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The
Resonance of Faith - Temple bells chime
across the still silence of the desert, the peals a
clear sound that ring for a while resound and are then
swallowed up into a great nothingness, It is a sound
that bathes the dawn with an enchanted magical beauty
that gives definition to a life of harsh realities :
in sand and scrub, the people have found not
discomfort but faith, a force that gives them a
positive radiance, and the mettle to create a life
that is a celebration of their energies and their
beliefs.
HINDU
PILGRIMAGES
Of the literally thousands of temples, a few have
come to be known as major pilgrimage centres, and
include the following :
Brahma
Temple , Pushkar - Though he may have no other
temple sacred to his memory Brama seems to have take
full advantage of the only one where prayers are
offered to him, Not only did he perform a yoga or
ritual fire ceremony here he also dropped a
lotus from his hands to create the lake where people
bathe before offering him prayers.
Eklingji
Temple, Udaipur - The founder of the Mewar dynasty
that ruled from Chittaurgarh, Bappa Rawal had a
miraculous dream in which he prayed before an image of
Shiva which resulted in the removal of a problem that
had been troubling him in his waking hours.
Govind
Devji Temple - The family temple for the
Kachchwahas of Jaipur and open to the public the idols
in the temple brought here from Vrindavan, are
believed to have been carved by Vajranath, one of the
greatest sculptors of the time and grandson of
Krishna.
Osian - Off the Jodhpur - Bikaner highway
and 65 km from Jodhpur this was once a major centre of
pilgrimage both for Hindus and Jains.
Ranthambhor's
Ganesh Temple : famous as a tiger reserve
the fort within the sanctuary has Ganesh temple that
has a large following among the people of Rajasthan.
JAIN
PILGRIMAGES
The
restrained austerity of the Jain way of life has its
anti thesis in the delightful exuberance even opulence
that one sees in their temples.
Dilwara Temple, Mount Abu - For many visitors
this is reason enough to visit Mt Abu. Located within
an ancient mango grove the Dilwara temples are
profusely carved and are open between noon and sis in
the evening.
Parsvaanath Temple Nakoda : - Situated in a valley
ringed by hills, on the Jodhpur Barmer highway the
temple dedicated to the tirthankara Parsvanath is
carved in black stone.
RANAKPUR
: Since the Jains held important positions in
Rajput courts made their moeny through trading and
were influential money lenders to the royal house it
was hardly surprising that the Ranas, in turn were
patrons of the Jains and their quiet religious ways.
Infect the tract of land on which the Ranakpur temples
have been laid was a gift of the Ranas to the Jains in
the 15th century. The Chaumukha is its principal
deity in the main temple with its impressive
dimensions 29 halls spread over 40,000 sqft and
consisting of 1,444 pillars not one of which is alike
in its carving.
ISLAMIC PILGRIMAGES
Though
there are mosques in most settlements, a few are
important.
Dargah Sharif, Ajmer - A Sufisaint, Khwaja
Moinuddin Chishti was a descendent of Prophet
Mohammed, and was offered this land during the reign
of Prithviraj Chauhan. He built himself a formidable
following, and not only among Muslims. It is said that
when he was 113 years old, the saint locked himself
into a room to pray. It is believed that the
huge cauldrons were a gift from Emperor Akbar who came
to pray at the shrine and pray for the boon of heirs
and was blessed with sons.
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