Amarkantak

Amarkantak sits at about a thousand metres where the Vindhya and Satpura ranges meet, and it is a watershed of an unusual kind: the Narmada rises here and runs west to the Arabian Sea, one of the few major Indian rivers to do so, while the Son rises nearby and runs east to join the Ganges. The Narmada Kund, a walled tank surrounded by temples, marks the source and is the start of the Narmada Parikrama, a circumambulation of the entire river on foot that takes pilgrims years. Kapildhara falls drops the young river through forest a few kilometres downstream.

History

The name joins the Sanskrit amara, "immortal", and kaṇṭaka, "thorn", and the poet Kalidasa mentions the place as Amarakuta. The 15th-century mystic poet Kabir is said to have meditated here, at the spot now called Kabir Chabutra (Wikipedia, Amarkantak).

Highlights

• Narmada Kund - the walled tank and temple group at the river's source.
• Sonmuda - the Son's source and an escarpment viewpoint nearby.
• Kapildhara falls - the young Narmada dropping through forest.
• The parikrama pilgrims - walkers beginning a years-long river circuit.

When to go

October to March; the monsoon greens the plateau and fills the falls but makes roads difficult. Narmada Jayanti in winter and Shivratri bring pilgrim crowds.

Practical notes

The area is remote with basic accommodation, mostly pilgrim lodges. Bauxite mining nearby has affected parts of the plateau. Sites are spread out and need transport.

Nearby

Bandhavgarh lies northwest; Bilaspur is southeast.