Vishnuprayag, Badrinath - Timings, History, Darshan, Pooja Timings

At a distance of 32 km from Badrinath and 11 km from Joshimath, Vishnuprayag is one of the Panch Prayags of Alaknanda River, and lies at the confluence of Alaknanda River and Dhauliganga River, in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. It is a famous pilgrimage center in Uttarakhand state.

The Alaknanda River, which originates in the eastern slopes of glacier fields of Chaukhamba, is joined by the Saraswathi River near Mana, and then flows in front of the Badrinath temple. It then meets the Dhauli Ganga River, which originates from the Niti Pass, to form the Vishnuprayag. This stretch of the Alaknanda River is called the Vishnu Ganga. Vishnuprayag is the first of Panch Prayag, other four being Nandaprayag, Karnaprayag, Rudraprayag and Devprayag according to descending order of river Alakananda that meets other four tributaries of holy Ganga at four different places.

Situated at an altitude of 1,372 m, Vishnuprayag derives its name from Lord Vishnu who appeared at this place to sage Narada. A Vishnu temple is located near the confluence that is dated to 19th century, and is credited to the Maharani of Indore - Ahalyabai. A stairway from this temple leads to the confluence spot. Most of the pilgrims take a dip in the nearby Vishnu Kund before entering the temple. It is prohibited to take dip in confluence at Vishnuprayag because of its strong current.