Amid tight security, over 7,800 pilgrims leave Jammu for Amarnath Shrine

9,155 devotees perform darshan at holy cave; American pilgrims share spiritual experience

STATE TIMES NEWS

Jammu: Even as the 10th batch of over 7,800 Amarnath Yatra pilgrims left the Jammu base camp in the early hours of Wednesday for the twin base camps in Kashmir amid tight security arrangements, 9155 devotees performed Darshan at the holy cave shrine, officials said.
With this the number of Yatris performing Darshan at the cave shrine swelled to 146508 till date.
Among the yatries, who visited Shri Amarnathji Cave till this evening, were 6995 males, 1918 females, 122 children and120 Sadhus.
Thousands of Amarnathji yatris traverse mountainous routes along Pahalgam and Baltal axis with much fervor to perform darshan at Holy Cave. To make this religious pilgrimage a memorable and life time experience, around 30 government departments are providing services relentlessly. The officers and officials are making strenuous efforts to extend essential services and basic amenities at every destination to pilgrims.
Every pilgrim, who visited the Holy Cave expressed satisfaction and pleasure about the wide range of arrangements put in place for their convenience.
Due to this reason and belief, Shri Amarnathji Yatra has gone global, captivating devotees including NRIs and citizens of different countries.
Two foreign nationals from California, United States (US) also fulfilled their 40-year-old dream by undertaking the holy pilgrimage of Amarnath Yatra. They were inspired by the teachings of Swami Vivekananda on spirituality. After visiting here, they expressed joy and happiness and stated it was a dream comes true.
“There is a particular kind of peace that prevails in these mountains. We hope this kind of peace can prevail everywhere,” said one of them.
In a video released by the Department of Information and Public Relations, the two men talk about their journey.
“We stay at a temple ashram in California. For years, we have dreamt of coming here for this yatra. We have watched ‘Aarti’ videos on YouTube every day for the last few years. It is hard, impossible to describe how we feel. We just have incredible gratitude and are very happy,” one of them said.
Clad in saffron robes and sporting long beaded hair, the two men said they are devotees of Swami Vivekananda. “We are devotees of Swami Vivekananda. Swami Vivekananda came to Amarnath and had a very important experience. He had a vision of Lord Shiva and for 40 years now, I have been thinking that I know this story.
“This is why we wanted to come here. It seemed like an impossible dream. Then, all of a sudden, by Bholenath’s grace, everything came together and here we are after having his darshan,” the other man said.
The duo said they cannot explain in words how they feel. “The emotion and feelings are too much,” one of them said.
“We are seeped in gratitude and happiness to be able to have this darshan, to come for this pilgrimage,” he added.
The two Americans were all praise for the arrangements made by the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board for the devotees visiting the holy cave, located at a height of 3,888 metres.
The pilgrims coming from different countries become ambassadors of hospitality, peace and spread message of spirituality in their nations.
Pertinently, a couple of days ago, 33 yatries from Nepal had also come to pay Darshan at Shri Amarnathji Cave. On their way, they were warmly welcomed by administration.
The yatra resumed from the Jammu base camp on Tuesday afternoon after remaining suspended for three days in view of the closure of the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway for repairs in the Ramban section.
The 62-day annual pilgrimage to the 3,888-metre-high cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas commenced from the twin tracks of Pahalgam in Anantnag district and Baltal in Ganderbal district on July 1. The yatra is scheduled to conclude on August 31.
A total of 7,805 pilgrims left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp here for the Valley in a convoy of 339 vehicles around 3.15 am, the officials said.
They said 4,677 pilgrims are headed for Pahalgam in a convoy of 207 vehicles and 3,128 pilgrims left for the Baltal base camp in a convoy of 132 vehicles.
With this, 56,303 pilgrims have now departed the Jammu base camp for the Valley since June 30, when the first batch began the yatra.
“We are happy that our prayers were heard by Lord Shiva who facilitated our pilgrimage to his abode,” Sunita Devi of Assam said. She was with a group of 23 people stranded in Jammu for the last seven days.
Expressing happiness and appreciation that the administration reconstructed within hours the road damaged due to floods triggered by heavy, she said “they have fulfilled my wish of visiting Barfani Baba”.
The incessant rains on Saturday and Sunday caused unprecedented damage to the highway, especially a stretch in Ramban district, forcing its closure.