Tapkeshwar Temple

A small Shiva temple built into a natural cave above the Asan River, six kilometres north of the centre, where a steady drip of mineral-rich water from the limestone roof falls directly onto the central lingam. The name means "the dripping lord."

The cave is small and sometimes crowded, but the setting — a tumbling green stream, a footbridge, a string of stalls selling marigolds — is genuinely pleasant, especially after the monsoon. Easiest to reach by autorickshaw from the Clock Tower.

things to do sight
A story
The lingam at the centre of the cave is, according to local tradition, the original to which the sage Drona Charya (the teacher of the Pandavas in the Mahabharata) made his daily offerings — Dehradun's name derives from his settlement here, 'Dron Nagari'. Water drips constantly from the cave roof onto the stone, an effect attributed to milk that once flowed for the warriors' young son Ashwatthama.

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