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Home , Mathura, Pilgrimage, Tourism in Uttar Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Vrindavan, Western Uttar Pradesh

PAIDEUMA JOURNAL ISSN NO : 0090-5674

Spiritual and : A perspective of and

Mr. Ritesh Sharma, Assistant Professor, GLA University, Mathura

Abstract Tourism has become the one of the main cultural and economic forces in the globe in current

time; and it is regarded as an important means to benefit local groups and communities. is

known for its rich cultural heritage. Specifically, in India, in U. P state we have Mathura and

Vrindavan where we have experience a lot of spiritual Tourism development since 1990s. There

are many developmental and construction projects are carried out on these places while keeping

one purpose that is to accommodate Spiritual tourism development. Investments by the

government and private sector had significantly turned these places as the most popular

destination not only to experience peace but also to develop on the path of . People

from throughout the globe come to India for certain reasons which are linked with

and spiritual growth. In fact, India has rapidly emerging as a health conscious and spiritual

tourism destination. Since time immemorial, India has been known for its spirituality. Not being

and exception, these places are also turning out as the significant destination to find out peace,

meditation and inner self while connecting with the Lord . Socio-cultural impacts of

spiritual tourism of Mathura and Vrindavan were hardly discussed and explained. Therefore, a

study on Mathura and Vrindavan was conducted to explore and identify inclination

towards Spiritual Tourism Development in this region.

Key words: Spiritual tourism; Tourism Inclination; Pilgrims, Pilgrimage

Introduction There are many reasons for people to go for spiritual tours of the holy and spiritual sites. In India there are many temple of spiritual importance. Of course, it is one of the important areas of interest in traveling and seeing foreign lands for achieving spiritual value. Most of us like to take a trip and observe new places and sights which inspire for spiritual growth. These places have some stories of historical events or miracles, and also well-known for certain note worthy

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spiritual incidents which are explained and discussed in many spiritual literatures, texts and epics. Some of the examples could be , , etc. In different phases of life, Tourism occupies a very distinct and special place in anybody’s life. In simple way tourism can be regarded as ‘sightseeing’, where a goes and where it explicitly becomes religious or spiritual tourism. In this way tourism and pilgrimage can have some important areas where we can say that they overlap. At times we observe that normal tourists can have the similar experiences as do with the pilgrims. Spiritual tourists are regarded as the routine or regular tourists who visit the spiritual destinations very frequently, but their experiences differentiate them from the religious tourists. Spirituality is a broader term it does not bound a person with a single , while being religious means a person is bound with a specific religion it could be , , , or even Christian. So in this way a spiritual traveler differs from pilgrims in that way that they are not confined to a specific religion. Pilgrimage is a holy and religious journey. It could be regarded as a process, which cannot be taken casually; it allows a person to experience, see, and encounter the delightful things and introduces to the Divine self. It is only possible in the company and association with the holy people at the . In these holy places especially like Mathura and Vrindavan which is a land of Lord Krishna.

Reason to go for Spiritual Tour

Here we tried to figure out some important reasons why to people look forward for spiritual tours and find out the places of saintly weight. There could be a reason that people meet with other saintly people who follow the path of spirituality by means of which they experience their way of living life. It seems special issue along with hermits and holy person by whom religious experiences can be shared. This acts as the guiding principle to achieve self-realization or rather self-actualization. It seems great for we people to have a positive journey of spirituality in ones life.

Pilgrimage

Pilgrimage is a holy and religious journey. It could be regarded as a process, which cannot be taken casually; it allows a person to experience, see, and encounter the delightful things and introduces to the Divine self. It is only possible in the company and association with the holy

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people at the holy land. In these holy places especially like Mathura and Vrindavan we have experienced and heard lot of stories Lord Krishna and lot of devotees of Lord Krinshna Like , Deovraha Baba, Meera etc. In these places there are many temples which allow the look of god a visualization of the mighty Lord (Krishna).

Having lord images in ones front is the act or rather it is the activity in which a person called as bhakt goes in to the temple for and to communicate with the God and Goddesses

Journey implies living essentially, and going toward what is heavenly and most sacrosanct, and staying concentrated on the chance of having an extraordinary ordeal. Along these lines we will experience deliberate severities for sanitization to assure ourselves actual task of our life. This procedure would assist to bring a unique change in our awareness along with our personality and how we fit into this world, and enable us to right of entry.

The Purpose of Life and pilgrimage

Whenever we are going in concordance with the Divine, it isn't improbable that you will encounter unconstrained assistance from others when you may require it. It is transpired from multiple points of view and commonly. In such a condition of cognizance, appearing hindrances will rapidly vanish. In any case, different difficulties might be there to our genuineness, however more often than not; it is zilch so incredible which keeps achieving objective.

This works as a divine directed path which insures we people in getting our personal target and fix us towards the higher achievement. The religious journey goes up against all the more significance the time when we get the actual fact.

Main reasons for visiting Mathura and Vrindavan Community goes to religious trip for having several imaginations or visions very frequently we go on religious tour when some change takes place in our life or in our respective relationship if transformation has taken place. A few are there who wishes to achieve the mental ease along with this they also want to get the spirituality in their life to be the part of our Indian culture and religion. If someone has committed any mistake in their life for the same reason also they use to approach the religious place to have the forgiveness. With the view to meet the new people coming from different or diverse culture is also the prime demand of spiritual tourism in our country. Vol XIII Issue IV 2020 139 http://www.paideumajournal.com PAIDEUMA JOURNAL ISSN NO : 0090-5674

 To have the feeling of mighty god  To get the assistance in the worse time  To be associated to the truth and  To feel as being the part of spirituality  To be associated to the of this universe  To be the part of some holy task associated to the all mighty Mathura Located on the edge of the sacred brook in the UP (Utter ), Mathura is famed for being the origin of Krishna. Mathura in midst of Vraj. It is just an hour’s drive from . The entire region is speckled with splendid temples, dedicated to different aspects of Lord Krishna’s life. The , with its rich history and culture, is a pilgrimage spot for . Some of the famous temples of Mathura are Shri Krishna Janmsthan Temple, Dwarikadhish Ji Temple, Vishram , Bhuteshwar Temple etc. Lord Krishna loved milk and butter, and hence Mathura is famous for its milk-based products, especially the “”, a soft milk sweet that’ s fresh and melts in your mouth. Handicrafts and a wide variety of trinkets that are related to the story of Lord Krishna and his childhood Lilas are also famous here. The city comes to life during the numerous festivals that are celebrated throughout the year. The other places of interest in Mathura are the Mathura Museum, Hill, and KansQila.

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Source: www.mapsofindia.com Vrindavan

Vrindavan is the house of Lord Krishna and a busy tourist destination for people seeking

spiritualization. This town is also been called as the town of temples and it exists in Mathura

district of western . This place has lot of natural greenery; although it is a small

town but it is able to draw attention of pilgrims from all over the world.

With the proper mix of old and the new temples, the culturally strong and traditionally-

inclined the town of Vrindavan hypnotizes the senses of pilgrims and tourists. The range of its

temples are either they are modern or old they are all spread throughout the Vrindavan as a

landscape..

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The prominent temples of Vrindavan includes- , Damodar

Temple, ISCON temple which is also knoen as angregon ka temple, Nidhivan, Mote Ganesh

Temple, Katyani Temple, Rangdevji Temple, , Meera Bai Temple,

Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir, Govind Dev temple etc.,

These temples are the major point of tourist rather we can say the Spiritual attractions

among Pilgrims and tourists who visit this place. This place is very peaceful and is a place of

importance for those who desire to have a connection with their inner . It is a place

where the human senses are heightened with the spiritual surrounding. Vrindavan nestles the

like a mother cradling a baby, making it one of the most popular tourist attractions in India.

Rising Yamuna river, the city in Agra has been linked with the , since ancient

times. This beautiful city is a perfect example of India’ s rich culture and heritage. It is

mentioned in the epic tale Mahabharata as ‘ Agravana,’ literally translated as ‘ border of the

forest.’ Home to wonder of the globe, the , Agra is a globetrotter’s haven. You can say

that the Mughals have left a permanent impression on this city which is evident in the various

mausoleums and forts found here. Be mesmerized by the sprawling and majestic . Its

many palaces, mosques, and mausoleums are a proud testimonial of . The

legends of the Mughal Emperor and his fabled courtiers are still kept alive at the ruins of

Fatehpur Sikri, which is located on the outskirts of Agra. The chowks (marketplaces) and

alleyways found in the city are usually the hub of many activities. Years ago, all the artisans and

craftsmen who toiled to make the Taj Mahal a reality up their houses nearby, creating the

network of alleyways known as Taj Ganj.

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Source: www.mapsofindia.com

Purpose and benefits of spiritual tourism

There are many reasons for spiritual tourism by people at sacred sites and temples. One of the interesting reasons is to travel, experiencing and seeing foreign lands and for acquiring spiritual growth in life. Most of the people want to move and explore fresh sights and inspirational places, among which a few destination have sacred meaning where history is associated in a positive manner. Under the company of sanctified people at these spaces taking bath in the holy rivers purify the mind and soul. Such type of experiences purify us and give us deeper understanding for being spiritual and motivates us to be spiritual. If anyone stays in such spiritual places even for short duration of time this is able to give an everlasting sense, experience and thought which will inspire them for many years to come, maybe it cannot be forgettable for throughout the lives. Such opportunity may not come very oftenly, or it may even come after many lifetimes. So if such opportunities come than we have to take them seriously and take full advantage of it. We know

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that spiritual journey is a very long journey, sometimes it requires many life’s to achieve self actualization. Pilgrimage is a holy and religious journey. It is a process which cannot be taken casually, it allow a person to experience, see, and encounter the delightful things and introduces to the Divine self. It is only possible in the company and association with the holy people at the holy land. At the land of lord Krishna people move as because lord Krishna is the main motivator for the people regarding their act of behaving and how they can get the acme of success in their life without hurting the other people in this universe. The main focus is to understand the basic concept of “Geeta” which enlighten us and makes us free from the conflicts of soul. Role of Spiritual

People from across the world now come to India for meditation and spirituality in Kashi, Mathura, , and which are situated in Uttar Pradesh. In fact India it is fastly emerging as a health and spiritual tourism destination.. Since time immemorial, India has been known for its spirituality.

Otherworldly existence in India gloats a palette of . Unexpectedly, the term 'Hindu' was utilized by the Arab brokers to distinguish the general population living east of the River Indus. Indus came to be known as Sindhu and the term Hindu was conceived. Uttar Pradesh, a state in the Indo-Gangetic fields had a prospering exchange, and turned into a political fortress too. Numerous beliefs and religions have blended and existed together in this land. Very like whatever remains of India, there are a great many blessed places here, set apart with the nearness of sages, diviners, enthusiasts and spiritualists, former and present. FINDINGS  This paper and study reveals that Mathura and Vrindavan have came out as the most popular spiritual place in brij circuit of among foreigners.  The study shows that the trends of visitors in the brij region are increasing year after year from all across the globe.  This area needs lot of support from the government to tourism to grow as, today tourism has become more comprehensive of new concepts. Some areas where government can look into are cruise tourism adventure tourism, agri tourism or rural tourism.

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 There is a need to spread these concepts with committed policies formed for their development. Effective implementation of these policies will help in the growth of Mathura tourist and industry as a whole.  The (-Agra-) is only circuit in India that is world famous which connects three major of India and which have great tourist importance among tourists. In this similar manner, efforts must be made to promote circuit (Agra-Mathura- Vrindavan) to showcase and make things convenient for the visitors. Conclusion People from across the world now come to India for meditation and spirituality at Mathura and Vrindavan. In fact these places are rapidly emerging as a health and spiritual tourism destination. Since time immemorial, these places has been known for its spirituality and the people who show their interest to have the time beyond the articulated environment along with worldly possessions, they must make strive to visit these holy places. Because these places are the origin for the immense of spiritual pleasure. Tourism growth will also fetch more foreign exchange for the state of U.P.no doubt tourism industry in U.P suffers some social and environmental problem such as poor infrastructure damage to heritage and pilgrimage places, environmental pollution, lack of connectivity etc. though it is true that government of up has make many efforts to increase Mathura and Vrindavan tourism and trying their best to improve various tourist services to provide good tourist facilities. Throughout the research, only secondary data has been collected. For further research, another study can be conducted to find out the satisfaction level of tourists through SWOT analysis by using primary data as well. U.P government is growing tourism at a slow pace but they are doing it consistently, so they are not very far away

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