Vande mandiram yatra dharmasiddhih samuttita |
jananam kalyanam ch tatra tushtam ch sada bhavet॥
(I bow to the temple where the fulfilment of dharma arises; there, the welfare of the people is ensured, and contentment prevails.)
With the principles of ‘Athithi Devo Bhava’ prescribed in Taittiriya Upanishad and ‘vasudhaiva kuṭumbakam’ in Mahaupanishad, India, a country for millennia, has been a land of culture and the birthplace of many religions. Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism and Buddhism are a few which have peacefully co-existed. This cultural diversity has always been an attractive factor for scholars worldwide, of whom some came to study our culture and religion and others to loot our resources. However, true to our basic principle of welcoming all we have always embraced those from foreign lands with open arms. Religion is often understood as a philosophical or practical way of individual living. Although, throughout history, we have witnessed how it has impacted and shaped society, economies, kingdoms and modern governments in ways more than what was envisaged.
A fascinating contribution of religion in ancient times was towards India’s diplomatic relations. Buddhism has also served as a bridge between India and China in the past, with, the earliest record of an individual travelling to our motherland to learn about religion was the Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang, who studied Buddhism. A more recent example is India and Pakistan. Though both nations constantly fail to have peaceful relations with each other, religious tourism has found its way to sweeten the tense relations between neighbours. The nearly 5 km long Kartarpur corridor connecting, Gurdaspur in India and Kartapur in Pakistan is a living testament to the impact of religious tourism.
Each religion has its centre which is considered to be pious by its believers and in recent years these centres have sprung up to give rise to a new kind of tourism, which has created a new ecosystem around it.
For instance, the Kashi Vishwanath temple which is a religious site of great significance to the Hindus, the Modi government has invested heavily and re-designed many aspects of the temple. This initiative was a game changer for the city, and plenty of job opportunities were generated. The revenue of the temple also seemed to surge with the temple generating close to 100 crores of Indian Rupees in just 10 months last year.
The reason for such development of these sites can be manifold- it is very important to understand what is there in such initiatives that make them so unique. For some, it is truly bhakti or devotion, for others it is a vote bank and for others, an initiative that is polarising in nature whilst for others these are it is infrastructural and economic development activities.
Recent developments in Ayodhya and the inauguration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, have led to a lot of supporting infrastructure being developed which is not limited to roads and the aviation sector but also the up-and-coming luxurious properties which will cater to the needs of the devotees in the future. This development of the Ram Mandir includes the Mohammed Bin Abdullah Masjid being constructed. As per the orders of the honourable Supreme Court of India – this is an another example of our unity in diversity.
If one reads reports and news articles it is quite evident to some extent that these developments have significantly increased the per capita income and are beneficial to the country but there is a downside to this as well. For instance, the development of Ram Mandir, which certainly was beneficial to a certain section of society left many out of business without a roof. To make matters worse many claimed that they never received the compensation that they were promised thus exposing the darker side of such initiatives. As a result during the general elections, a huge shock was delivered to the ruling party candidate from Ayodhya when the masses voted in favour of the opposition.
A similar incident was reported in the state at Bakey Bihari premises where the shopkeepers in a certain perimeter were expected to hand over the property to the authorities in return for compensation, whilst the shopkeepers protested that this would lead to some leaving their ancestral homes which would hurt their sentiments, others including Goswamis complained that such beautification projects will affect the real essence of the city, as this heritage city is renowned for its ‘kunj or sakri gali’ (Narrow lanes).
Many projects are not equipped with infrastructure which is developed beyond that needed for convenience. In many such cities of religious significance irrespective of them being home to any belief system, over the past few years, the development has only been limited to hotels, roads etc but there is a stringent lack of urban planning, better health care, education, law and order and other basic facilities like water and electricity in many places which are away from the locations which the pilgrims would like to visit. It is quite disheartening to notice that as a country where the central idea of religious places was much more than what it is today, we have diminished it and also at large failed to uplift and restrict such developments to activities of profit.
Such disparity often results in making these centres of religion a nightmare for those visiting these places as tourists as they are victims of crimes which are not limited to stealing, and cheating but at times as heinous as assault, eve teasing and gender-based crimes.
In conclusion, religion is a multi-faceted aspect of society, primarily believed to have existed to spread the best practices and teach people the way to lead an ideal life. In my opinion, if the resources which are collated from these sites and also are spent on rejuvenating their beauty from time to time are utilised judiciously it would result in upliftment of the society in many ways.