Kartikeya asked Lord Shiva–‘How did this sacrosanct place originate? Who is the presiding deity of this place?’
Lord Shiva replied–‘Badrikashram is an eternal city and Lord Narayan is its presiding deity. A mere sight of Badrikashram is enough to free a man from all the bondage of life. There are numerous other holy places situated in the vicinity, Kedarnath being one of them.’
To emphasize the significance of Badrikashram, Lord Shiva narrated the following tale to Kartikeya–‘In Satya yuga, Lord Vishnu existed in his physical form at Badrikashram for the benediction of human beings. But, in Treta yuga, only sages had the privilege of perceiving him with the help of yoga. At the advent of Dwapar things changed drastically and Lord Vishnu just disappeared from Badrikashram. Deities became worried and asked Lord Brahma about the reason that made Lord Vishnu disappear. Even lord Brahma had no answer to this question. Thinking that Lord Vishnu must have gone to Ksheer sagar-his eternal abode, all the deities led by Brahma went there. They eulogized Vishnu, who emerged from the Ksheer Sagar. But, none of the deities except lord Brahma could see him. Lord Vishnu told Brahma that the main reason why he disappeared from Badrikashram was the flawed intelligence and arrogance of the deities. Brahma informed the deities whatever Vishnu had told him. All the deities were ashamed of themselves and returned to heaven with long faces. Feeling pity on the deities, I (Shiva) disguised myself as a sanyasi and carried Lord Vishnu’s idol from Naradateerth to Badrikashram and installed it over there to uplift the sagging morale of the deities. This is how Lord Vishnu once again graced Badrikashram with his presence. Even a grain of ‘prasad’ had at Badrikashram is enough to liberate a man from all his sins.’