- A sacred precinct is an area which is regarded with reverence. For example, the cities of Badrinath,Sacred Trees,Sacred Precincts,Sacred Rivers,Sacred Sites Kedarnath, Amarnath and Banaras are regarded as sacred.
- The sanctity is not restricted to temple towns alone.
- Sacred precincts are common among tribal communities.
- For the Todas of the Nilgiris, Kundah beyond Mukuruthi is the sacred resting place of their deity and no Toda will even set foot on the hill.
- Similarly, Kailasa in the Himalayas, is sacred in the Himalayas and is circumambulated by pilgrims, as is Thiruvannamalai in Tamilnadu.
LIST OF SACRED SITE
District : Kanyakumari
Reason for sanctity : It is a meeting point of Indian Ocean, The Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean meet at Kanyakumari, where a temple to the goddess of India, Kanya Kumari is located.
District : Allahabad
Reason for sanctity : The three most holy rivers of India the Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati meet here. It is also called as Triveni Sangam or Prayag.
Special features (if any) :The river Saraswati is supposed to join the other two by an underground passage. Once in 12 years the Kumbh Mela is performed here, when millions tale a holy dip in the confluence of the three rivers.
State : Kashmir
District : Srinagar
Reason for sanctity : A Shiva Linga formed naturally, of ice is seen here inside a cave and it increases and decreases with the moon. Natural phenomena makes Amarnath sacred.
Special features (if any) :Many pilgrims visit the sacred cave in the month of July to August, the only time of the year when it is accessible.
District : Ramanathapuram
Reason for sanctity :The place derives its sanctity from its traditional association with Lord Rama. He rested here while his army of monkeys built a bridge across the sea to reach the island of Lanka.
Special features (if any) :The temple here is dedicated to Shiva and the Shiva lingam is believed to be made of sand by Sita and installed by Sri Rama himself.. Another stone linga brought from the Himalayas was installed north of the above mentioned lingam.
State : Uttar Pradesh
District : Uttarkand region
Reason for sanctity : It is one of the seven sacred cities of India,and is located where the Ganges enters the north Indian plains.
Special features (if any) : Once in 12 years a religious fair called the Kumbh Mela attracts millions of pilgrims for a ritual bath in the waters of the Ganges.
State : Maharashtra
District : Nashik
Reason for sanctity : It is sacred because Shri Rama, Lakshman and Seetha completed their stay in the forest for twelve years. It is also known as Shri Kshtra Panchavati, which is a part of the ancient forest area called Dandakaranya.
Special features (if any) : Once in 12 years a religious fair called the Sinhastha attracts thousands of people from all parts of the country who come here to bath in the sacred waters of river Godavari.
State : Uttar Pradesh
District : Garhwal
Reason for sanctity : Badrinath is known as Nara and Narayana Parvatha. It is one of the four abodes of Vishnu. The valley is very sacred because, it is the main gate to Kailash, the abode of Shiva. According to legend, Vyasa and other rishis visited Parasara at Badhrikashram to learn the great truths of Dharma. All these made this place as one of the immemorial sanctity.
Special features (if any) : Jotismath, one of the four maths founded by Sri Sankaracharya is here. Mahabharata mention the ashram, where Krishna and Arjuna lived for a long time.