Land subsidence in Joshimath may be a recent development, but it seems our ancient sages may have foreseen this possibility thousands of years ago. At least one ancient text is thought to have made the prediction that the shrine of Badrinath which is accessed through Joshimath will become inaccessible. Locals believe that the shrine of Badrinath will become inaccessible in the future and the worship of Lord Badrinarayan will happen at the Bhavishya Badri temple, situated about 22km away from Joshimath at an altitude of 8,530 feet in Suvai village ahead of Tapovan. The prophecy is mentioned in the ‘Sanath Samhita’, an ancient text, which says that when the arm of the Narasingha idol at Joshimath will fall off and the mountains of Jay and Vijay near Vishnuprayag collapse, making the present shrine of Badrinath inaccessible, the worship of Lord Vishnu as Badrinarayan will begin at Bhavishya Badri. Incidentally, the arm of the idol of Narasingha, one of the avatars of Vishnu — depicted in a meditative state unlike his usual self is now ‘as thin as hair’, although it hasn’t fallen off. The area near Vishnuprayag, where the NTPC hydropower project is situated, and the town of Joshimath are in a precarious state, leading many to wonder whether there may be some truth in the prophecy.