Seven days to go...

If there are a few things that won't be very high on our list of things to see and do in India, it will be visiting temples, ashrams, meditation centres, yoga retreats and being blessed by the various assortment of gurus that seem to triple in number during the peak tourist season (December-January).


Maybe in some ways visiting Sikh, Hindu and Jain temples can give the traveller an insight into the spiritual practices and beliefs of these religions, but battling with the temple touts, the zillions of other Western tourists and the beseiged locals who are just trying to perform their daily puja (prayers) seems quite irreverent to me and defeats the purpose. Part of me also feels that I would rather not be contributing towards turning a site once intended as a place of worship and peace into a major tourist attraction.


Many people also still see India as a place that will help them to attain spiritual enlightenment, and although I don't want to be too cynical about it all, there are plenty of people in India who are quite prepared to assist in helping one reach a state of enlightenment...for a fee of course!

Andrew
I'm keen to see a few temples at least, but I agree with Lorraine that having swarms of tourists traipsing through taking photos defeats the purpose of what temples are all about.