As we continue our climb, I meet 59-year-old Pushpa Devi from Banaras.
I stare at her in wonderment when she tells me this is her 45th visit to the temple.
She is equally bewildered to hear this is my first visit!
What is it that draws her here each year? 'Bas ek shabd hai. Shraddha. (There is just one word. Faith.)'
Braving the fear of blackouts and bullets, the 'bulawa' and the quest for blessings from Ma Vaishno Devi spurs pilgrims on. I too was one of them.
During a casual conversation with a friend, I expressed a keenness to visit Ma Vaishno Devi's temple in Jammu and Kashmir, one of India's most revered pilgrimage sites. The thought had never struck me before.
Devotees often speak of a 'bulawa' or a divine call that compels them to embark on this journey.
For me it was the first time I had received this call and there was an inexplicable urge to undertake this challenging journey on foot.
Two days later a school friend and I, now both senior citizens, had finalised our train tickets and accommodation.
It was April 22, 2025.
A few hours later we heard of the gruesome terror attack in the Baisaran valley near Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir.
On May 7, India launched Operation Sindoor. Pakistan retaliated with missiles and drone attacks. There were blackouts and cross-border firing.
A stunned nation waited and watched as the threat of war loomed large.
We had to cancel our tickets and the 6 am Attka Aarti, a devotional ceremony performed in front of the holy cave in the temple, we had booked at the shrine.
Four days later on May 10 India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire.
I spoke to the manager of the hotel where we had booked our accommodation and was disturbed to learn that he could still hear firing. Within hours, Pakistan had violated the ceasefire.
Prior to the escalation between the two neighbours, close to 35,000 pilgrims visited the temple each day but the conflict and heightened security concerns saw the figure dwindle to around 1,300 on May 10 and 11.
Ten days later we got the green signal and caught the Vande Bharat train from New Delhi to Katra, the base town for the Ma Vaishno Devi Yatra.
At 8 pm we began our 13 km journey to the shrine nestled amidst the Trikuta mountains at an altitude of 5,200 feet.
Ma Vaishno Devi is believed to be a manifestation of the combined spiritual strength of three Goddesses, Ma Kali, Ma Lakshmi and Ma Saraswati. The three primary forms of Shakti.
Adorning red bands and scarves with Jai Mata Di across their foreheads, the Yatra card around their necks, overwhelming devotion writ large on their faces and a soft chant saluting the Goddess on their lips, devotees march on.
Fears had been brushed aside as the situation limped back to normalcy and devotees began trickling back.
I asked the security lady, who was checking our bags at one of the many security checkpoints in the temple complex, about the situation ten days ago.
"Drones kept coming. They were very close to Katra. Aadmi kitna darega? (But how much can we fear?)"
Sunil Sharma, who manages a coffee kiosk on the path to the shrine, too displayed equanimity as he recalled nights of blackouts and blaring sirens, "Darr kis baat ka? Mata Rani kay paas thhey. (Why would we fear? We were so close to our Goddess.)"
Walking down the paved path with an overhead cover, three-and-a-half hours later, we reached Ardhkuwari, where Ma Vaishno Devi hid from Bhairon Baba.
There was a massive crowd of pilgrims sleeping in the courtyard awaiting their turn which would come the next morning.
We were advised to register ourselves, take our slips and visit this famed cave on our way down once we had had our darshan of Ma Vaishno Devi at the main shrine.
As we continue our climb, I meet 59-year-old Pushpa Devi from Banaras.
I stare at her in wonderment when she tells me this is her 45th visit to the temple. She is equally bewildered to hear this is my first visit!
What is it that draws her here each year? "Bas ek shabd hai. Shraddha. (There is just one word. Faith.)"
It is this faith, this devotion that makes the young, the old with families visit this revered temple, seeking Ma Vaishno Devi's blessings and thanking her for wishes fulfilled.
Some on foot, some on horseback or palanquins, some in battery-operated cars. I also saw a pilgrim prostrating as he climbed.
Even before morning had broken, we reached the main temple, the Bhawan as it is popularly called.
It glittered against the night sky as it stood illuminated in a myriad colours.
By 6 am we were ushered into Mata's Durbar. Hundreds of devotees took position to witness the two-and-a-half hour aarti.
After which we were taken to the sanctum sanctorum for the darshan which every pilgrim craves.
We paid obeisance to the three stone forms which represent the three Goddesses: Ma Kali, Ma Lakshmi and Ma Saraswati. These are worshipped together as Vaishno Devi, the Mother Goddess.
We then headed to Bhairon Baba's temple by a three-minute ropeway.
In the cable car an astrologer from Himachal Pradesh shared he had been coming every month to the shrine and felt a powerful bond with the Divine Mother.
According to legend, Ma Vaishno Devi was being chased by a powerful demon, Bhairon Nath.
Eventually he was slain by the Goddess. Before dying he realised the divinity of Ma Vaishno Devi and repented.
Ma forgave him and granted him a boon.
The pilgrimage of her devotees would not be complete until they visited the Bhairon Baba Temple, 2.5 kms uphill from Ma's shrine.
We began our downward journey and headed towards Ardhkuwari.
A sacred part of this journey, it was here that the Goddess hid for 9 months to escape from Bhairon Nath.
Also known as Garbhjun Gufa, which translates to Womb Cave, pilgrims crawl through the narrow opening of the cave and contort themselves to emerge on the other side.
A symbolic journey of spiritual purification and rebirth.
It's a force that draws you here.
Pilgrims found families concerned about their well-being trying to coax then to defer their plans.
A young teacher from Lucknow, Kavita Tiwari, who had come with her husband and son, says she had made the programme in April.
When the conflict broke out, her family and her colleagues at school dissuaded her from going to Jammu and Kashmir.
But once the ceasefire was announced, her plans to visit this shrine for the first time were on track.
She says with a smile, "Sab sahi ho gaya. Ab darr nahi lag raha thha. Jab Modiji hai toh kya darr hai! (The situation is now fine. There was no fear. When Modiji is here why would there be fear!)"
By the time the Begumpura Express reached Katra from Lucknow there were barely 3 passengers in her coach. But she was unperturbed.
It was unstoppable devotion that had drawn 30-year-old Anand Kumar Gupta from Gorakhpur more than 25 times.
He spoke of his abiding faith, "I even came four times during Covid! Ma Vaishno Devi fulfils my dreams. The present conflict could not hold me back. If I am destined to die, I would rather die here than in Gorakhpur."
"Jab bulawa aata hai mujhey koi rok naki sakta. (When Ma calls no one can stop me.)"
As normalcy descends, the stream of pilgrims begins flowing once again.
There is relief for those whose livelihood depends on this temple town.
Twenty two-and-a-half hours later we completed our descent and were back in Katra. It had been an unhurried pace.
We saw a long queue of pilgrims beginning their ascent, their Jai Mata Di bands in place and determination and devotion etched across their faces.
The power of the Goddess drawing them closer. After all, faith is all we need to manoeuvre life's tricky terrain.
Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff
Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff