while and practice Yoga or learn different asanas from the gurus of Ashram. This will surely be helping you create some really productive opportunities for your future self.
How to Reach Chinmaya Tapovan
Chinmaya Tapovan is an Ashram that was started by Balakrishnan Menon in Himachal Pradesh. He was a journalist who had met many spiritual masters like Swami Sivananda. It is said that after meeting him, he began his search for life's meaning, and while doing so, and with time, he also began to set up various trusts along with his life's journey.
One of them is the Chinmaya Tapovan, named after Bala Krishnan Menon’s guru Swami Tapovan. The overall ambiance of this place offers nothing but serenity and calmness to the person visiting here. Chinmaya Tapovan is located at a distance of 471, 1,851, 2,642, 1,987 km from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Kolkata. Let’s discuss how you can reach Chinmaya Tapovan from the following routes.
By Air
If you are planning a trip to Chinmaya Tapovan then you will need to take a flight and deboard at the Gaggal Airport also known as the Kangra Airport (DHM). This airport is located at an overall distance of 13-15 km from the ashram.
It is spread over a total area of about 1,269 acres. One of the highlighting features of this airport is that it is located at a height of about 2,492 feet and only has one asphalt runway. Various airlines like Air India, SpiceJet operate to and fro from various Indian cities here. After you deboard at the airport, you can take a cab to reach Chinmaya Tapovan which will take you approximately 20 minutes.
By Train
It is not recommended to travel here via train. The overall train connectivity is not good in this area. However, still, the nearest train station is the Pathankot railway station. From this railway station, the Chinmaya Tapovan is located at an overall distance of 115 km. To cover this distance, you will have to take a cab.
However, particularly from Delhi, you can take a train to Haridwar. And from Haridwar, you will further need to travel to Uttarkashi by cab. It would be a six-hour-long drive and should cost you somewhere between Rs.1,500-Rs.2,000.
By Road
Depending upon your location you can also travel to Chinmaya Tapovan by road. You can also rely on interstate buses to reach here. From Delhi, travelling via bus will cost you about Rs.700, from Amritsar it will cost you about Rs.300-Rs.600, and from Shimla, it will cost you about Rs.300-Rs.400.
Otherwise, the route is as follows.
- Delhi - 471 km via NH44 or NH52
- Ludhiana - 191 km via NH3 or Chandigarh-Chintapurni-Dharamshala Road
- Patiala - 276 km via Jammu-Delhi Road or NH503
- Amritsar - 211 km via NH54 or NH154
- Chandigarh - 239 km via NH503 or NH344A
- Aligarh - 613 km via NH44 or NH503
- Agra - 702 km via NH44 or Western Peripheral Expressway
You can plan your trip and create your own route to the city. to the city with Adotrip’s technically driven Trip planner.