Australian Yoga Journal – July 2019

64

july 2019

yogajournal.com.au

Taj Mahal

One of the most recognised monuments

in existence, this mausoleum is also one

of the seven wonders of the world—and

a must-see when making the trek to

India. Located in Agra (part of India’s

popular Golden Triangle circuit, which

also includes Delhi and Jaipur), the

marble monument was commissioned

by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan to

house the tomb of his favourite wife,

Mumtaz Mahal. It took 22 years and

20,000 workers to complete—and cost

the equivalent of approximately $800

million today. While this UNESCO

World Heritage Site will undoubtedly be

crowded when you go (a whopping 7 to

8 million tourists visit each year), it’s

well worth seeing.

Pushkar

This town, located in the north-eastern

state of Rajasthan, is set on Pushkar

Lake, a sacred Hindu site where

pilgrims bathe along its ghats. It’s also

home to the only temple of Brahma, the

Hindu god known as the creator of the

world, Bhardwaj says. “This is one of

my all-time favourite places in India,”

he says.

Hampi, Karnataka

The remains of more than 1,600

monuments are scattered over the

25-square-kilmetre area of this

UNESCO World Heritage site, which is

the former capital of the Vijayanagar

empire (in power from the 14th to 16th

centuries). Amid the elegant ruins of

medieval Indian culture, you’ll also find

humbler shrines expressing the local

villagers’ heartfelt devotion to Rama,

Sita, and Hanuman. This area is the

legendary Kishkinda, realm of the

monkey gods, where Rama, one of the

most widely worshipped Hindu deities,

is said to have met the monkey god

Hanuman on his quest to rescue his

kidnapped wife, the goddess Sita.

HISTORICAL SITES

PHOTO: ; CASSIE MATIAS;UNSPLASH; WORLDOFPHOTOS/ISTOCKPHOTO.COM

AGRA