Bharat Mandir

Bharat Mandir, also called the Hrishikesh Narayan Temple, is one of the oldest temples in Rishikesh. Kedarkhand attributes its main structure to Adi Shankaracharya in the 12th century, and it was rebuilt after Timur's invasion of 1398. Worn stones, a raised platform against floods, and bricks and pots excavated by Garhwal University suggest an even earlier origin. Excavations also found a Buddha statue, now kept under an old banyan tree, pointing to use as a Buddhist monastery in Ashoka's time.

The five-foot idol of Hrishikesh Narayan is carved from a single black Shaligram stone, with a stone image of Varaha beside it. Maharaja Yashwant Singh of Nabha rebuilt the exterior in 1832. The sixteen-cornered main temple has walls seven to eight feet thick, and one 125-ton stone caps its dome.