EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Religious Tourism can be defined as travel with the core motive of experiencing religious  forms,  or  the  products  they  induce,  like  art,  culture,  traditions  and architecture. Being one of  the most ancient civilizations of the world, India has been in contact with almost all the major religions of the world, and despite being dominated by Hinduism in the present context, religions like Islam, Buddhism and Christianity have also influenced a sizeable portion of the population, apart from niche religions  like Sikhism, Jainism, Vaishnavism, Jewism  that grew as  an  off shoot to the major religious schools of thought. PERSPECTIVE OF INDIANS TOWARDS RELIGIOUS TOURISM - There are two distinct aspects to Religious Tourism in India; one, the faith of the domestic tourist, who has a spiritual attachment to the  deity/ destination in line with their religious beliefs; the other is the 'foreign' tourist, someone belonging to a different religion, region or country, for whom the  destination and the religious practices have the dimension of 'novelty', a spiritual experience different from their own, despite the ethical values being delivered remaining the same. From the domestic market's perspective, there is a fine line dividing business and belief. Many Temples, Mosques, Churches, Gurudwaras and other major religious centres,  in  today's  socio-economic  structures,  are  tangible  assets  in  terms  of infrastructure and the workforce they employ, thereby implying that the institution has to monetize itself in order to be able to meet its everyday survival in societal environments