Taking India On A Holy Excursion

India has been acclaimed a highly spiritual country from the primitive times. It is a centre for diversified cultures, religion, beliefs etc. It gives shelter to the cultured as well as the uncouth, to the rich and the poor, to the hole as well as the unholy. The theory of “karma” as originated in India has influenced people all over the world and has carved a niche for itself in the mythological philosophies of the word.

The holy land of India is considered pious since ages and has attracted tourists all over the world by the charm of its different pilgrimages. Be it east or west, south or north, even the epicenter of the nation has enough holy places to entice the Homo sapiens from around the world and from different religions. An amalgamation of various religious places is found here- Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Christians, Buddhists, Jains.

HINDU PILGRIMAGES- There is a vast variety of Hindu pilgrimage places in the country. The most important are the “CHAAR DHAAM” i.e. “FOUR ABODES” namely Badrinath, Dwarka, Jagannathpuri and Rameshwaram. Badrinath is in Uttarakhand, Dwarka is in Gujrat, Jagannathpuri is in Orissa and Rameshwaram is in Tamil Nadu. The other sacred places include Vaishnao Devi Temple in Jammu&Kashmir, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Varanasi, Gaya and many more cities where the renowned temples of various “devis” are set up. The city of Ayodhya is famous for being the birthplace of Lord Rama.

MUSLIM PILGRIMAGES- The Muslim holy places have a rich and prosperous heritage, especially during the Mughal era. The Jama Masjid and Qutub Minar of Delhi, dargah of Ajmer Sharif of Ajmer and Charminar of Hyderabad are one of the few most pious and sacred places for the Muslims all over the world. Moreover places like Fatehpur Sikri, Hazrat Nizammuddin, The Quwwat ul Islam Mosque are also of utmost importance to the followers of Islam.

CHRISTIAN’S HOLY PLACES- The Christian missionary work in India has done a commendable job relating to building up of schools, orphanages, old age homes and other various kind of social services. This community has been of great help during trying times of the nations like the Tsunami, food shortage, earthquake, wars etc. The churches of Goa especially the “Basilica of Bom Jesus” in Goa is well known all over the world. Other churches of Simla, Kerala, Chennai and Mumbai are also quite popular.

ABODE FOR SIKHS- The land of Punjab is considered to be the “PIND” of the followers of Sikkhism which has a myriad of Gurudwaras visited by people from all the religions to achieve spiritualism. Infact the pilgrimage places of sikkhism is considered to be the most serene and peaceful ones and have a very soothing effect on a worshipper’s mind. The Golden Temple of Amritsar and Hem Kund Sahib are the most revered places out of all.

BUDDHISM - India is the birthplace of Lord Buddha which has followers all over the world and consequently it is replete with monasteries in Bodh Gaya, Saranath, Kushinagar, Dharamshala, Lumbini Vaishali etc.

Hence, India has a rich and diversified religious background which worships and appreciates all religion. It is the land of “RAM and RAHIM”, a holy place for the followers of JESUS as well as GURU NANAK, a refuge for the mythology of Jainism as well as Buddhism.