SPIRITUAL INDIATrek in the Timeless Himalayas,
Experience the Source of the Ganges River.
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SPIRITUAL INDIA Trek in the Timeless Himalayas, Experience the Source of the Ganges River. |
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Do you now want to experience
the awesome high Himalayan mountains, the most sacred shrines
of India, and the holy men and women who live in Himalayan caves?
Because on our amazing Himalayan Pilgrimage, we will have that
rare opportunity in an awesome once-in-a-lifetime experience.
The four most
revered Hindu temples are in the Garhwal region of the Himalayas.
The temples of Shiva and Vishnu at Kedarnath and Badrinath have
been the destination of pilgrims for centuries--once reached after
tortuous treks, they are now easily accessible by road. Pilgrims
from all over the world have braved severe conditions of landscape
and weather to visit the shrines and have the holy sight of the
revered dieties.
The route to the source of the holy river begins at Rishikesh
and passes ancient temples and Valleys along the way.
The sacred shrines are only open from May to November. During
the severe winter season, the towns close and everyone moves down
the slopes. In the hinterlands of the Himalayas is the town
of Gangotri where, it is believed, Mother Ganga, the stream
of life, came down from heaven and touched the Earth for the first
time.
| The Legendary Ganges River |
According
to the Hindu religious scriptures, the heavenly goddess Ganga
manifested herself in the form of a river to absolve the sins
of King Sagar's sons. In Gangotri the river is called Bhagirathi,
or the river brought down to the earth from the heavens by Bhagirath
- a descendant of Sagar - the king who prayed and did severe penance
for the salvation of his 60,000 ancestors. The river forms the
Gauri Kund. This is where, according to 
legend,
it descended after leaping from the heavens into the matted hair
of the Yogi Lord Shiva, who saved the earth from floods by taking
the force of the powerful Ganges river into his hair.
For the Hindus, the Ganga is the mother river which manifested from her celestial home onto the earth for the welfare of mankind. Its timeless flow of sacred water has shaped the devotion of millions and sustained huge populations in the subcontinent of India. Ganga water is holy and is used for purifying every Hindu home. The name of this eternal river symbolizes the very nerve centre of India's ancient culture. This river of life has nourished India's multi-faceted civilization and its growth since time immemorial.
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11-day tour |
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DIVINE TRAVELS TOURS & RETREATS
DIVINE TRAVELS TOURS & RETREATS
DIVINE TRAVELS TOURS & RETREATS
DIVINE TRAVELS TOURS & RETREATS
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 Fly
overnight to India, arriving in the late evening. Your tour leader
will accompany you to your hotel in the heart of Delhi, followed
by the Traditional Indian Welcome at the hotel. Overnight at
hotel.Hotel: The Oberoi Maidens or Similar
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  Meet
your group over the late breakfast, then enjoy a walking tour
of Old Delhi, featuring Raj Ghat, where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated.
Next, a cycle rickshaw carries us through the crowded Chandni
Chowk Bazaar to Jama Masjid, India's largest mosque. In the afternoon,
drive through New Delhi to visit the India Gate and the old residences
of British Viceroys.
Visit the powerful,
majestic Hindu Temples of Delhi: Chattarpur Temple, Yogmaya Temple
& Lakshmi Narayan Temple.  
New Delhi: The new capital designed by Sir Edward Lutyens. An interesting drive in the one passing through the impressive Rajpath from the World War I memorial arch, the India Gate towards the Presidential Palace. Visit Humayun's Tomb built in 1565 AD, Safdarjung's Tomb, the Qutab Minar, 72 meters high and the most curious antique, the uncorroded Iron Pillar, which dates back to the 4th century AD. |
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After breakfast,
leave for Rishikesh by surface, en route visiting Haridwar. At
Haridwar explore Evening Ganga - Aarti at Holy River Ganges at
Har Ki Pauri. Afterwards, continue to Rishikesh. Transfer to
hotel. Dinner & overnight at hotel.     |
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After breakfast,
leave for Rudraprayag by surface. Reach Rudraprayag in the evening
and transfer to hotel. Dinner & overnight at hotel.
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DIVINE TRAVELS TOURS & RETREATS
DIVINE TRAVELS TOURS & RETREATS
DIVINE TRAVELS TOURS & RETREATS
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Uttarkashi
is is the gateway to the pilgrim route to Gangotri. The beautiful
small town is situated on the right bank of the Bhagirathi, surrounded
by the rivers Varuna and Assi, at an altitude of about 1,550
m. As the name suggests, Uttarkashi is considered the northern
Kashi or Varanasi, a historical pilgrimage city in the Indian
plains. The temples and ghats in Uttarkashi have names almost
identical to those in Varanasi, such as the Shiva temple--Vishwanath
Mandir, where stands a magnificent Trishul (trident), one meter
in circumference At one time, there were 365 temples in this town. It is known for its temples dedicated to Rishi Parasurama, Dattatreya, Goddess Annapurna Devi, Goddess Kali, and Bhairon. Among the other temples in this town filled with splendor are the temples of Parashuram, Kali and that of the Ekadash Rudra, built by the former Maharaja of Jaipur. The town is also known for its various ashrams, which are the homes of sanyasis and mendicants who occupy the banks of the holy river for penance and prayers.  
  Uttarkashi is also known as Barahat, literally meaning "a big market place". It is a town with modern facilities. The Nehru Institute of Mountaineering is located here. This national institute imparts mountaineering training to young people to inculcate the spirit of adventure among the youth of the country. The region has some high-altitude lakes and the Gangotri and Yamunotri glaciers lead on to several major peaks-the hunting grounds for serious mountaineering buffs.  
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When Ganga descended from heaven, the current was so strong that Lord Shiva (the Destroyer in the Hindi Holy Trinity of Creator-Preserver-Destroyer) had to hold her flow in check by coiling his matted locks around her. From then on, Shiva is also known as Jatashankar (Jata means hair in Hindi). There is a lingam (the symbolic phallus of Shiva) submerged in the river that can be seen in winter, a natural rock shivling where according to mythology Lord Shiva sat when he received the Goddess Ganga in his matted locks. |
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DIVINE TRAVELS TOURS & RETREATS
DIVINE TRAVELS TOURS & RETREATS
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After breakfast,
leave back for Rishikesh by surface. Reach Rishikesh and transfer
to hotel. Dinner & overnight at hotel. |
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 After breakfast,
leave back for Delhi. Reach Delhi and transfer to Village BISTRO
for Farewell Dinner and afterwards continue to IGI Airport and
tour terminates. |
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| HIMALAYAN FOOTHILLS YOGA RETREAT IN NAINITAL |
| INDIA TRAVEL AND VISA INFORMATION |
| TOUR HIGHLIGHTS |
| TOUR INCLUDES |
| TOUR DOES NOT INCLUDE |
| SIGHTSEEING |
Duration of a Half-day tour is 3 Hours. Full-day tours 5/6 Hours. The Guides on the tours are certified by the Government of India Tourist Department.
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| HIMALAYAN FOOTHILLS YOGA RETREAT IN NAINITAL |
| INDIA TRAVEL AND VISA INFORMATION |
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Old Delhi: The 350
years old walled city was built by Emperor Shah Jehan in 1648
as his capital. Opposite the fort are the black and white onion
dome and minarets of the Jama Masjid, the most elegant mosque
in India. Raj Ghat is worth a visit where Mahatma Gandhi was
cremated in 1948.
After
breakfast, full day sightseeing of Rishikesh. Dinner & overnight
at hotel.
Rishikesh
is situated on the right bank of Holy River Ganges and surrounded
on three sides by Himalayan ranges are known from medieval time
as a celestial abode. It is a great pilgrimage center of India,
attracting a large number of pilgrims. It has since been the
abode of saints and sages from where they sojourn before undertaking
the arduous pilgrimage that lay ahead on the distant Himalayan
Peaks. This is the gateway to the kingdom of gods and pilgrimage
to Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri.
Narada, an ancient Indian sage,
reputed to be the inventor of the veena, a stringed musical instrument,
meditated here for several years at the temple of Rudranath,
in order to attain perfection in the science of music. Pleased
with his devotion, Shiva blessed Narad, granting him the cherished
wish that the sage became the repository of sacred music. Here,
in the temple, Shiva is worshipped in the form of Rudranath.
With a population of 5,000, Rudraprayag is at the junction of
the three hill districts of Pauri, Tehri and Chamoli. Rudraprayag
is situated on the confluence of the rivers Mandakini and Alaknanda.
After breakfast, leave
for Uttarkashi for (170 Km) by surface. Reach Uttarkashi in the
evening. Transfer to hotel. Dinner & overnight at hotel.
and made of copper.
It supports a trident four meters long. Each prong is about two
meters in length. 
After
breakfast, leave for Gangotri (97 Km) by surface. Reach Gangotri
and transfer to hotel. Dinner & overnight at hotel.
Gangotri,
beyond the gorge where the Jadh Ganga meets the Bhagirathi, heralding
the approach of the Gangotri temple, the narrow Bhagirathi Ravine,
dramatic and beautifully wooded, opens out into a valley flanked
by jagged snowy peaks. At the end of this portion of the valley
stands a simple edifice to the Goddess Ganga built in the eighteenth
century, to commemorate where King Bhagirath sat and prayed for
5,500 years and where came the Pandavas to atone for the death
of their kinsmen. Standing on pillars on the right bank of the
river at a height of 3,200 meters (10,500 ft), the slopes surrounding
the temple indicate the level of the bed of the past giant glacier,
while the tiny village is full of giant deodars and conifers.
Here the river flows north, giving the village its name Gangotri--Ganga
turned north. The temple of Ganga in Gangotri is visited by millions
of devotees each year.
At
3048m, Gangotri lies in the northwest Himalayas of Garhwal. It
is one of the four dhams (pilgrimage centres for Hindus, the
other three being Yamunotri, Badrinath and Kedarnath) of Garhwal
region of the Himalayas. The Bhairnoghati bridge, built across
one of the deepest gorges in the world, connects Gangotri to
the rest of the 
After breakfast, trek towards Bhojbasa
via Chirbasa. (You
can ride a pony or be carried in a pallanquin if you do not want
to trek.) A total of 13
kms to be covered within approx. 05 Hrs. The trek route passes
through deep dense forest Bhojbasa of Himalayan coniferous and
pine trees to arrive at Bhojbasa. The main structure at Bhojbasa
is an ashram, which is served as a stop over point en route Gaumukh.
Transfer to hotel. Dinner and overnight at hotel. 
Gaumukh is the point from where the
holy Ganges originates. A short and easy trek of an hour brings
us to Gaumukh - The Source of Ganges. Afterwards, continue to
Gangotri. Reach Gangotri & Transfer to hotel. Dinner and
overnight at hotel. 
The
high altitude plain, Tapovan, is where King Bhagirath supposedly
did penance. Legend has it that his prayers compelled Mother
Ganga to descend from heaven and fall onto the earth here. Tapovan
is the foothill of the mighty Shivling Peak (6543m), one of the
most beautiful peaks in the world. Sixteen kilometres downhill,
it is seen as a river in Gangotri. The force of the water here
is awesome.