badrinath is situated on the bank of alaknanda river.
badrinath is situated on which bank of river?
alaknanda river
there is no historical record about the temple, but there is a mention of the presiding deity badrinath in vedic scriptures (–500 ). according to some accounts, the temple was a buddhist shrine till the 8th century and adi shankara converted it to a hindu temple. the architecture of the temple resembling that of a buddhist vihara (temple) and the brightly painted facade which is atypical of buddhist temples leads to the argument. other accounts relate that it was originally established as a pilgrimage site by adi shankara in the ninth century. it is believed that shankara resided in the place for six years from  814 to 820. he resided six months in badrinath and the rest of the year in kedarnath. hindu followers assert that he discovered the image of badrinath in the alaknanda river and enshrined it in a cave near the tapt kund hot springs. a traditional story asserts that shankara expelled all the buddhists in the region with the help of the parmar ruler king kanak pal. the hereditary successors of the king governed the temple and endowed villages to meet its expenses. the income from a set of villages on the route to the temple was used to feed and accommodate pilgrims. the parmar rulers held the title "bolanda badrinath", meaning speaking badrinath. they had other titles, including shri 108 basdrishcharyaparayan garharaj mahimahendra, dharmabibhab, and dharamarakshak sigamani.
badrinath temple
it is believed that one arm of the image is getting emaciated with time and finally fall off. when the arm disappears, the main shrine of badrinath will be closed to the world and lord badrinath will shift to bhavishya badri shrine. with this cataclysmic event, kali yuga will end ushering in the satya yuga. then the badrinath shrine would get re-established. when the chief badrinath shrine is closed in winter, the priests of badrinath shift to this temple and continue their worship to badrinath here. along with the central narasimha image, the temple also has an image of badrinath.
sapta badri