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Dear Mike Thank you for the correction as well as the compliment which I don't think I deserve. Thanks also to Chandan for not criticising me for some lapses. What is happening in these holy places is not exactly bribery. If someone fails to have a darshan in the normal way, it is certainly the fault of the management and the trustees..Umesh has suggested that a true devotee does not need a physical darshan. That I believe is an aspect of Hindu religious philosophy, e g. Vaisnavism. The Vaishno Devi trust as well as the Tirupatti people have precise arrangements for admitting pilgrims. They do issue various categories of passes (I believe colour-coded at Tirupatti). There are agents, sort of tour operators, who arrange darshans by obtaining these passes or permits. There may be touts like those we have in the Indian cutcheries (law courts). As the touts serve both the businesses as well as the temples, they are, I think, tolerated. At Tirupatti I noticed a small group of high dignitaries being escorted by temple officials to the sanctum or some other areas through the special entrances. In New Delhi airport, one can hire a prepaid taxi. This has not stopped the taxi trade from exploiting passengers but it has benefited some of us. Perhaps the temples can also devise some such measures without losses to their revenues. I now give a few examples of these extortions. First there are various kinds of :Pujas for which different rates are prescribed. You pay more and you get more benefits, both material and spiritual. These are little things really by which a great number of people earn a living.in India’s holy places. I give a few minor examples. At the Pashupatinath itemple, Kathmundu, Nepal a relation of mine was persuaded to wash an idol with milk. The tout sold her about two ounces of dirty milk for Rs.300/- for that purpose. Of course she paid the shop concerned and the priests much more for the ablution. At Dwarka, my wife’s offerings included, among other things, a cocoanut. She was persuaded to offer more Pujas and another cocoanut was needed. My wife noticed that the tout tried to sell again the very cocoanut which was offered earlier. My wife refused to do the second Puja. I visited the Golden Temple of Amritsar also during my last visit to India. There, the temple appeared to be tout-free. |
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