Baba Dhansar Dham

Baba Dhansar Dham or Prachin Shiv Gufa is at a distance of 14 km from Katra Railway Station, Baba Dhansar is a religious place situated at Karua village near Katra. Located on the way to Salal Dam, it is one of the top places of pilgrimage in Jammu & Kashmir, and among the must-visit places as part of the Vaishno Devi tour.

Situated right by the beautiful Karua Jheel, Baba Dhansar temple is dedicated to serpent god Dhansar Baba. As per the legend, there was a demon who lived near Karua Jheel(lake) in ancient times and created havoc and destruction in their lives. The villagers sought the help of Baba Dhansar, the son of Vasudev, the serpent king. When the villagers asked for help from Baba, he prayed to Lord Shiva, who in turn agreed to help him kill the demon. After the demon was killed, the villagers constructed a Nag temple and a Cave temple in honor of Baba Dhansar, and Lord Shiva respectively.

Apart from the beautiful temple, there is a huge spring that emerges from the rocks in a thick grove of trees and forms several small cascading waterfalls before ultimately flowing into the rivulet that merges with the Chenab River.

There is a naturally formed Shivling on which water droplets fall at a constant pace all the year-round. Washing oneself in the Karua Jheel is considered holy but is not allowed. However, devotees are allowed to bathe downstream, where the water flows out. It is believed that if you pray with complete conviction and wash your sins in the Karua Jheel, all your wishes will be fulfilled. A large number of devotees visit the place every year on the day of Mahashivratri when an annual mela is organized.

A lot of ancient inscriptions are found kept outside the Shiv cave which is in an unknown languages.