Journey to Pushkar - How Holy?

Each day lakhs of people thronged to take that holy dip in river Godavari in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Temple towns located on the banks of river Godavari are Basara in Adilabad district, Kaleshwaram and Dharmapuri in Karimnagar district, Bhadrachalam in Khammam district,Rajahmundry and Antarvedi in East Godavari district, Kovvur and Pattiseema in West Godavari district.

We travel, some of us forever, to seek other states, other lives, other souls

The year 2015 Pushkar is considered to be more auspicious because of its occurrence after 144 years, corresponding to the 12th recurrence of the 12-year Godavari Pushkaram cycle. It is believed that during this period from June -July, planet Jupiter enters the zodiac sign of Leo. The festival is dedicated to the worship of rivers. Hindus belief that bathing in the sacred river during Pushkaram cleanses the devotees of their sins. Is it so easy to cleanse the deeds by just a few dips? Will this dip caution the public from committing more sins? Will a dip during this period make the person sinless? So, can one make end number of sins and just take a dip and free himself from being called a sinner?

The most important reason for going from one place to another is to see what's in between, and they took great pleasure in doing just that. A record of 48.1 million people in Andhra Pradesh and 57 million people in the Telangana state has been noted in this years Maha Pushkaram festival. Bathing ghats and basic facilities of food and water though organised by the government could not really check into the stampede that killed few innocent lives.

When asked a few people of the significance of bathing in the muddy waters, their answers startled me " Everyone are going, and so we joined."; "Don't know if we would be alive for the next pushkar" ; "What is wrong in dipping when even if there is no gain"; "there is definitely something which has a positive impact on one's life"....

The only journey is the one within.