Haridwar is one of the seven sacred cities of the Hindus and is a major pilgrimage centre. It has been known by many names; originally it was called Kapila, for the sage who once lived there. Its present name means “Door to Hari”; Hari is one of the names of Vishnu, a principal deity of Hinduism.
Haridwar’s chief object of pilgrimage is Har-ki-pauri—the bathing ghat, or steps, along the river—which has what believers consider to be a footprint of Vishnu impressed into a stone. Large numbers of pilgrims gather there annually at the beginning of the Hindu solar year in April; the Kumbh Mela (a Hindu religious festival) is held every 12th year in Haridwar. The Daksha Mahadev temple, another important pilgrimage site, lies 2 miles (3 km) downstream at Kankhal.
