An Overview on Tirthas of Kashmir in Kalhana Rajatarangini

The valley of Kashmir from ancient times has been considered to be the holiest of the holy lands. The valley of Kashmir came to be known as Reshi-Bhumi or land of the Sages or in Kashmir, “Pir Wari.” These are sacred shrines associated with the name of sacred gods or saints. Even before the dawn of the civilisation Rishi Kashyap whose sons when went Kashmir to settle and brought traditions, religious, mythology etc with them. These early settlers named the confluence of Ganga and Yamuna in India. They named the tallest mountain peaks here after the Gods and deities such as Brahma, Vishnu and Mahadeva. These Tirthas are very rich as far as different aspects of religion are concerned. All these are the source of attraction and inspiration for people. In this paper an attempt is made to know about various Tirthas, their location, their sanctity, beliefs and faiths associated with them.