Kṣetrabhūmi

Introduction

Bhāratabhūmi is a puṇyabhūmi - a great, ancient land where the devatās have lived and walked, and a land sanctified by the tapas of lineages of the ṛṣi paramparā.

Bhāratabhūmi is a tīrthakṣetra - where every inch is sacred and worthy of the bhāva of bhakti. From the yajña-vedi of the Vaidika times to the kṣetras of later days, while the idea of the temple and offering of ablutions has seen an evolution, the devatā-tattva and samarpaṇa-bhāva has remained constant.

From the trees and stones to the rivers that flow across this land to the magnificent temple towns, each element big or small is imbued with the sacred, all of prakṛti a manifestation and a joyful reflection of the divine principle.

Bhāratabhūmi is a kṣetra of vīras - where scores of our ancestors have spilt blood to protect our sacred kṣetras and the vigrahās, the living embodiment of the devatā housed within. From the northern frontiers of Kaśmīra and the Mārtaṇḍa Sun Temple, to Somnātha, Kāśī and Mathurā to the ruins of Chausath Yoginī in Central India to the fight to protect the temples of the south - across the land stories of kṣatra-vīrya, of unwavering resilience echo. Reminding us, that what we have today is precious and meant to be preserved with care.

Why was this?

Our kṣetras are living, breathing spaces where our devatās reside and preside, and commune with millions of people. They are the nerve-centers of the Hindu civilization. To the Hindu, nothing is greater or more important than the deva. Therefore Somnātha has risen despite being grazed to the ground multiple times. Therefore the fight for Kāśī and Mathurā continues.

Kṣetras are mokṣa-dhāmas and loka-kalyāṇa-kārakās, i.e. they facilitate deeper freedom for individuals while also serving collective flourishing. They have been doing so for eons together.

They are sacred spaces of great śakti, where millions visit for the fulfilment of the catur-vidha puruṣārthas, but most times just for that one glimpse of their iṣṭa, of the central, divine principle, of sat-cit-ānanda.

Each tīrthakṣetra is a multi-generational ecosystem - They are home to diverse cultural traditions and knowledge systems handed down over generations. From the families that serve the kṣetra, to the purohitas and the ones who prepare prasāda to the flower markets, the sculptors and more - it is a spiritual, cultural, economic and social engine, put together in one.

With a continued spirit of deep reverence and offering to the sacred core that nourishes, Bṛhat brings to you -

Kṣetrabhūmi ~ Curated temple tours where exploring the sacred offers civilizational rediscovery and a spiritual odyssey into oneself.

At Bṛhat, we have earlier had the opportunity to offer over 10 temple tours. In this new offering within the same sacred space, we will embark on journeys where majestic temples, heritage sites, local cuisines and culture - come together to offer a taste of the eternal dhārmika traditions and a lived experience of what is truly Bhāratīya.

Why Kṣetrabhūmi?

Kṣetra signifies the sacred precincts of the temple, while bhūmi is that divine land that lends herself to the presence of the kṣetra. Together, kṣetrabhūmi is a term synonymous with all of Bhāratavarṣa itself.

Here, beauty emerges from the sacred and the seeming dichotomies of prakṛti and puruṣa; parā and aparā are effortlessly harmonized.

The Bhagavad Gītā crystallizes what this term means to us:

श्रीभगवानुवाच |
इदं शरीरं कौन्तेय क्षेत्रमित्यभिधीयते |
एतद्यो वेत्ति तं प्राहु: क्षेत्रज्ञ इति तद्विद: || 2||

śrī-bhagavān uvāca
idaṁ śarīraṁ kaunteya kṣetram ity abhidhīyate
etad yo vetti taṁ prāhuḥ kṣetra-jña iti tad-vidaḥ

The Supreme Divine Lord said: O Arjuna, this body is termed as kṣetra (the field of activities), and the one who knows this body is called kṣetrajña (the knower of the field) by the sages who discern the truth about both. (BG 13.2)

Kṣetrabhūmi evokes the kṣetrajña, the divine principle or the Knower of the Self. Within a tīrthakṣetra, the mūla-devatā is the supreme kṣetrajña.

When applied to the individual being, the human instrument becomes the kṣetra and the cetanā-tattva, that lends life to the instrument is the kṣetrajña.

A yātrā is one of the most transformative civilizational mechanisms that helps us touch and be touched by the sacred core that animates all - a concentrated time and space capsule that allows us to expand and elevate.