Pilgrimage posses a great significance in Hindu religion and spirituality. Each Hindu Pilgrimages site has its own significance. Thousands of people who are the follower of Hindu religion go these places every year.
There are many Hindu Pilgrimages sites in India as follows,
1. Holy Places
First and foremost the Chaar Dham: Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri. Some of the other places are Rishikesh in Haridwar, Kashi in Varanasi, Prayag in Allahabad, Vrindavan in Mathura, Somnath and Ayodhya.
2. Holy Fairs
One of the holiest Pilgrimage fairs of Hindu religion is the Kumbh Mela or the pitcher’s festival. It is held every three years at a place which surrounded by four different cities, namely – Allahabad, Haridwar, Ujjain, and Nashik. The Mela of Deoghar, also called Shravani Mela and the Mela of Gaya, also known as the Mela of Pitrapaksha are among the top most major Mela of Hindu religion in India.
3. Holy Temples
The chief temples in this group are the Chaar Dhaam temples – Dwarka, Jagannath Puri, Badrinath, and Rameshwaram. Some of the other temples are Vaishno Devi Mata temple situated in Katra, Jammu and Vaishnava Jagannath temple in Puri, Bhubaneswar. Also, the Rath Yatra celebration takes place in Puri. Tirumala Venkateswara is also one of the temples which are placed in Tirumala – Tirupati. Swami Ayyappan in Sabarimala, Kerala and the twelve Jyotirlingas, seven Sapta Puri, the Pancha Bhoota Stalam and the energy centers or the focal points in India – the Shakti peethas.
4. Holy Deities
Many families or the whole clan who follow Hindu religion have their own deity, specific to their clan. The family of Kuladaivat has their own patron deity. The deity is common to their whole clan.
5. Tombs and Samadhis of Saints
Belur Math, the shrine of the holy remains of Sri Ramakrishna. Swami Vivekananda Puri, Sri Sharda Devi and all other great disciples of Sri Ramakrishna. The Tulsi Ghat in Varanasi, where the great Saint Tulsi Das, left his mortal coil is also one of the samadhi. The Alandi is the samadhi of Dnyaneshwar and the Mantralayam, samadhi of Raghavendra Tirtha.