subject: Haridwar: A Sacred City On The Banks Of Ganges [print this page] Located on the River Ganges, Haridwar is one of the holiest cities of India, A place that we can not lose if we feel in our own skin the intense faith and deep spirituality that moves this country.
According to legend, Haridwar was one of the four points where they fell four drops of "Amrita", the nectar of immortality by the gods and demons fought for twelve days and twelve nights divine, equivalent to twelve human years.
For this reason, every three years, these four cities take turns to hold the most important religious festival of India: Kumbha Mela. Haridwar When touched, it is filled with shadus and characters of all arrivals from further afield to bathe in the waters of the Ganges, That those days multiplied their magical properties and healing.
But the role of Haridwar as a place of pilgrimage not limited to the Kumbha Mela. Let the time we go, we will always Haridwar with an explosion of music, color and religious ceremonies held on the banks of "Mother Ganga".
Parallel to normal, a large market becomes a meeting point for pilgrims, tourists and inhabitants of Haridwar. There you can buy everything but stand posts bad and prasadAnd prints of different gods and holy men (Not only of Hindu religion: the portraits of various Muslim prophets and Jesus Christ are the very same as current).
But if anything stands out in Haridwar are those shops dedicated to selling bottles and large bottles to take home for the river GangesOr to make offerings in nearby temples.
Against this background it is impossible not to think, at least for a moment, that this city north of India observed a striking resemblance to the French town of Lourdes, Where the miraculous waters have also served as an excuse to ride around a market rather than profit.
However, if you stop for a moment to look closely at your surroundings, you will quickly realize that the air we breathe in Haridwar could not be more happy and positive. Somehow, the visitor to stay in Haridwar at least a couple of days, not only feel the weight of fanaticism, as you might think, but on the contrary, will charge a strange energy that only the Indian people as can be transmitted.
As night falls, takes place in the main ghat (Or Har-Ki-Pairi), The "Fire Ceremony": a nice bid in which are thrown into the river as offerings of flowers and candles on banana leaves, While reciting prayers and singing. In the eyes of tourists, an incredible show, but it is necessary to attend always keeping the highest respect.
Without a doubt, Haridwar is for me one of the most special places in India, I always recommend to anyone who wants to leave a little of the tourist circuit of Rajasthan and Golden Triangle Do any of you went? What do you think?
