Paper short abstract:

This paper explores the transforming nature of southern Indian pilgrimage, intersections between pilgrimage and tourism with special emphasis on RATHAM a heritage venture curating lectures on legend and place-lore accompanied by music evoking a historic-cultural experience for the pilgrims.

Paper long abstract:

Travel is integral to self-realization and mystical experience in the spiritual practices of Hindu pantheon in India. Pilgrimage which is referred to as Tīrthayatra has been a significant part of the spiritual practices since the medieval times but is now evolving and attaining newer meanings in the world today. Most of the sacred places in India comprise of ornate temples or monuments set against scenic backdrops such as river banks, hill tops or seashores. In the globalized world of today, this results in a dialogues between spirituality and tourism.

This paper would explore the intersections between pilgrimage and tourism and the transforming nature of the Southern Indian pilgrimage tradition laying special emphasis on the case of RATHAM (Road Access to Temple Heritage and Monuments) a heritage venture which curates myth, legend and place-lore along with music and lectures to evoke a historic-cultural experience for the pilgrims. The transforming nature of the pilgrimages in the advent of the heritagization of spiritual experiences is a core preoccupation of this study.

Keywords: Spiritual tourism, Pilgrimage, Place-lore, Heritagization , Legend.