Chapter 1: Background Information on India.

2012 Pilgrimage of India   

 India.... the little continent (subcontinent), that has it all... !

     India… the beautiful Mother...Her crown is the majestic snowcapped proud Himalayas, Her right arm holding the mysteries of the Thar desert, Her love ever flowing as the mighty Ganga, Her left arm.. the lush paddy fields like Her beautiful fingers dipping the blue waters from which She arose..at GangaSagar the place of sacred union of Ganga with the Sagar (Sea). Her feet is washed by the 3 giant Sagars: Bay of Bengal, Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. And who indeed would be sitting at Her feet worshipping her with His heart's blood? .. but her bravest, the most glorious Son this world has ever seen.. Swami Vivekananda... at the southernmost tip of Her splendid form.

     India… the little place on earth, that holds in her bossom the most ancient of traditions & civilizations, Her splendor is exhibited in the riches of architectures, music, art, literature, culture, spices, jems, technology.. almost all aspects of all fields. Her history is a continuous living document. However, Her strength lies in the unique attribute of Her love of all…

     India… the loving Mother…Her love of all cultures, all religions, all learning.. nay Her love is symbolized by the Immortal tomb of Love, the Taj Mahal. In Her fertile land, all religions flourish in brotherly love.. She is not partial to any of Her children.. for Her Love’s basis is quintessence of all spirituality,.. the Sanatana Dharma.. the Eternal Religion..  Her spirituality were revelations perceived by the sages (seers, self-realized souls, Buddhas, ever free, saints, incarnations.. etc) as “Truth (God) is one, Sages call It by various names” (Ekam sat, Vipra Bahudha Vadanti.. the famous Sanskrit verse. The One Truth (God, Brahman,..the Imperishable. Unalterable, etc.) manifests in different forms (with various attributes) and with associated different names and thus a plethora of Gods, Goddesses and incarnations bear testimony to the One imperishable Truth. Thus, She teaches that all religions are different paths leading to the same goal. She calls all her children as “Amritasya Putrah:” “Children of Immortality”.

      India…Once upon a time, a mighty river named Indus (Indu) flowed from the Himalayas via the path which is now between India and Pakisthan. Most of the ancient civilizations were sprawled along both its banks. As the Persians, Arabs and other traders came, there arose a need to name Her existing children. This is very much like the Light giving Sun need to be named “SUN” after its and other planets’ discovery by the people of the earth. The most popular inference is that the Indus was mispronounced by the Persians as Hindus and thus from  Indus –> Hindus came the transition. And since any mass of people needed a religion “ism” to relate to: Hinduism was the term bestowed upon. In keeping with ancient tradition however, this Hinduism should actually have been named “VEDANTA”  where Vedas = Knowledge and Anta = End or quintessence. Thus Vedanta is the Essence of the highest Truths of any philosophy; in this case Sanatana Dharma….. the Eternal Religion.

     India.. the ever sacred land whose very dust was holy to the greatest of the Rishis of modern age: Swami Vivekananda; proclaimed that the backbone of India is Her spirituality. Time and Time again, for centuries, grateful sovereigns and children of the dust of India, extolled their beloved form of God in various epithets of temples which are nothing short of wonder as they stand the test of time through centuries with minimum maintenance. Millions of devotees offer their hearts’ prayers in these sanctified places. Over centuries, Incarnations, saints, sages and devotees have made these places, the places of pilgrimages.. These are scattered throughout India; all over.

     Main forms of God that are prevalently worshipped are The Devi (Mother) aspect, The Vishnu (protector) aspect and Shiva ( the annihilator (of ignorance)) aspect. Like all established religions of the world, pious Hindus also believe in pilgrimage as one of Human Birth’s must do austerity.2012 Pilgrimage Introduction
========================================================================