Hospitality In Spirituality

The enormous revenue earning potential of religious and cultural tourism in India needs to be more effectively harnessed by the Indian tourism and hospitality industry, and in this regard, our states and the Union Government should play a more proactive role than they are doing at present.

- Swarnendu Biswas

India is a modern nation with an ancient but still thriving civilisation. Here the religious resonance is an integral part of our cultural legacy. There is no denying the fact that religion with its mythological hues is one of the major cementing forces behind the edifice of Indian civilisation. most major religions of the world, such as Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism and Judaism are being enthusiastically practiced in the pluralistic cultural milieu of India.

What is more important is that even in the twenty-first century IT-powered India, which seems to be obsessed with cricket, Bollywood and to some extent with social media, the influence of religion is very much evident among its teeming millions. This enduring influence of religion in our society is misused by cunning charlatans, fake godmen and opportunistic politicians, but the influence of religion in India’s pluralistic socio-cultural environment have immense potential for the Indian tourism and hospitality industry. This potential needs to be tapped in a more proactive, creative and optimal manner.

Destinations for the Soul

It is common knowledge that India has numerous religious sites and shrines, which are enough to make a devotee of religious tourism to explore for at least a lifetime. From Varanasi and Jammu, from Ajmer to Tirupati, from Amristar to Allahabad and from Goa to Puri to Rameshwaram, the thread of religious tourism in India spreads across the length and breadth of the country.