View source for In India there are hundreds of sacred places of pilgrimage, of which Prayaga, Hardwar, Vrndavana and Ramesvaram are considered principal

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[[Category:India]]
[[Category:Hundreds]]
[[Category:Sacred Places]]
[[Category:Places of Pilgrimage]]
[[Category:Of Which]]
[[Category:Prayaga - Allahabad]]
[[Category:Hardwar]]
[[Category:Vrndavana]]
[[Category:Ramesvaram]]
[[Category:Consider]]
[[Category:Principal]]
[[Category:Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto 03 Chapter 20 Purports - Conversation Between Maitreya and Vidura]]
[[Category:Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 03 Purports]]
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<div id="Srimad-Bhagavatam" class="section" sec_index="1" parent="compilation" text="Srimad-Bhagavatam"><h2>Srimad-Bhagavatam</h2>
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<div id="SB_Canto_3" class="sub_section" sec_index="3" parent="Srimad-Bhagavatam" text="SB Canto 3"><h3>SB Canto 3</h3>
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<div id="SB3204_0" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_3" book="SB" index="767" link="SB 3.20.4" link_text="SB 3.20.4">
<div class="heading">In India there are hundreds of sacred places of pilgrimage, of which Prayāga, Hardwar, Vṛndāvana and Rāmeśvaram are considered principal.
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<span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 3.20.4|SB 3.20.4, Translation and Purport]]: 
</span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">Vidura was purified of all passion by wandering in sacred places, and at last he reached Hardwar, where he met the great sage who knew the science of spiritual life, and he inquired from him. Śaunaka Ṛṣi therefore asked: What more did Vidura inquire from Maitreya?</p>
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<div class="purport text"><p>Here the words virajās tīrtha-sevayā refer to Vidura, who was completely cleansed of all contamination by traveling to places of pilgrimage. In India there are hundreds of sacred places of pilgrimage, of which Prayāga, Hardwar, Vṛndāvana and Rāmeśvaram are considered principal. After leaving his home, which was full of politics and diplomacy, Vidura wanted to purify himself by traveling to all the sacred places, which are so situated that anyone who goes there automatically becomes purified. This is especially true in Vṛndāvana; any person may go there, and even if he is sinful he will at once contact an atmosphere of spiritual life and will automatically chant the names of Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā. That we have actually seen and experienced. It is recommended in the śāstras that after retiring from active life and accepting the vānaprastha (retired) order, one should travel everywhere to places of pilgrimage in order to purify himself. Vidura completely discharged this duty, and at last he reached Kuśāvarta, or Hardwar, where the sage Maitreya was sitting.</p>
<p>Another significant point is that one must go to sacred places not only to take bath there but to search out great sages like Maitreya and take instructions from them. If one does not do so, his traveling to places of pilgrimage is simply a waste of time. Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura, a great ācārya of the Vaiṣṇava sect, has, for the present, forbidden us to go to such places of pilgrimage because in this age, the times having so changed, a sincere person may have a different impression on seeing the behavior of the present residents of the pilgrimage sites. He has recommended that instead of taking the trouble to travel to such places, one should concentrate his mind on Govinda, and that will help him. Of course, to concentrate one's mind on Govinda in any place is a path meant for those who are the most spiritually advanced; it is not for ordinary persons. Ordinary persons may still derive benefit from traveling to holy places like Prayāga, Mathurā, Vṛndāvana and Hardwar.</p>
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