The Chota Char Dham (Devanagari) literally translates to ‘the small four abodes/seats’, meaning ‘the small circuit of four abodes/seats’ and is an important Hindu pilgrimage circuit in the Indian Himalayas. Located in the Garhwal region of the state of Uttarakhand, the circuit consists of four sites –

• Yamunotri
• Gangotri
• Kedarnath
• Badrinath is also one of the four destinations (with each destination being in different corners of the country) of the longer Char Dham.

Each of these sites being unique in its own fashion, the Chota Char Dham includes representatives from all three major Hindu sectarian traditions, with

• Shakta (Goddess) sites, (Yamunotri and Gangotri),
• one Shaiva site (Kedarnath) and
• one Vaishnava site (Badrinath).

Accessible until the 1950s only by arduous and lengthy walking trails in hilly area with height which repeatedly exceeded 4000 meters, the Chota Char Dham was regularly visited by wandering ascetics, other religious professionals and those who could afford a traveling entourage. While the individual sites and the circuit as a whole were well known to Hindus on the plains below, they were not a particularly visible aspect of yearly religious culture.

After the 1962 war between India and China, however, accessibility to the Chota Char Dham improved, as India undertook massive road building to border area and other infrastructure investments. As pilgrims were able to travel in mini buses, jeeps and cars to nearest points of four shrines, the Chota Char dham circuit came within the reach of people of all standards.

• The day of Akha-Trij or Akha-Teej (in the month of May) marks the beginning of the Char Dham Yatra. The ‘Yatra’ typically closes 2 days after Diwali, on the day of Bhai-Bij (or Bhai Dooj).

Access to the pilgrimage is either from Haridwar or Rishikesh or from Dehradun. The tradition is to visit the sites in the following order :

• Yamunotri, the source of the Yamuna River and the seat of the goddess Yamuna.
• Gangotri, the source of the Ganges (River Ganga) and seat of the goddess Ganga.
• Kedarnath, where a form of the Hindu god Shiva is venerated as one of the twelve jyotirlinga (linga of light).
• Badrinath, the seat of the Hindu god Vishnu in his aspect of Badrinarayan.