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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,
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"...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.
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