Introduction
Indiayogi attempts to acquaint you with some important pilgrimage spots of India.
In this section we will cover the major pilgrimage sites based on their popularity
and religious importance. The article will contain a brief on their location and
significance, including the legends associated with their creation, plus some useful
general information about the pilgrimage or yatra itself. However, since undertaking
a pilgrimage is very much an individual experience, we would welcome any useful
suggestions or comments pertaining to the pilgrimage.
From the first instance of civilization to the present day, millions of Hindus leave
their homes in search of salvation. The sacred places to which they travel are called
tirthas, and the action of going on a pilgrimage tirtha-yatra. The Vedic
word tirtha means river ford, steps to a river, or place of pilgrimage. Tirthas
are more than physical locations, however. The devout believe them to be spiritual
fords, the meeting place of heaven and earth, the locations where one crosses over
the river of samsara (the endless cycle of birth, death and rebirth) to reach
the distant shore of liberation.
Writing in Banaras: City of Light, Diana Eck speaks of tirthas as
being,
|
"...primarily associated with the great
acts and appearances of the gods and heroes of Indian myth and legend. As a threshold
between heaven and earth, the tirtha is not only a place for the upward crossings
of people's prayers and rites, it is also a place for the downward crossings of
the gods. These divine descents are the well-known avataras of the Hindu
tradition. Indeed, the words tirtha and avatara come from related
verbal roots....one might say that the avataras descend, opening the doors
of the tirthas so that men and women may ascend in their rites and prayers.
|
|
In India, pilgrimage is an accepted form of tourism, involving family and community
groups. The process may involve preliminary vows and fasting, extensive traveling
on foot and the constant singing of devotional songs."
The primary intention of a pilgrim's visit to a pilgrimage site is to receive the
darshan of the deity resident in the temple's inner sanctum or open-air shrine.
The word darshan generally means the pilgrim's having a sight and/or experience
of the deity. It is believed that the deity is actually manifested in the image,
statue, or icon of the temple. To receive the darshan of the deity is to have a
spiritual communion with it. The image of the deity may either be an iconic or representational
image that bears some resemblance to its mythic subject, or an aniconic form that
merely symbolizes the deity.
Where a shrine is the focus, the devotee may circumambulate the buildings and wait
for long hours for a glimpse of the deity's image. At auspicious bathing sites,
pilgrims may have to wade through the crush of other devotees to dip into the sacred
waters of a river or tank. Worshippers engaged in special vows or in praying for
the care of a loved one may purchase shrine amulets to give to the deity, or purchase
foodstuffs (Prasad) to be sanctified in the God's presence and then presented to
friends and family.
|