Vaishno Devi Temple

The Vaishno Devi shrine sits at 1,585 metres on Trikuta hill, 12 km from the town of Katra and about 61 km from Jammu, with pilgrims walking up from Katra. A geological study suggests the holy cave may be close to a million years old. Trikuta hill is mentioned in the Rigveda, and the Mahabharata refers to worship of the goddess, recounting that Arjuna, on Krishna's advice, prayed to Durga before the Kurukshetra war and she appeared to him as Vaishno Devi.

Another legend tells of the tantric Bhairon Nath pursuing the young goddess, who escaped into the Trikuta hills, took her form as Durga and beheaded him in a cave. Inside the shrine, three natural forms of Mahakali, Mahalakshmi and Mahasaraswati are worshipped, their feet bathed with water of the Banganga stream.