Pilgrimage & Temple Destinations in India

Also known as Harmandir Sahib, it is the preeminent spiritual site of Sikhism.

The world's most visited Hindu temple — 30 million pilgrims a year climb the seven hills of Tirumala to see the deity Venkateswara, richer than any church or cathedral on earth.

A cave shrine to the Mother Goddess at 5,200 feet in the Trikuta range, reached by a 12 km pilgrim trail from Katra — one of the 108 Shakti Peethas and, with an average of 26,000 pilgrims a day, the most visited Hindu shrine after Tirupati.

Embankments made in steps of stone slabs along the river bank where pilgrims perform ritual ablutions.

A Bahai House of Worship whose 27 free-standing marble petals, arranged in three concentric clusters of nine, form one of the most visited buildings on earth — open to every religion, silent, and stunning at dusk.

A 12th-century Vaishnavite temple on the Odisha coast whose 65-metre shikhara dominates the Puri skyline — one of the four Char Dhams and the setting for the annual Rath Yatra, when the deities ride 16-wheeled chariots pulled by 4,000 devotees through a two-km avenue of a million pilgrims.

A stone Shiva temple at 3,583 metres in the Garhwal Himalayas — one of the twelve Jyotirlingas and the most remote of the four Char Dham shrines, approached only on foot or by pony along a 16 km alpine trail from Gaurikund.

Known as the "Yoga Capital of the World" and a gateway to the Himalayas.

The samadhi shrine of Sai Baba — the 19th-century fakir who preached 'Sabka Malik Ek' (one God for all) — drawing 60,000 devotees a day from every religion to a small village in Ahmednagar district, where his marble idol sits above the very grave he chose.

The UNESCO site where Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment in 528 BCE beneath the Bodhi tree and became the Buddha — the most sacred place in all of Buddhism.

A south-facing Shiva shrine on the banks of the Rudra Sagar in ancient Avanti — one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, the only one where the lingam is 'Swayambhu' (self-manifested), and the only major temple in India where the morning Bhasma Aarti is performed with ashes from the cremation ground at 4 a.m.

A vermilion-and-gold temple to Vishnu at 3,133 metres in the Garhwal Himalayas, flanked by the Neelkanth peak and the hot-spring Tapt Kund — one of the four Char Dhams and among the 108 Divya Desams revered by the Tamil Alvar saints.

The fourth peetha of the Ashtadasha — Sati's hair fell here — atop the 1,062 m Chamundi Hills overlooking Mysore. The 12th-century Hoysala-era temple is the kuladevata of the Wadiyar royal family and is reached either by 1,008 ancient stone steps or by a winding 13 km road from the city centre.

India's most sacred lake town — the only Brahma temple on earth, 52 bathing ghats, and a November camel fair that doubles the population to 200,000 for one week of folk music, pilgrimage, and livestock trading.

A Dravidian sea-side Shiva temple on Pamban Island with the longest temple corridor in the world (1,212 metres, 1,212 pillars) — one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, one of the four Char Dhams, and the spot where, in the Ramayana, Rama worshipped Shiva before crossing to Lanka.

The 'Jagat Mandir' — Krishna's 2,500-year-old capital city on the Arabian Sea — a five-storey, 78-metre temple whose 52-yard flag is changed five times a day and visible from anywhere on the Gomti coast. One of the four Char Dhams and the seat of the Dwaraka-Sharada Peetham founded by Adi Shankaracharya.

The Shakti Peetha where Sati's right toe is said to have fallen — the temple that gave Calcutta its name (Kali-kshetra → Calcutta) and remains the most-visited Kali shrine in eastern India, in the heart of South Kolkata.

The 13th-century dargah of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti — 'Gharib Nawaz' (Benefactor of the Poor) — a white-marble tomb complex at the foot of the Taragarh hill where Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs and Christians queue side by side under the same rose-garlanded gate.

The seventh peetha of the Ashtadasha — Sati's three eyes fell here — and one of the three-and-a-half (Sade Teen) Shakti Peethas of Maharashtra. The 7th-century Chalukyan temple in central Kolhapur enshrines a 1.2-m black stone Devi adorned with gold; the Kirnotsav festival sees the setting sun illuminate the deity directly through the entrance for three days each year.

The first of the twelve Jyotirlingas of Shiva — a 7th-century oceanfront temple destroyed and rebuilt seven times over 1,000 years by Mahmud of Ghazni, Allauddin Khilji and Aurangzeb, and reconsecrated by Sardar Patel in 1951 as the symbolic rebirth of independent India.

An island Jyotirlinga in the Narmada — the island itself shaped like the syllable 'Om' as seen from above — combining the Omkareshwar shrine on Mandhata island with the Mamleshwar Jyotirlinga on the southern bank of the river.

A 16th-century Shakti Peetha on Nilachal Hill above the Brahmaputra — the place where, by tradition, Sati's yoni fell when Vishnu cut her corpse, making it the most powerful of the 51 Shakti Peethas and the only major Hindu temple that celebrates the goddess's menstruation (Ambubachi Mela).

The shrine of the Ganga's symbolic descent at 3,100 metres on the Bhagirathi's banks — the second dhām of the Chota Char Dham. The actual glacial source, Gaumukh, is a 19 km trek further along the Gangotri Glacier.

A Jyotirlinga at the source of the Godavari, 28 km from Nashik — unique for its three-faced linga representing Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra, and as the only Jyotirlinga where Kalsarpa Dosh nivaran pujas are performed.

Where the Buddha gave his first sermon (Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta) to the five ascetics — a UNESCO-tentative archaeological complex 10 km from Varanasi, anchored by the 5th-century CE Dhamek Stupa and the Ashokan Lion Capital that became India's national emblem.

The 400-year-old Galden Namgey Lhatse — India's largest Buddhist monastery and the second-largest in the world — perched at 3,048 m near the Tibet border, home to 450 monks and the 18-foot gilded Buddha.

The source-shrine of the Yamuna at 3,293 metres on the flank of Bandarpoonch peak — the first dhām of the Chota Char Dham, reached by a steep 6 km trail from Janki Chatti where pilgrims cook rice in the boiling Surya Kund spring as the goddess's offering.

A Jyotirlinga deep in the Sahyadri forest at 1,034 metres, 110 km from Pune — the temple complex doubles as a wildlife sanctuary protecting the giant Indian squirrel (shekru), Maharashtra's state animal.

One of the eighteen Maha Shakti Peethas — where Sati's spine is said to have fallen — and the principal Sri Vidya centre of South India, situated in the temple-city of Kanchipuram 75 km from Chennai. The 6th-century Pallava-era sanctum is famous for the Bilahasa pradakshina that Adi Shankaracharya performed when he installed the Sri Chakra here.

One of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Shiva — the 'Abode of the Physician' temple draws 8 million pilgrims during the Shravani Mela, the world's longest religious fair.

A Shakti Peetha where Sati's tongue is said to have fallen — uniquely, the temple has no idol, only nine perpetually burning natural gas flames worshipped as the goddess. Set in the Kangra valley, 56 km from Dharamshala.

Where the Buddha entered Mahaparinirvana under twin sal trees in 483 BCE — a UNESCO-tentative archaeological complex anchored by the 6.1-metre reclining Buddha at the Mahaparinirvana temple and the Ramabhar Stupa built over the cremation site.

The fourteenth peetha of the Ashtadasha — Sati's wrist fingers fell here — at Prayagraj near the Triveni Sangam. Unique among Indian temples: there is no idol — only a wooden palanquin (doli) is worshipped, recalling the legend that the goddess vanished into thin air leaving only her doli behind.

A rare temple that is simultaneously a Jyotirlinga (one of 12 Shiva shrines) and a Shakti Peetha (one of 18 Devi shrines) — set above the Krishna river gorge inside the Nallamala forest tiger reserve.

A Shakti Peetha 250 km north of Kolkata where Sati's third eye is said to have fallen — famous for its unbroken tantric tradition and as the site where the 19th-century saint Bamakhepa lived, performed sadhana, and is buried.

The eighth peetha of the Ashtadasha — Sati's right hand fell here — at Mahur in the Sahyadri foothills of north Maharashtra. The hilltop temple is one of the three-and-a-half Shakti Peethas of Maharashtra; the goddess is identified with Renuka, mother of Parashurama, and the wider hill-complex is the legendary site of his austerities.

The eleventh peetha of the Ashtadasha and one of the four Adi Shakti Peethas (alongside Kamakhya, Kalighat and Tara Tarini) — Sati's navel fell here — on the Vaitarani river at Jajpur, 90 km north-east of Bhubaneswar. The 13th-century temple is paired with one of India's three primary kshetras for ancestral shraddha rites.

The sixteenth peetha of the Ashtadasha — Sati's breast fell here — atop Mangalagauri Hill in Gaya. The temple combines naturally with Gaya's better-known role as India's premier ancestral-rite kshetra; pilgrims pair the goddess's darshan with pinda-daan at the Vishnupada temple and the Phalgu river.

The sacred battlefield of the Mahabharata and the birthplace of the Bhagavad Gita — Lord Krishna delivered the Gita's 700 verses to Arjuna here 5,000 years ago.

Capital of the ancient Kosala kingdom and where the Buddha spent 24 of his 45 monsoon retreats — the site of the Twin Miracle and the Anathapindika-built Jetavana monastery, whose foundations still mark the Gandhakuti where the Buddha resided.

An ancient capital ringed by five hills where the Buddha preached the Lotus Sutra and Mahavira spent 14 monsoons — a single valley sacred to Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism, with hot springs and a Japanese-built peace pagoda on its highest hill.

A 16th-century Vijayanagara temple famous for its hanging pillar that does not touch the ground, the largest monolithic Nandi bull in India, and ceiling frescoes considered the finest surviving examples of Vijayanagara mural art.

The fifth peetha of the Ashtadasha — Sati's upper teeth fell here — at Alampur on the Tungabhadra, 200 km south of Hyderabad. The temple was destroyed by Bahmani invaders in 1390 and reconsecrated in 2005; it sits inside the Navabrahma temple complex of nine 7th-century Chalukyan Shiva shrines.

The twelfth peetha of the Ashtadasha — Sati's left cheek fell here — at Draksharamam in East Godavari district. Shares its complex with the Bhimeswara Swamy temple, one of the five Pancharama Kshetras of Andhra Pradesh; the 9th-century Eastern Chalukyan structure is among the oldest in coastal Andhra.

The tenth peetha of the Ashtadasha — Sati's left hand fell here — at Pithapuram in East Godavari district. The shrine adjoins the Kukkuteswara Swamy Shiva temple and shares its sacred tank, the Pada Gaya Sarovar, where pinda offerings are made for ancestors.

The first peetha of the Ashtadasha — where Sati's groin or thigh is said to have fallen — atop Swami Rock at Trincomalee, on Sri Lanka's eastern coast. The original temple was destroyed by Portuguese cannon in 1622; only foundations and a small modern shrine remain on the cliff edge. The site sits within the rebuilt Koneswaram Shiva complex.

The eighteenth and final peetha of the Ashtadasha — where Sati's right hand is said to have fallen — at Sharda village in the Neelum Valley of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. One of the greatest learning centres of ancient India alongside Nalanda; the temple has been inaccessible to Indian pilgrims since the 1947 partition. Most yatris symbolically complete the circuit at Sringeri Sharadamba (Karnataka).

The third peetha in the Ashtadasa Shakti Peetha Stotram — where Sati's stomach is said to have fallen — at Pandua in Hooghly district, 50 km from Kolkata. The original temple is largely a ruin; the local Devi tradition is preserved at the Hangseshwari temple nearby and at the Bandel basilica that grew over part of the medieval site.