ABSTRACT
Given the importance of salvific space and pilgrimage in Hinduism, it is quite remarkable that, in the early Vedic tradition, there was no tradition of assigning a permanent divine presence to particular places which could be the basis of pilgrimage. This chapter looks at some of the reasons why salvific space and pilgrimage attained such a central role in Hinduism. The idea of tirtha can in one sense be thought of as an extension of the practice of seeing divinity in nature, and the ability of seeing divinity in nature is an important presupposition of Hindu pilgrimage conceptions of the salvific power of places and rewards for visiting them. The majority of Hindu pilgrimage places have been and continue to be associated with water. The Hindu pilgrimage tradition is connected to the ritual of gift giving. In the pilgrimage places in the Mahabharata, gift giving to Brahmans is mentioned repeatedly as a way for the pilgrims to accumulate more merit.
