Central India · Madhya Pradesh
Chitrakoot, Madhya Pradesh
Before you go
Where Rama, Sita and Lakshmana are said to have spent much of their exile; straddles the MP-UP border. Diwali and Amavasya days are the busiest.
About Chitrakoot
- Riverside
- Hills
Where it is
Chitrakoot is a pilgrimage town on the Mandakini river in the northern Vindhya hills, in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh, where the sacred area straddles the border with Uttar Pradesh.
History
In the Ramayana, Chitrakoot is where Rama, Sita and Lakshmana lived during much of their exile and where Bharata came to ask Rama to return to Ayodhya. The sage Atri and his wife Anasuya are also linked with its forests, and the poet-saint Tulsidas, author of the Ramcharitmanas, is closely associated with the town.
People
Chitrakoot's people speak Hindi, Bundeli and Bagheli, and many families live as priests, boatmen and traders serving the pilgrims. Amavasya and Diwali bring huge crowds, who float lamps on the Mandakini at Ram Ghat.
Known for
- The Kamadgiri hill parikrama
- Ram Ghat on the Mandakini
- Hanuman Dhara
- Gupt Godavari caves
- Sati Anusuya Ashram
Did you know?
The forested hill of Kamadgiri is itself worshipped as Kamtanath, a form of Rama, and pilgrims walk the path around it barefoot.
Shrines and sites
- Kamadgiri hill parikrama
- Ram Ghat on the Mandakini
- Hanuman Dhara
- Gupt Godavari caves
Traditions
- Hindu
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