This was a very fun and interesting read since I have no background knowledge about the Hindu religion. It was a good experience, in the end, since I was actually able to participate in class and answer some question and make connections to previously learned things.
I found out that there is more than one pilgrimage that you can take and sometimes each one represents something different. One thing that surprised me was that the shortest pilgrimage was the one that only stayed in the temple. During this pilgrimage the devotee to Shiva would visit 72 different places in the temple in order to worship her, also known as Puja.
At the end of all five of the pilgrimages they meet at the Ganges River. Which is the main area where people go to bathe, wash animals, and perform Puja, and to get down to the river there are these steps called ghats that lead down to it. There is also a temple called Vishveshvara that is actually the starting point for all five of the pilgrimages.
After reading your post and seeing that you were surprised by the shortest pilgrimage, I also was surprised by the shortest pilgrimage that involves staying inside the temple and going around to 72 places inside of it. I wasn’t sure that if because doing the shorter one involves simply staying in one temple and going around to 72 different sacred areas inside of it, compared to the longer one which involves traveling 168 miles if one is more sacred than the other and if only doing the short one is for people who aren’t as committed as other. If that’s not the case I’m not sure why everyone wouldn’t do the shortest one.
I also found this reading and the video about it, very intesting because I also did not know much about hinduism. As you have stated I was also surprised about the short pilgrimage, because we have heard more than once, in class or by the guest speaker, that one of the main points of pilgrimage is walking. Pilgrimage journeys often include a lot of physical activity and sweating in order to be completed.
I agree with both of you about this concept. I thought that one of the most important part of pilgrimage is traveling and walking. It would be interesting to know which pilgrimage is taken most often and why.