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| Home » Popular Pilgrimage Sites in India » Rishikesh |
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Rishikesh |
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A pilgrimage is a journey carried out to some religious place, shrine or a sacred area. In Hinduism, in fact, it is believed that a visit to certain places will help to cleanse a person of all the sins he has committed. Not only, that it will relieve an individual from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth. Life is fraught with pain and sufferings and a visit to the holy places set aside by the scriptures will spare a person from the pangs of rebirth. No wonder there are a number of Popular Pilgrimage Sites in India . These pilgrim spots enable people to recover the spirituality inherent within. The y travel to these places seek spiritual enlightenment. Rishikesh is an important place for pilgrimage of the Hindus.
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Rishikesh the place considered to be nestling in a Divine Light is a city in the Dehra Dun District of Uttarakhand. Rishikesh is considered to be a holy place fro the Hindus. It is located to the foothills of the Himalayas in northern India.
It is considered that Lord Rama had done penance in this very place. This is because his soul steeped in spirituality was regularly tormented at the idea of killing another man. This was Ravan- the demon king of the island of the Lanka. Event hough the former had caused him immense suffering by capturing his wife in his absence.
The pilgrimage spot Rishikesh is looked upon as as spiritual destination by the Hindus. It is popularly considered to to be the gateway to the Himalayas and is located at about a distance of 25 miles from yet another another holy place of the majority community of India- the Hindus. This is the city of Haridwar.
The eminence of Rishikesh as a pilgrimage site lies in the fact that it is considered to be the initial point to travel into the area comprising the Char Dham which are considered to be imperative for every Hindu seeking renunciation from the cycle of life and after life. The Char Dham comprises of the four place Holy places namely Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri. Rishikesh literally means He who has conquered his senses. In other words not bound to the material comforts of this world. Someone who is no longer dictated by his senses. Someone who has entered into the higher realms of existence. The very name of this sacred city has spiritual connotations to it.
Pilgrims who reach this holy land get a yet another chance of their lifetime. The get to take a dip in the Holy waters of the river Ganges which flows through city. They get that much awaited opportunity of taking cleansing dip in these Divine waters. There are a whole lot of temples dotting the banks of the river Ganges at Rishikesh.
Notwithstanding there are pilgrims who throng to this city by the dozens. There are millions of Indian living abroad. They too nurture the desire of carrying out a pilgrimage to the Char Dham. Foreigners are also intrigued by the mysticism attached to Rishikesh and the neighboring towns steeped in Divinity. They too are keen to take journey of spirituality. Many of them visit India with the special mission of infusing spirituality in their souls gradually getting depleted by the developing materialism of the modern world.
Travel to India promises a pilgrimage to the all the holy spots one desires. It is very easy to get to Rishikesh. It is located exactly at the point where the river the river Ganga reaches the plains. Rishikesh is very closely located to the airport at Dehra Dun. There are a number of flights which land and take off from here daily. This is a major facility for international travelers. There is a network of railway lines which make Rishikesh very accessible to the common traveler. It is very accessible from the capital city Delhi. There are buses which take off at an amazing frequency from here. There are number of travel agent who offer packaged tours to the important pilgrim spots.
There are a lot of important temples located at the holy place- Rishikesh like the Trayambakeshwar Temple at Lakshman Jhula which makes it an important place for pilgrimage too. It is an important bridge over the river Ganges.
This place is called the Yoga capital. There are some important ashrams here where one get information on yoga and its postures, listen to religious discourses an get an insight into the deeper philosophies which comprise Hinduism. Rishikesh is very famous for river rafting as well. Come an enjoy this sport here. The place offers reasonable accommodation facilities as well. They are well located along the scenic banks of the river Ganga to being situated along the road running near Laxman Jhula. |
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