Hanuman Dhara, Chitrakoot

Hanuman Dhara is a cliff-side shrine high on a hill at Chitrakoot, where a natural stream of water falls perpetually upon the image of Hanuman. Tradition holds that here Sita showed the lord how to cool the burning of his body after he set Lanka aflame, and the spring has flowed over him ever since, reached by a long climb of stone steps with sweeping views over the holy land of Rama.

The stream that cools the lord

When Hanuman burned Lanka with his blazing tail, his body still smouldered, and Sita, it is said, asked Rama to grant him relief; a spring then broke from the rock at Chitrakoot to pour upon the lord and cool him. The dhara, the falling stream, still washes the image of Hanuman in his cliff shrine, and devotees revere the unfailing water as the lord’s own remedy.

A climb above Chitrakoot

The shrine is reached by a steep stairway of several hundred steps up the hill, rewarding the pilgrim with wide views over the forests and the Mandakini valley of Chitrakoot, the land where Rama, Sita and Lakshmana are said to have spent much of their exile. The cliff setting, with the perpetual spring, gives the shrine a wild and ancient air.

In the land of Rama’s exile

Chitrakoot is among the holiest places of the Ramayana, where Rama dwelt in the forest, and Hanuman Dhara is woven into its sacred round of hills, ghats and shrines. Hanuman Jayanti and the Ramayana days draw the largest crowds, and Tuesdays and Saturdays bring devotees up the long climb through the year.

How to reach the temple

• By road: Hanuman Dhara is about 5 km from the Chitrakoot town centre, then a climb of stone steps up the hill.
• By train: Chitrakoot Dham (Karwi) is the nearest railhead.
• By air: Prayagraj (Allahabad) airport is the nearest, about 120 km away.

Frequently Asked Questions

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