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A spiritual tour of India would quite possibly be endless. But among the millions of places in India travel for pilgrimage, some have earned more renown than others. One such place is the Golden Temple at Amritsar. While there are also other Gurudwaras where the Sikhs pray, this particular one – founded in the year 1577 by the spiritual leader Guru Ram Das – is rather special to the Sikhs. It is widely considered to be their spiritual capital and the name Amritsar literally translates as the Holy Pool of Nectar, indicating its special status in the world. Another place not to be missed during pilgrimage tours is Rishikesh. Situated neatly on the banks of the holy Ganges River, it is popularly associated with the Indian concept of yoga. Numerous institutes here concentrate on dispersing knowledge of ancient yoga to both foreigners and natives in either the traditional or contemporary form. When considering Buddhist pilgrimage sites, the first that comes to mind in India is Bodhgaya. Mythology has it that Buddha gained enlightenment under a Bodhi (Sacred Fig) tree here. The Mahabodhi temple is visited by monks from the world over. This is all the more evident during the month of May, when they celebrate the Buddha’s birthday on the day of Buddha Jayanti. The best time to visit this destination is from September to January. No pilgrimage would be complete without a trip to Varanasi, also known as Benaras. The city devoted to Lord Shiva has prayers that are open to the public. Row a boat on the Ganges to be treated to a magnificent view of the evening prayers performed on the Dasashwamedha ghat. You can even take a dip in the waters of the Ganges, as it is generally believed to cleanse away all of your sins. One can hardly speak of Varanasi and forget to speak of Haridwar. Haridwar is one of the most ancient cities, and is very famous in India travel circles. It is visited by many people for the purpose of pilgrimage tours even today. One can find most of the attractions of Varanasi at Haridwar as well, including the evening prayers. But the one added advantage here is that the water of the Ganges is cleaner. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Noshir Lavangia has been working in the india travel industry for over 15 years. A travel buff with vast knowledge of travel, he knows exactly how to ferret out last minute deals on Pilgrimage tours. Noshir advises Cox & Kings on customised holidays.
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