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{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2016}} | {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2016}} | ||
{{Use Indian English|date=February 2016}} | {{Use Indian English|date=February 2016}} | ||
'''Religious tourism in India''' is a focus of [[Narendra Modi]]'s national tourism policy. [[Uttarakhand]] has been popular as a [[Religious tourism|religious]] and [[adventure tourism]] hub.<ref>{{citation |title= | '''Religious tourism in India''' is a focus of [[Narendra Modi]]'s national tourism policy. [[Uttarakhand]] has been popular as a [[Religious tourism|religious]] and [[adventure tourism]] hub.<ref>{{citation |title=U'khand eyes wellness tourism |url=http://timesofindia.com/city/dehradun/Ukhand-eyes-wellness-tourism/articleshow/50977552.cms |work=[[The Times of India]] |date=13 February 2016 }}</ref> | ||
== Tourism by religion == | == Tourism by religion == | ||
{{further|Religious tourism}} | {{further|Religious tourism}} | ||
=== Buddhism === | === India-origin religions === | ||
{{See also | Indianisation | Sanskritisation }} | |||
Since India is birth place of [[Indian religions|Indian-origin religions]], namely Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism, their holiest sites and highest concentration of religious sites pertaining to these religions are in India. Common pilgrim circuits, sites and practices are as follows: | |||
* [[Parikrama#Important_pilgrimage_circuits_of_indic-faiths|Parikrama pilgrim circuits and sites]] | |||
* [[Yatra#Famous_yatras|Pilgrim yatras]] and [[Hindu_pilgrimage_sites_in_India|sites]] | |||
* Sacred rivers and their [[ghat]]s, notably [[Ganges]], [[Yamuna]], [[Sarasvati]], [[Narmada River|Narmada]] | |||
* Fairs, such as [[Kumbh Mela]]. | |||
==== Buddhism ==== | |||
{{See also | Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India }} | |||
[[File:Mahabodhitemple.jpg|thumb|[[Mahabodhi Temple]]]] | [[File:Mahabodhitemple.jpg|thumb|[[Mahabodhi Temple]]]] | ||
=== Hinduism === | The [[Mahabodhi Temple]] in [[Bodh Gaya]] is one of the holiest sites in Buddhism.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1056/|title=Mahabodhi Temple Complex at Bodh Gaya|last=Centre|first=UNESCO World Heritage|website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre|language=en|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref> Buddhist sites, many related to the travels of Buddha, are [[Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India|spread across India]]. Important Buddhist prikarma sites are [[Lumbini]], [[Bodh Gaya]], [[Sarnath]], [[Sravasti]] ([[Jetavana]]), [[Rajgir hills]], [[Kurukshetra]] ([[Bodh Stupa]] on bank of [[Brahma Sarovar]], pilgrimage undertaken by Lord Buddha), [[Sugh Ancient Mound|Shrughna]] ([[Yamunanagar]], vihara visited by Buddha for sermon), [[Adi Badri, Haryana|Adi Badri]] (saraswati udgam sthal and vihara visited by Buddha), [[Parinirvana Stupa]] (place of death and [[nirvana]] of Lord Buddha at [[Kushinagar]], and [[Sankissa]]. See also [[Buddhist pilgrimage sites]]. | ||
==== Hinduism ==== | |||
{{See also|Hindu pilgrimage sites in India|Yoga tourism}} | {{See also|Hindu pilgrimage sites in India|Yoga tourism}} | ||
India | Hindus pilgrims in India undertake [[yatra]] (pilgrimage) to [[Hindu pilgrimage sites in India|numerous sites]], temples and [[Samadhi (shrine)|samadhis]] (shrines) of saints) for [[Puja (Hinduism)|puja]] and [[parikrama]] to earn [[Punya (Hinduism)|punya]] with the aim to attain [[moksha]]. In order of importance for pilgrims in India, there are 4 Dhams ([[Char Dham]]) and 12 [[Jyotirlinga|Jyotirlings]] devoted to the Lord [[Shiva]], 51 [[Shakti Pitha]]s devoted to the feminine manifestation of the god, and the important Lord [[Rama]] circuit ([[Ayodhya]], [[Chitrakoot,_Madhya_Pradesh#Places_of_tourist_importance|Chitrakoot]], [[Hampi]] and [[Rameswaram]]) and Lord Krishna circuit ([[Vraja Parikrama|Braj]]. [[48 kos parikrama of Kurukshetra| Kurukshetra]] and [[Dwarka]]). Sacred pilgrim sites related to Lord [[Rama]] are [[Ayodhya]], [[Chitrakoot,_Madhya_Pradesh#Places_of_tourist_importance|Chitrakoot]], [[Hampi]] and [[Rameswaram]]. Sacred pilgrim sites related to Lord [[Krishna]] are [[Vraja Parikrama]], [[48 kos parikrama of Kurukshetra]], [[Dwarka]], [[Bhalka]] (place of death of Lord Krishna). | ||
=== Islam === | India has become a major destination for [[yoga tourism]],<ref>{{cite book |last=Goldberg |first=Philip |title=American Veda: From Emerson and the Beatles to Yoga and Meditation – How Indian Spirituality Changed the West |publisher=Harmony Books |location=New York |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-385-52134-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b3Mdr3IMgW0C&q=Beatles |pages=7, 152}}</ref> bringing business to [[ashram]]s in places such as [[Mysore]] (for [[Ashtanga vinyasa yoga|Ashtanga Yoga]]) and [[Rishikesh]] (for [[Sivananda Yoga]], among others). That has led to the creation of many yoga schools offering [[Yoga teacher training|teacher training]] and promotion of India as a "yoga tourism hub"<ref name="Singh">{{cite web |last1=Singh |first1=Shikha |title=Yoga Tourism in India India can be the Wellness Destination for the World |url=http://employmentnews.gov.in/NewEmp/MoreContentNew.aspx?n=SpecialContent&k=54 |access-date=3 December 2019}}</ref> by the Indian Ministry of Tourism and the [[Ministry of AYUSH]].<ref name="Maddox2014">{{cite journal |last=Maddox |first=Callie Batts |title=Studying at the source: Ashtanga yoga tourism and the search for authenticity in Mysore, India |journal=Journal of Tourism and Cultural Change |volume=13 |issue=4 |year=2014 |pages=330–343 |issn=1476-6825 |doi=10.1080/14766825.2014.972410|s2cid=143449133 }}</ref> | ||
==== Jain ==== | |||
{{See also | List of Jain temples}} | |||
The holiest site of [[Jainism]] are [[List of Jain temples|spread across India]]. | |||
==== Sikhism ==== | |||
The [[Golden Temple]] is the holiest site in Sikhism. | |||
The holy sites for Sikhs include the following in the order of importance: | |||
* [[Panj Takht]], namely [[Golden Temple]], [[Takht Sri Patna Sahib]], [[Hazur Sahib|Nanded Hazur Sahib]], [[Takht Sri Damdama Sahib|Takht Sri Damdama Sahib Bhatinda]], and [[Anandpur Sahib]]. | |||
* [[Guru Nanak]] related places, he was the founder of Sikh religion. His birth and death places at [[Gurdwara Janam Asthan]] and [[Kartarpur Corridor]] (both in Pakistan} are considered sacred. | |||
* Sikh martyrs's related sites who gave their lives for protecting [[dharma]] and Sikhism. These include [[Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib]] and [[Fatehgarh Sahib]] of martyrdom of [[Guru Tegh Bahadur]] and children of Guru Gobind Singh respectively by Muslim rulers for refusing to convert to Islam | |||
* Place where Sikh gurus performed pilgrims and travels: [[Kurukshetra]], [[Kapal Mochan]], [[Paonta Sahib]], etc. | |||
* Capitals of important Sikh states: [[Lahore]] (capital of largest Sikh state of Maharaja [[Ranjit Singh]]) and [[Lohgarh (Bilaspur)|Lohgarh]] (capital of Sikh state founded by Baba [[Banda Bahadur]] in Yamunanagar). [[Fateh Burj]] at Chapar Chiri where Banda bahadur defeated mughals in [[Battle of Chappar Chiri]] and avenged murder of Sikh gurus and their children is also considered important. | |||
===Foreign-origin religions=== | |||
==== Baháʼí ==== | |||
{{See also | Baháʼí Faith }} | |||
The roots of the Baháʼí Faith in India go back to the first days of the [[Bábí]] religion in 1844.<ref name="brief">[http://www.bahaindia.org/intro/history.html The Baháʼí Faith - Brief History] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090414023126/http://bahaindia.org/intro/history.html |date=2009-04-14 }} National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís of India.</ref> For [[Baháʼí Faith in India |Baháʼís in India]], the [[Lotus Temple]] in [[Delhi]], is most well known [[Baháʼí House of Worship]] that was dedicated in December 1986.<ref name="sevenyear">{{cite news |author= <!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= Achievements of the Seven Year Plan |url= https://bahai-library.com/pdf/r/rabbani_achievements_seven-year_plan.pdf#page=2 |page= 3 |work= Baháʼí News |date= July 1987 |access-date= 2 September 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130407183655/http://bahai-library.com/pdf/r/rabbani_achievements_seven-year_plan.pdf#page=2 |archive-date= 7 April 2013 |url-status= dead }}</ref> | |||
==== Islam ==== | |||
The [[Dargah|''dargahs'']] or shrines of major [[Sufism|Sufi]] figures in India, such as [[Khwaja Gharib Nawaz|Ajmer Sharif]] and [[Nizamuddin Dargah|Nizamuddin]], attract many Muslims. [[Qadian]] is a considered a holy city by [[Ahmadi Muslims]]. | The [[Dargah|''dargahs'']] or shrines of major [[Sufism|Sufi]] figures in India, such as [[Khwaja Gharib Nawaz|Ajmer Sharif]] and [[Nizamuddin Dargah|Nizamuddin]], attract many Muslims. [[Qadian]] is a considered a holy city by [[Ahmadi Muslims]]. | ||
=== | ==== Zoroastrianism ==== | ||
{{See also | | Zoroastrianism in India }} | |||
Due to persecution of [[Zoroastrians]], in other countries and the liberal atmosphere and patronisation of India, today the largest population of Zoroastrians resides in India. | |||
Zoroastrians,the practitioners of [[Zoroastrianism]] have been living in India since the [[Sasanian dynasty|Sasanian period]] (224-651 CE),<ref name=Continuity>{{cite book|title=Continuity in Iranian Identity: Resilience of a Cultural Heritage|pages=54–55, 136–137|publisher=Routledge|author=Fereshteh Davaran}}</ref> started to migrate to India in successive waves migrations after the [[Muslim conquest of Persia|Muslim invasion of Persia]] when invading Muslim started religious persecution and Zoroastrianism suffered a decline in Iran, later another wave of migration to India started when [[Safavids]] forced their subjects to convert to [[Shia Islam|Shiism]].<ref name=Ringer>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7oyiAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA25|title=Pious Citizens: Reforming Zoroastrianism in India and Iran|pages=25, 26|publisher=Syracuse University Press|author= Monica M. Ringer|date=13 December 2011|isbn=9780815650607}}</ref> [[Zoroastrianism in India|Zoroastrians in India]], have [[List of fire temples in India|numerous fire temples in India]] where they travel for worship. | |||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
Latest revision as of 12:35, 13 December 2021
Religious tourism in India is a focus of Narendra Modi's national tourism policy. Uttarakhand has been popular as a religious and adventure tourism hub.[1]
Tourism by religion[edit | edit source]
India-origin religions[edit | edit source]
Since India is birth place of Indian-origin religions, namely Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism, their holiest sites and highest concentration of religious sites pertaining to these religions are in India. Common pilgrim circuits, sites and practices are as follows:
- Parikrama pilgrim circuits and sites
- Pilgrim yatras and sites
- Sacred rivers and their ghats, notably Ganges, Yamuna, Sarasvati, Narmada
- Fairs, such as Kumbh Mela.
Buddhism[edit | edit source]

The Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya is one of the holiest sites in Buddhism.[2] Buddhist sites, many related to the travels of Buddha, are spread across India. Important Buddhist prikarma sites are Lumbini, Bodh Gaya, Sarnath, Sravasti (Jetavana), Rajgir hills, Kurukshetra (Bodh Stupa on bank of Brahma Sarovar, pilgrimage undertaken by Lord Buddha), Shrughna (Yamunanagar, vihara visited by Buddha for sermon), Adi Badri (saraswati udgam sthal and vihara visited by Buddha), Parinirvana Stupa (place of death and nirvana of Lord Buddha at Kushinagar, and Sankissa. See also Buddhist pilgrimage sites.
Hinduism[edit | edit source]
Hindus pilgrims in India undertake yatra (pilgrimage) to numerous sites, temples and samadhis (shrines) of saints) for puja and parikrama to earn punya with the aim to attain moksha. In order of importance for pilgrims in India, there are 4 Dhams (Char Dham) and 12 Jyotirlings devoted to the Lord Shiva, 51 Shakti Pithas devoted to the feminine manifestation of the god, and the important Lord Rama circuit (Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, Hampi and Rameswaram) and Lord Krishna circuit (Braj. Kurukshetra and Dwarka). Sacred pilgrim sites related to Lord Rama are Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, Hampi and Rameswaram. Sacred pilgrim sites related to Lord Krishna are Vraja Parikrama, 48 kos parikrama of Kurukshetra, Dwarka, Bhalka (place of death of Lord Krishna).
India has become a major destination for yoga tourism,[3] bringing business to ashrams in places such as Mysore (for Ashtanga Yoga) and Rishikesh (for Sivananda Yoga, among others). That has led to the creation of many yoga schools offering teacher training and promotion of India as a "yoga tourism hub"[4] by the Indian Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of AYUSH.[5]
Jain[edit | edit source]
The holiest site of Jainism are spread across India.
Sikhism[edit | edit source]
The Golden Temple is the holiest site in Sikhism.
The holy sites for Sikhs include the following in the order of importance:
- Panj Takht, namely Golden Temple, Takht Sri Patna Sahib, Nanded Hazur Sahib, Takht Sri Damdama Sahib Bhatinda, and Anandpur Sahib.
- Guru Nanak related places, he was the founder of Sikh religion. His birth and death places at Gurdwara Janam Asthan and Kartarpur Corridor (both in Pakistan} are considered sacred.
- Sikh martyrs's related sites who gave their lives for protecting dharma and Sikhism. These include Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib and Fatehgarh Sahib of martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur and children of Guru Gobind Singh respectively by Muslim rulers for refusing to convert to Islam
- Place where Sikh gurus performed pilgrims and travels: Kurukshetra, Kapal Mochan, Paonta Sahib, etc.
- Capitals of important Sikh states: Lahore (capital of largest Sikh state of Maharaja Ranjit Singh) and Lohgarh (capital of Sikh state founded by Baba Banda Bahadur in Yamunanagar). Fateh Burj at Chapar Chiri where Banda bahadur defeated mughals in Battle of Chappar Chiri and avenged murder of Sikh gurus and their children is also considered important.
Foreign-origin religions[edit | edit source]
Baháʼí[edit | edit source]
The roots of the Baháʼí Faith in India go back to the first days of the Bábí religion in 1844.[6] For Baháʼís in India, the Lotus Temple in Delhi, is most well known Baháʼí House of Worship that was dedicated in December 1986.[7]
Islam[edit | edit source]
The dargahs or shrines of major Sufi figures in India, such as Ajmer Sharif and Nizamuddin, attract many Muslims. Qadian is a considered a holy city by Ahmadi Muslims.
Zoroastrianism[edit | edit source]
Due to persecution of Zoroastrians, in other countries and the liberal atmosphere and patronisation of India, today the largest population of Zoroastrians resides in India.
Zoroastrians,the practitioners of Zoroastrianism have been living in India since the Sasanian period (224-651 CE),[8] started to migrate to India in successive waves migrations after the Muslim invasion of Persia when invading Muslim started religious persecution and Zoroastrianism suffered a decline in Iran, later another wave of migration to India started when Safavids forced their subjects to convert to Shiism.[9] Zoroastrians in India, have numerous fire temples in India where they travel for worship.
See also[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ "U'khand eyes wellness tourism", The Times of India, 13 February 2016
- ↑ Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Mahabodhi Temple Complex at Bodh Gaya". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ Goldberg, Philip (2010). American Veda: From Emerson and the Beatles to Yoga and Meditation – How Indian Spirituality Changed the West. New York: Harmony Books. pp. 7, 152. ISBN 978-0-385-52134-5.
- ↑ Singh, Shikha. "Yoga Tourism in India India can be the Wellness Destination for the World". Retrieved 3 December 2019.
- ↑ Maddox, Callie Batts (2014). "Studying at the source: Ashtanga yoga tourism and the search for authenticity in Mysore, India". Journal of Tourism and Cultural Change. 13 (4): 330–343. doi:10.1080/14766825.2014.972410. ISSN 1476-6825. S2CID 143449133.
- ↑ The Baháʼí Faith - Brief History Archived 2009-04-14 at the Wayback Machine National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís of India.
- ↑ "Achievements of the Seven Year Plan" (PDF). Baháʼí News. July 1987. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 April 2013. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
- ↑ Fereshteh Davaran. Continuity in Iranian Identity: Resilience of a Cultural Heritage. Routledge. pp. 54–55, 136–137.
- ↑ Monica M. Ringer (13 December 2011). Pious Citizens: Reforming Zoroastrianism in India and Iran. Syracuse University Press. pp. 25, 26. ISBN 9780815650607.