Vyas Gufa in Mana Village
Vyas Cave is an ancient cave located on the banks of the Saraswati River at Mana village in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, 5.5 kilometers from Badrinath Bus Stand. Mana is the final Indian village on the Indo-China border.
Vyas Gufa is thought to be the location where sage Vyas wrote the Mahabharata epic with the assistance of Lord Ganesha. In addition, he wrote 18 Puranas, Brahma Sutras, and four Vedas. The pilgrims worship the Maharishi Vyas statue, which is installed in the caves.
The temple’s roof, which resembles pages from the collection of his holy scripts, is a distinguishing feature. There is also an intriguing story associated with the location that explains Lord Ganesh’s broken tusk. When Vyas was writing the Mahabharata, he needed someone to take his dictation, so he asked the learned Ganesha for help.
Ganesh agreed on the condition that Vyas does not stop writing for even a second, or else he would stop writing and leave. Vyas was dictating as quickly as he could, and Ganesh was bent over the script pages. His reed pen finally broke. In response, he broke off a piece of his tusk to use as a pen.
Ganesha cave is also located nearby, beneath Vyas cave. A natural rock known as Bhim pul rests over the river near this temple. Another cave, Muchukand Gufa, is located 3 kilometers uphill from Vyas Gufa. It is associated with the story of Lord Krishna, who was led to the demon Kaal Yawan’s demise here by Sage Muchukand. It is said that Lord Krishna’s footprints can still be seen in the cave.
