Importance of Undertaking a Pilgrimage

Importance of Undertaking a Pilgrimage

People go on pilgrimages.
Pilgrimage is teertha yatra — visiting holy places and holy shrines. Unlike your daily spiritual routine, you plan a trip for a few days, visit a holy place, and come back. This is called teertha yatra.

What is the attitude with which you should undertake a pilgrimage? Who gets the most out of a pilgrimage?

गङ्गा तीर्थेषु वसन्ति मत्स्या देवालये पक्षिगणाश्च सन्ति
भावोञ्झितास्ते न फलं लभन्ते तीर्थाच्च देवायतनाच्च मुख्यात्
भावं ततो हृत्कमले निधाय तीर्थानि सेवेत समाहितात्मा

— says Narada Purana.

There are fishes that live in Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari. They are born there, they live there, and they die there. Why are they not getting any benefit from the teertha?

There are birds such as pigeons who live forever in temples. Why are they not benefited?

A very valid question. This is often asked by atheists and agnostics as a negative question.
The answer is – they lack bhava. They lack faith. They lack knowledge about the benefits of being in the teertha or temple.

Just as mind alone is the means of bondage, mind alone is the tool for relief and release from bondage also. So, if the mind is not prepared for what it is about to do or receive, the mere act of being there is not going to help.

This is not only about teerthas.

मन्त्रे तीर्थे द्विजे देवे दैवज्ञे भेषजे गुरौ
यादृशी भावना यस्य सिद्धिर्भवति तादृशी

If you think mantras are just blabberings or just some prayers — then that’s what they would end up to be. This is why you are put through rigorous anushtanas such as purascharanajapa, homa, tarpana, marjana, Brahmana bhojana under regulated diet and many, many restrictions — before mantras start working for you. Anybody who is casual will not do or will drop out in between. Mantras work and help only if you have faith in them. And you are committed to them.

Same with teertha — if you are going to google about the impurity level and pollution level of Ganga before going to Kashi, that is what you will come back with — some skin rashes.

Dvije – in Brahmins – I am talking about learned Vedic scholars who live the prescribed life of a Brahmin in letter and spirit. If you think that the blessing coming from them in the form of mantras are real divine blessings, then they help. If you think, how are they different from me — they also eat, drink, and sleep, fall sick — then that’s what you get.

Deve – same with God. Believe in God — there is God for you. Don’t believe in God — God is not there for you. Don’t be confused. God is omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent — but if you don’t believe — his benevolence is not there for you.

Daivajne – same is the case with astrology. If you think it is a pseudo science — then that is what you get out of it. On the contrary, there are hundreds of thousands of people who derive benefit from astrology every day. For them, it works. It is a matter of experience. If you chase astrology with an academic or sceptical, or distrustful state of mind, it will always evade you.

Bheshaje – in medicines – take a medicine or take treatment from a doctor without faith. It won’t take you anywhere. Medicine these days is pure science — molecules — why doesn’t the same medicine cure everyone?

Some medicines are 50% efficient, some 60%, some 70% — no medicine is 100 percent successful. Why?

Placebos work. Placebo is a blank tablet or medicine which just looks like medicine but is not. In every clinical trial, a placebo is present. Patients are given real medicines and placebos. They don’t know which one they are taking. Both work. The medicine and what just looks like medicine — both work. And to pass the test, the real medicine has to outperform the placebo.

That means both work — the medicine as well as just taking something thinking that it is medicine works. This is a well-approved factor in medicine.

And we say faith healing is bogus.
This is another treasure we have surrendered to the consumerist western culture.

In the Atharva Veda, there is a mantra –
मा बिभेर्न मरिष्यसि जरदष्टिं कृणोमि त्वा
The healing doctor is telling the patient — don’t be scared, you are not going to die. I am going to make you all right.

Can today’s doctor say this to the patient without the fear of being dragged into legal complications?
You said he will not die — still, false promise, deficiency in service.

To be scientifically correct, legally correct — we have lost a lot. We are not at liberty to take advantage of the great power of faith anymore.

If you see the success rate of the drug and the success rate of the placebo — in many cases, it may not be much. In many cases, placebos work better and the drug doesn’t get approval.

Still, we deride faith — because faith cannot be packaged and sold. It has to be there in the heart and it has to come from the heart. And we don’t want anything anymore that doesn’t sell, that doesn’t earn a revenue for someone, including the government. We promote only what can sell.

Gurau – faith in guru – the guru-shishya relationship has its foundation on faith.

In all these – mantra, teertha, dvija, deva, daivajna, bheshaja and guru
यादृशी भावना यस्य सिद्धिर्भवति तादृशी
The result depends on — the outcome depends on — what bhavana you have. What is your attitude towards them.

So, to get result from any pilgrimage, you should have, first of all, faith — this is going to help me, benefit me. Whatever I have heard is true.

कामं क्रोधं च लोभं च यो जित्वा तीर्थमाविशेत्
न तेन किंचिदप्राप्तं तीर्थाभिगमनात् भवेत्

Kamakrodhalobha – these three should not be there when you are making a pilgrimage.

Kama means desires – you are saying you undertake a pilgrimage looking forward to some benefit. At the same time, you are saying you go without any desire in mind. How is this possible?

You say — go to Gaya to get blessings of your ancestors. At the same time, you say you should not have that desire.

Go to Gaya with the intention of making your ancestors happy. To do for them. To make offerings to them. Not to get their blessings. This is the difference.

Primary intention should be to make them happy. Blessings come or not should not matter. Don’t go to Gaya because you want to have a child, you want a better job, you want to get a house. This is the difference. Let the blessings come on their own.

This is nishkama karma — much more efficient than sakama karma.

Krodha – anger — even if you are short-tempered by nature, never ever get angry at anyone when you are on a pilgrimage. Not with your family and companions, not with the taxi drivers and rickshaw pullers, not with those priests who may be apparently trying to exploit you, not with those temple authorities who are giving preferential treatment to a VIP.

Allow your ego to lie low. Understand that everything in a pilgrimage — every event in a pilgrimage, every interaction in a pilgrimage — has a significance. It is not mere coincidence that most of our pilgrim centres are filled with thieves and greedy and wicked. They are there with some purpose. Don’t argue with anyone.

Lobha – don’t undertake a pilgrimage, with you yourself being greedy. Not because if you get four or five families for the travel agency, your ticket will come free. Not because if you go to Kashi, you can also pick up some Banarasi silk which you can come home and sell at a profit.

Undertake pilgrimage with a simple, clear mind. With faith. With dedication. Take minimum food. Don’t feast. Stay at humble places. Travel normal.

Understand that in a pilgrimage, it is discomfort that will help you — not comforts. Observe all the basic rules very diligently — like honesty, helpfulness, cleanliness, peacefulness, pleasantness, lack of ego.

Such pilgrimages will be fruitful.

 
 
 
 
English

English

Rare Topics

Click on any topic to open

Copyright © 2025 | Vedadhara test | All Rights Reserved. | Designed & Developed by Claps and Whistles
| | | | |
Vedahdara - Personalize
Whatsapp Group Icon
Have questions on Sanatana Dharma? Ask here...

We use cookies