Rana P.B. SINGH

The ancient Indian (Hindu) mythologies refer to water as the container of life, strength, and eternity, but most commonly it is perceived as the purifier and site for sacred places. The three most common factors enhancing the popularity of sacred places along rivers (tirthas) and water pools (kundas) are: their unique natural landscape and beauty, the unusual physical features of the body of water, and the watery place's association with some great sage or site-based mythology. The psychic attachment to a place and the maintenance of its associated cultural traditions and water-related rituals reflects the belief in divine manifestations there and the site's intrinsic values; this is maintained by a huge mass of festivities and rituals even today. The Ganga (the Ganges River) is the sacred fluid, an essential element for all the Hindu rites and rituals. The Ganga is known as "the mother who bestows prosperity (sukh-da), and secures salvation (moksha-da);" she represents joy in this life and hope for the life to come. This essay described the Ganga, the river's waterfront sacred places, and related sacred waters. The ancient Indian (Hindu) mythologies refer to water as the container of life, strength, and eternity, but most commonly it is perceived as the purifier and site for sacred places. The three most common factors enhancing the popularity of sacred places along rivers (tirthas) and water pools (kundas) are: their unique natural landscape and beauty, the unusual physical features of the body of water, and the watery place's association with some great sage or site-based mythology. The psychic attachment to a place and the maintenance of its associated cultural traditions and water-related rituals reflects the belief in divine manifestations there and the site's intrinsic values; this is maintained by a huge mass of festivities and rituals even today. The Ganga (the Ganges River) is the sacred fluid, an essential element for all the Hindu rites and rituals. The Ganga is known as "the mother who bestows prosperity (sukh-da), and secures salvation (moksha-da);" she represents joy in this life and hope for the life to come. This essay describes the Ganga, the river's waterfront sacred places, and related sacred waters.
Keywords: the Ganga, tirtha, kunda, metaphysical context, mythology

The sacred landscape combines the absoluteness of space, the relativeness of places and the comprehensiveness of landscape. Altogether, this constitutes a 'wholeness' that conveys the inherent and imposed spirit of 'holiness', which here we call 'sacredscapes'; these are regulated and reproduced by those of faith and in their sacred rituals. Accordingly, as adherents of faith within sacred space, we form a sense of ourselves and the sense of our-place at varying scales of space-time. We begin from the local scale, and here we may first experience the sacred message through the spirit of place, its genus loci, and the power of place: place speaks, place communicates. In Hindu cosmology, the Matsya Purāṇa (ca. CE 400) enumerates a large number of sacred places with descriptions of associated schedules, gestures, dreams, and auspicious signs and symbols. The seven sacred cities within this schema (Sapta-purīs) are Mathura, Dvaraka, Ayodhya, Haridvar, Varanasi, Ujjain and Kanchipuram. Rather differently, the twelve most important Shiva abodes are scattered all over India and are known as Jyotir lingas tīrthas, with the four abodes of Vishnu in the four corners of India serving as another group of popular pan-Indian pilgrimage places. This chapter will focus on particularly vivid examples, illustrating Hindu reciprocal relationships between sacred places and the faith system. These are illustrated within the taxonomic frame of sacred places, ritualscapes, festivities, sacred water and aspects of spatial transposition that link locality and universality.

Ayodhya-Faizabad twin city (Urban Agglomeration/ Metropolitan City, population: 256,624 in 2011 census) extends between 26¬0¬ 47’ North to 260 80’ North Latitude and 820 12’ East to 820 20’ East Longitude. These two twin cities are divided by a pilgrimage route of Panchakroshi Yatra, and the entire sacred territory is demarcated by the Chaudahkroshi Yatra (see Fig. 1). Ayodhya counted among one of the seven most scared and salvation-endowing cities of the India (i.e. Ayodhya, Mathura, Maya-Haridvar, Kashi, Kanchi, Avantika-Ujjain, Puri, Dvarka), is situated on the right bank of the river Sarayu (Ghaghara) at a distance of 7km east from Faizabad city. Ayodhya (population: 55,890 in 2011 census) is the part of Faizabad Metropolitan city and form the administrative unit Municipal Corporation (Nagar Nigam). On 6 November 2018, the city name has been changed as “Ayodhya” by the UP Govt. legislation, replacing Faizabad, with a view to keeping the historicity and maintenance of icon of ‘sacred city that bestows salvation’.  The general and special characteristics and cultural landscapes are described here.

The mountainous villages of Shirakawa­gō and Gokayama are well known for the unique architecture of their " Gassho " farmhouses and were enlisted in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995. These villages with their Gassho­style houses subsisted on the cultivation of mulberry trees and the rearing of silkworms. The large houses with their steeply pitched thatched roofs are the only examples of their kind in Japan. Due to the difficulty of access until recent times, the relations between this area and the outside world were very limited. This long isolation gave rise to the unique culture and traditional social systems, folklore, and customs, which have maintained their continuity. Taking people participation, environmental assessment, and behavioural approach, this chapter throws light on the deeper heritage values, their role in nature conservation and cross­cultural and comparative studies. The chapter also reflects on the personal experiences during December 2004, the time when the Tokai Hokuriku Jidosha Do, the national highway passing nearby, was opened.

From India 37 sites are enlisted in the WH List (as of 12 July 2018); however, 'The Riverfront Ghats of Varanasi' has not yet been proposed for inclusion, mostly due to the political complexity and a lack of strong support from the stakeholders. Framing tourism and cultural development for national and international resources within the purview of the ancient roots of heritage properties and traditions of spirituality, sacrality and pilgrimages that have a long tradition and continuity in India, the government of India has recently conceptualised a programme of HRIDAY and PRASAD. The programme aims to strengthen and promote the heritage sites and centres of pilgrimage-tourism in making the environment green and sustainable while taking in view the roots of culture, traditions and society and also the image of the site. This chapter attempts to critically examine the rationales for proposing Varanasi as a heritage city in the WH List and the problems that have been faced in this process since the early 2000s. In this context, the status of Varanasi in the scale of the UNESCO WH List, the implications of the past and ongoing Master Plans and the City Development Plan, governance strategies and issues of public awareness are examined and appraised. Under the modern pace of urban planning, the key issues of heritage values and their conservation are put at the margin. The narrative and stories explained here will help in making conservation strategies for other historic-heritage cities in South Asia.

Robert H. Stoddard (1928 - 2018). I have been personally shocked with deep pain to know that one of my Mentor-Masters ‘Bob’ Stoddard passed away on 21 May 2018; this news has been sent today to me by his wife Sally Stoddard – on 10th December 1955, Bob married Sally E. Salisbury and together they raised three children: Martha, Andrew, and Hugh. This has been a great personal loss for me. I pray the Almighty to bless and grant peace to the departed noble soul, and solace and courage to Sally and his siblings.
‘Bob’ was known as ‘Pioneer of Pilgrimage Studies’, and has been constantly source of inspiration, an intimate friend, a great human being who always helped me since we first met in December 1968 in Varanasi, when he attend IGU Congress. This was the year when I was a post-graduate student in Geography at Banaras Hindu University under the supervision of Prof. R.L. Singh (1917-2002). Since then, he always inspired and warned me what to follow, where to go and how to walk on the cosmic path of pilgrimage studies.
§ Robert H. Stoddard (b. 29 August 1928 ‒ d. 21 May 2018), “Bob” was a pioneer in the geographic study of pilgrimages. He commenced his focus on the geography of religion with a Master’s thesis on the locations of churches in a Nebraska county (1960) and a Doctoral dissertation on Hindu holy sites in India (1966). He was co-editor of Sacred Places, Sacred Spaces (1997) and the GORABS chapter in Geography at the Dawn of the 21st Century (2003).  His visits to many holy places in India have included the Himalayan sites of Kedanath and Gangotri.

Necrology: Prof. P.P. Karan (1930 ~ 2018).
Shadhanjali to the great noble soul and the Shining Star of Indian Geography and Culture par excellence and Doyen of Geographical Knowledge, (late) Prof. Pradyumna Prasad Karan (b. 6 Feb. 1930 - d. 19 July 2018, born in Gaya, Bihar, India, and settled in USA in 1954; passed MA in Geography from B.H.U. 1950), who passed away. He has paved the path of Geography to be accepted as lifeways and life-philosophy through his innovative, inspiring and insightful writings during last over fifty years. Among the illustrious alumni of the Department of Geography, Banaras Hindu University, Prof. P.P. Karan was considered to be the most important with reference to his acclaimed and pioneering publications and academic achievements. He was born in Gaya (Bihar), India (on 6 February 1930), in a working-class family where education was the key to moving ahead. He has earned Master’s degree in Geography at Banaras Hindu University (1950), and after serving as lecturer in geography at Patna University (1950-54), he moved to USA, and received Ph.D. from Indiana University (1956) under supervision of Prof. Norman John Greville Pounds (b. 23 February 1912 – d. 24 March 2006).
Prof. Karan has been involved in a range of initiatives aimed at understanding and utilizing the connections between economic development and the environment for more than forty years. Over the last quarter of a century, he initiated an array of schemes and local movements to promote development, environmental protection and cultural preservation in India, Japan and Himalayan states. Focusing on research that blurs the boundaries between social science and humanities, he continues to seek fresh ways of preserving environment and local cultures.

In an abbreviated form Panchakroshi route (Varanasi, India) symbolises the cosmic circuit which centre is at Madhyameshvara and radial point is at Dehli Vinayaka, covering a distance of 88.5 km route. During the recent Panchakroshi Yatra in the Hindu month of Jyeshtha 'Malamasa' (16 May to 13 June 2018), in total 74,000 devout Hindus (pilgrims and pilgrimage-tourists) performed this pilgrimage. Nearness of distance, faith and mental setup, and cultural backgrounds, are some of the important factors controlling the overall characteristics. Under the recent Central Government's missions of Heritage city Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY), and Pilgrimage Rejuvenation And Spiritual Augmentation Drive (PRASAD), in the present Master Plan (2011-2031), issues of religious heritage preservation, environmental sensitivity and sustainability are given emphasis, however their implementations are slow, mostly due to lack of public participation and complex political process.
Keywords: environmental concerns, dharmashala, ghats, heritage development, intercalary month, Master Plan, pilgrimage route, smart city.

(Prof.) Rana P.B. Singh (15 Dec. 1950, India), ICOMOS Mem. IND 35020. I did PhD on “Cultural and Sacred Landscapes of Saran Plain” (1974). Since last over 40-years I am involved in study, documenting, promoting and conserving the religious-sacred-heritage sites and associated cultural landscapes and religious activities, illustrated mostly with north India, but also some field studies in Japan, Sweden, Italy, and Korea. On these themes, he delivered special lectures and seminars at various institutions in countries like Australia, Austria, Belgium, China PR, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Indonesia (Bali), Italy, Japan, Rep. Korea, Nepal, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, USA (& Hawaii), Russia (USSR). On the focal theme of PRERICO, his publications include over 142 papers and 14 books, including The Spirit and Power of Place (1994), Cultural Landscapes and the Lifeworld (2004), Banaras: Making of India’s Heritage City  (2009), Where the Buddha Walked (2003/2009), Cosmic Order & Cultural Astronomy (2009), Heritagescapes and Cultural Landscapes (2011), Sacredscapes and Pilgrimage Systems (2011), Holy Places and Pilgrimages: Essays on India (2011), and Hindu Tradition of Pilgrimage: Sacred Space and System (2013). He has also supervised 16 PhD dissertations on the various aspects of Cultural Landscapes (religious sites and rituals).
Feel free to download my most of papers, selected books and detailed CV and List of publications from https://banaras.academia.edu/RanaPBSINGH/Papers

In Indian thought the sense of intrinsic value is posed in the basic quest of knowing the place and role of man with respect to interrelatedness of ecological cosmology, i.e. ecospirituality, receiving more attention today under New Age Movement. The question of moral duty of human being to the community and nature is the subject of imposition of inherent deep thought, i.e., ethical values, since ancient past in Indian thought. Imposition of value appears as human response to the world, in association with nature, and in realization to the cosmic interrelatedness. This is an issue of human duty, a sense of realization, a wish to promote culture and civilisation for human development.  The idea of nature and human integrity in Hindu thought depends upon ways in which people see and experience themselves, their sense of attachment to nature, and their ways of maintaining this. It is through symbolism, the main expression of mythological understanding, that one can gain insight into the relationships of humanity to nature. Religion (dharma) plays a vital role in the Hindu quest for understanding and practicing harmony between nature and humanity that result to the formation of a cosmological awakening, i.e. ‘transcending the universe’. The importance and applicability of such new consciousness is a good sign in promoting global humanism in the 21st century. The central monistic philosophy of Hindu tradition, Vedanta, recog¬nizes that ‘fundamentally all life is one, that in essence everything is reality, and that this oneness finds its natural expression in a reverence for all things’. This essay attempts to present ecospiritual contextuality and its vitality concerning environmental sensitivity in India, illustrated with myths, traditions and symbols that evolved in the past and continued in the passage of time, and is on the way to critical appraisal.
Keywords: Ecospirituality, Hindu tradition, Gross elements, spirit of place, dharma, new vision.

ICOMOS defined “heritage” as abroad concept that include tangible assets such natural and cultural environment, encompassing landscape, historic places, and build environment as well as intangible assets such as collection, past and continuing cultural practices, knowledge and living experiences – all kind of things which give knowledge about the past, they are under the heritage. These ideas of cultural landscapes and heritage are elaborated in Indian contexts (e.g. dharohar), taking examples of selected components with case study of Ayodhya. The generalized conclusions are:
1. The waterfront city growth model is in alliance with circular growth of city from the core to periphery, where river and sacred sites play a major role in its morphogenesis and organic form. 
2. The growth and expansion of city and holy sites served as counter balance in keeping and maintaining the sacred sites as a part of lifeworld and ritualscapes.
3. The cultural traditions as evolved, continued and maintained lead to develop the imageability of the city; this is quite similar to several such holy cities like Chitrakut, Mathura, Varanasi, and Prayag (Allahabad).
4. Mythology always enriches the aliveness of sacredscapes and associative ritualscapes that altogether result into the formation of ‘faithscape’, which is also symbolised in the varying images and their attributes. 
5. The niches, attributes and characteristics of sacredscape lead to the aliveness of heritage values; those should be taken as frame for evaluating the potentials to put the heritagescapes on the scale of UNESCO World Heritage Criteria.
6. The strategy of Inclusive Heritage Development in the broad structure of the Master Plan will be enriched by the detailed evaluation of the spatial and mapping of heritage properties, as already exemplified by the present study.
vi + 336pp, 25 Tables, 69 Figures and diagrams, Bibliography, 3 Appendices, author’s short CV.

In Indian thought the intrinsic value is posed in the basic quest to know the role of humans with respect to the interrelatedness of ecological cosmology, i.e. ecospirituality, as was re-interpreted through Vedantic thought by Swami Vivekananda. The importance and applicability of such new consciousness is a good sign in promoting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through global humanism in the 21st century. In view of the central monistic philosophy of Hindu tradition, Vedanta, that conceives that ‘all life as one, and in essence everything is a reality’, Vivekananda considered it as mode of ‘well-being for all’, i.e. framing spirituality and self-awakening in the holistic development. 
Keywords: dharma, ecojustice, ecospirituality, environmental conscience, Hinduism, interfaith harmony, karma, moral duties, natural order, new vision, sustainable development, self-realization, Vedanta, Vivekananda.

Most of the visitors (pilgrims in the majority) and the dwellers (mostly Hindus) perform some sorts of rituals at varying degrees and become involved in the religious activities to gain solace or soul healing. Of course, as sidetrack visitors also perform other activities of recreation and side-show. However, these are the marginal activities. Obviously noted that personality of pilgrims and dwellers in the context of economic, social, cultural, job status, and perspective of life, has a direct effect on the nature of environmental sensitivity to its sacred landscapes and mythologies that support and make them alive. Ongoing rituals, continuous performances of Ramalila in the evening, pilgrimages and auspicious glimpses to the divine images, and associated happenings together make the whole are a part of the sacred environment. These are categorised within the frame of responsive perception, testing Kevin Lynch's scale of imageability represented with the five elements, viz. path, edge, node, district, and landmark. The perceptual survey of dwellers and pilgrims are codified into a composite cognitive map that reflects the generalised images of various behavioural attributes that fit the cultural and natural landscapes of the city; this is similar to other holy cities of north India like Varanasi, Mathura, and Chitrakut.
Keywords: Ayodhya, cognitive map, dwellers, imageability, perception, pilgrims, the Sarayu river, symbols.

In the technocratic era of the 21st century Gandhi is taken as icon for global humanism, harmony and peace. Gandhi has not given any theoretic frame per se, but his sayings and lifestyle are the signposts for sustainable development through human service. Gandhi's ahimsa ('non-violence') is an alternative path that would save humanity from its crises, what he referred as sarvodaya ('well-being for all'). His contributions help to re-awaken the human spirit for self-realisation, finally leading to revelation. Under the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) the message of Gandhi has paved the path of holistic human development.
Key wiords: ahimsa (non-violence), democracy, Gandhi, Harijan, interconnectedness, Martin Luther King, morality, Sabarmati, Sarvodaya, Satyagraha, self-realisation, self-sufficiency, social sins, Swadeshi, sustainable development, untouchability.

Abstract. The cult of living water is described in the Vedic literature and is continued vividly in the Puranic literature. These texts also eulogize the Gaṅgā as Gaṅgeya, which means the “giver of all sorts of prosperity and peace”– the liquid spirit of sustainability (Rig Veda, 7.45.31). The “wash away sins” quality of water is endowed with the power of sanctity and has many cosmological connotations in various mythologies. The Gaṅgā is called the ‘Primordial Divine Energy’, and symbolized as the river of the water of life, immortality, and healing from the very presence of God. The Gaṅgā, the patron deity Shiva, and the sacred territory of Kashi together form the Cosmic Trinity of this great city, Varanasi. The people of Banaras as well as Hindus all over India have a sense of rootedness and connectedness to the Gaṅgā. There are 84 ghats (stairways) to the river where developed 96 water-front sacredscapes (tīrthas). Among them five ghats are considered as more auspicious; from south to north, they are: Asi, Dashasvamedha, Manikarnika, Panchagaṅgā, and Adi Keshava; these are called the Panchatirthis (the five most sacred water spots). These sites are also the spots for religious festivities that make the environment constantly alive.
Keywords: cosmogony, festivities, ghats, heritagescapes, mythologies, sacredscapes, Shiva, sustainability, threat, tourism, Vishnu.

Abstract. Varanasi, the city of history and continuity, is one among the oldest living cities in the world, recording settlements since ca 1000 BCE, and eulogized in the followed up mythological literature. Recent archaeological investigations in its vicinity date it back to 1500 BCE. Visit of the Buddha in the 5th century BCE is a testimony to its importance, which helped to develop a monastic township of Sarnath. By the turn of the CE 6th century the city was established as a great sacred place (tirtha), and by the end of the 9th century most of the pan-Indian sacred places were re-established here. The turn of the 11th century, known as Gahadavala period, recorded the golden era, however by the invasion of Aibek in 1197-98 and assassination of the king, the city fell into darkness that continued till the mid 16th century when Mughal Emperor Akbar patronised its growth and glories. During the British period, in the 19th century, the city was marked by establishment of modern educational institutions in imperialist frame, including introduction of railway. Recently being conscious of maintaining identity, the issue of heritage conservation and related movements are the important scenario. 
Keywords: British period, Delhi Sultunate, early period, Gahadvalas, Mughal eras, Modern period, pilgrimage, post-independence, Pratihar, soil phosphate, transformation, Vishvanatha.

The ACLA-APELA International Workshop on Cultural Landscape as National Identity - The Asian Vision, at SNU Seoul Korea: 17~18 November 2017 successfully held, and the national reports of countries presented are: Thailand, Korea, India, Indonesia, China, Japan, Russia, Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Philippines, Georgia, and Vietnam . Indian report was presented by Mr Sarvesh Kumar and Prof. Rana P.B. Singh  who has also delivered the keynote address as the Vice-President ACLA, and provoked the Asian vision and perspectives of the cultural landscapes.
To get recognised Ayodhya as unique heritage of cultural landscapes at global level, Prof. Rana P.B. Singh ex-Head of the Department of Geography at Banaras Hindu University and his research associate Mr Sarvesh Kumar, under the leadership of Prof. Sung-Kyun Kim (President ACLA- Asian Cultural Landscape Association, SNU Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea) have performed field study and discourses with the concerned people from Gimhae during 19~20 November 2017. This field study and the follow up action programme on the line of Ayodhya-Gimhae Interfacing Model of Cultural Landscape and Heritage Planning will lead to develop a model for heritage cities of Asia.

Concept of 'multifunctionality' of cultural landscape can help envisioning landscapes that cross urban-rural divides in sustainable and an integrated way – characterised by wholeness and ecospirituality that developed in the cultural history of landscapes converging into creation of National/Cultural Identity. That is how, the idea of 'wholeness' (cosmality) is transformed into 'holiness' (sacrality) ― evolved and represented with sacred ecology and visualised through the cosmic frames of cultural landscapes in Asia-Pacific region. Through ACLA a march has been initiated for awakening and deeper understanding of the inherent message of cultural landscapes. In the era of cybernetic, it becomes a global concern to understand and re-revealed the grounds of shared wisdom among various cultures where in spite of all the changes, the inherent roots and instinct spirits are still lie in varying attributes of their landscapes. Of course, the ethical domain is based essentially on foundation value what Aldo Leopold referred to as the sacredness of land. Think universally, see globally, behave regionally, act locally but insightfully; this is an appeal for shared wisdom in making our landscapes mosaic of happy, peaceful and sustainable places.
Keywords: Cultural landscape, National Identity, sacrality, sacredscapes, cosmos, shared vision, heritage ecology.

According to the ancient history, Ayodhya was one of the holiest cities where the religious faiths of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sufism (Islam) and united together to build a place of enormous sacred importance. Ayodhya History is a chequered one (see Table 2). In the Atharvaveda, this place was described as a city that was made by gods and was as prosperous as heaven itself. The powerful kingdom of ancient Koshala had Ayodhya as its capital. This city was also a significant trade centre in 600 BCE. Historians have identified this place to be Saketa, a key Buddhist centre during the 5th century BCE (it is a widely held belief that Buddha visited Ayodhya on several occasions) which it remained till the 5th century CE. In fact, Fa-hien, the Chinese monk, kept record of several Buddhist monasteries that he saw here.
Since 2000 Korean people started coming to visit this place. After passage of time with the patronage of Karak Clan Society a Korean park developed near Naya Ghat, and since last two years ca thousand Koreans pay visit to this site in memory of their ancestral mother Huh, from Ayodhya, who married with King Kim Suro in CE 48. . Since August 2010 Ayodhya declared as sister city of Gimhae/Kimhae. This has opened a new avenue for international tourists.

The liveability of India’s cultural capital, Banaras (Varanasi/ Kashi)
Noted Cultural Landscape geographer, heritage scholar, professor and author of 6 books and 125 research papers on Banaras, Rana P.B. Singh (B.H.U., Varanasi, India) talks to Vinayak Bharne (USC Los Angeles, USA) about the multifaceted personality of India’s cultural capital – its characteristics, sacred and heritage landscapes and ongoing strategies of inclusive planning.
This is my life-long wish to publish an Encyclopedic Book on Banaras, which I have not yet completed! I am hopeful that somebody will take this up. There is a folk tale about Banaras: whatever good or bad, complex or simple aspects one can imagine in Indian culture - they are all present and alive in this city; and one is free to choose them. Banaras’ sacredscapes, heritagescapes and faithscapes should be studied with ‘open-mindedness’, that is, having interfaces and balance between an ‘insider’s’ (naive!) and an ‘outsider’s’ (reflective) perspective.
Contact email: ranapbs@gmail.com ; see, https://banaras.academia.edu/RanaPBSINGH/Papers

In the mystical tradition of India, the creation is considered as the consciousness of intermingling of masculine and the feminine powers of nature, in which the latter is considered as primordial and the basic source, prakriti. The Goddess is viewed as omnipresent and omniscient in the sacredscape of Varanasi. The city-dwellers believe that " without the power and energy of Shakti, Shiva … is a shava, a corpse. It is she who embodies the vibrancy of both life and death, thus controls the continuity and balance in the cosmic order (rita). Shiva and Shakti, both are represented independently in 324 forms (i.e. = 108 x 3) whose integration maintains the rhythm of the cosmic cycle in the universe. The history of goddess worship goes back to 4th – 3rd centuries BCE in Varanasi as evident from the archaeological remains. The images, forms, motives involved, varieties of rituals performed, role of sacred place and sacred time, etc. are vividly described in the Puranic mythologies that helped to maintain and continue the tradition of goddess worship, reaching at its zenith by the turn of 12th century CE. According to the Kashi Khanda, dated ca. 13th century, there developed multiplicity of layers, orderings, locations and hierophanies of goddesses, thus reference of 324 forms are enumerated, among which today only 96 are existent, and the rest merged into these form still invoked in rituals with a different names.  The notable categories include Yoginis, Durgas, Gauris, Matrikas, Chandis, Kshetra Devis, and folk goddesses. All these forms converge into spatial patterning and cosmic ordering. The sacredscapes and ritualscapes of goddesses (Shaktiscapes) are now in the process to be integral part of Inclusive Heritage Development.

Lying ca 210km northwest of Varanasi, and 168km northeast of Allahabad, Ayodhya is on the main railroad to Lucknow (135km), and connected by the NH 28. Presently the township is a part of Faizabad City, which is 7km west of Ayodhya. The railway station, tourist bungalow and some of the major sights are located within walking distance of the bus station. The name Ayodhya means " that which cannot be subdued by war ". Situated on the bank of the Sarayu (Ghaghara) River, Ayodhya is one of the 7 sacred abodes (puris) and places of pilgrimage that give liberation from transmigration. Considered to be the birthplace of Lord Rama, it is also connected with many events in the Ramayana. According to Puranic tales, Manu, the first traditional king of India, founded this city in ca 3100 BCE. Ikshvaku was the eldest of Manu's nine sons, by whose name the race and clan is known. In the early period of development in and around Ayodhya (ca 500 BCE-CE 500), Buddhism and Brahmanism alternatively dominated the landscape and culture. By the turn of the 2 nd century CE, the city of Ayodhya was well established and known as a pilgrimage centre, and by the turn of Gupta period (4 th-6 th centuries) many temples and ghats along the Sarayu River were made. With its general decline all over India from the 6 th century onwards, Buddhism lost its position in Ayodhya too, and appears to be virtually extinct there after CE 1000. It is evident through literary and archaeological evidence that in the 12 th century there were five important Vishnu temples located one each at Guptar Ghat, Chakratirtha Ghat and Janmabhumi, and the western and eastern sides of Svargadvara Ghat. Three of these temples were demolished and replaced by mosques and one was swept away by the Sarayu River.
Many other sources and recent works are highlighted.

Ayodhya for a period of over two thousand years has borne witnessed to the presence of Jainism, Buddhism, Shaivism, Vaishnavism, and Islam (Sufism) too projected city as place of religious solidarity. According to the ancient history, Ayodhya was one of the holiest cities where the religious faiths of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Islam flourished together to build a place of enormous sacred importance. Ayodhya records ca 186 Muslim sacred properties, consisting of mosques, mazars (tombs), idgahs (prayer ground), Karbala (burial place), etc. that together makes distinct sacred/ritual landscapes. Ayodhya-Faizabad represents an aesthetic and unique type of religio-cultural landscape and heritagescape that include natural, cultural, and tangible and intangibles heritages, and variety of cultural landscapes. The existence, maintenance and functioning of intangible heritages and Muslim sacredscapes together with other religious group make this city a role model for understanding spirit of place, ritualscapes, and finally a model for inclusive heritage development based on mosaicness of religio-cultural landscape.
Keywords: Cultural landscapes, intangible heritage, dargahs, mazars, faithscape, heritagescapes, sacredscapes, UNESCO.

§ Rana P.B. Singh (born: 15 December 1950) is researching in the fields of heritage planning, especially sacredscapes/religious places and heritagescapes, pilgrimages and settlement systems in Varanasi region since over last four decades as writer, promoter, collaborator and organiser, and also did field studies in Japan, Sweden, Italy, and Korea. On these themes, he delivered special lectures and seminars at various institutions in countries like Australia, Austria, Belgium, China PR, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Indonesia (Bali), Italy, Japan, Rep. Korea, Nepal, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, USA (& Hawaii), USSR (Russia). His contributions include - Spatio-temporal Dimensional theory of Diffusion, Space Articulation theory in Indian villages, Literary images & Spirit of Place, Ritual Mandala & Sacrality of Space and Time, Pilgrimage Mandala, Ritual Mandala, Sacred Geography & Cosmic Order of Holy Places, Geomancy & Cultural symbolism in Hinduism, Concepts of Sacredscape and Faithscape, Pilgrimage systems and Self Organised Criticality theory, Cultural astronomy and Ordering of Sacredscapes and holy cities,  Architectural symbolism and Heritage planning, framing the Heritage/ Sacred Ecology, 'faithscapes and sacredscapes'. His publications include over 298 papers and 41 books on these subjects, including Banaras, Making of India’s Heritage City (2009), Sacred Geography of Goddesses in South Asia (2010), and Hindu Tradition of Pilgrimage: Sacred Space and System (2013).
[Res./ Home]:  Usha Apartment, # N 9/ 87 - D 41 (I-Flr 101-102), Lane No. 5, Janaki Nagar, DLW-Patia Rd, PO: Bajardiha, Varanasi, UP 221106. INDIA
Tel.: [+091]-0-542-2316752. Mobile: [+091]- 98381 19474. Email: ranapbs@gmail.com
web: https://banaras.academia.edu/RanaPBSINGH/Papers/
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ORCID- https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6031-9086
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Abstract. Like many ancient cultures, in Hindu tradition too Sun is considered to be the most prominent divinity in the cosmos and has been part of invocation and festivities since the ancient past. While testing the hypothesis that the city plan of Varanasi has developed according to a cosmic order, it is observed that the temples and shrines related to Sun (Aditya) are placed in a meaningful spatially manifested pattern corresponding to the cosmic geometry and the movement of sun, the association of cosmic north and Kashi-North, and the celebrating seasonal festivities in a sequential order referring to solstices and equinoxes. Probably, this pattern had grown in pre-Brahmanical tradition, and later on superseded by the Shaiva tradition, however they are still part of active veneration and festivities. The nomenclature and iconographic features of all the fourteen Sun images in Varanasi further indicate the mythological links to belief systems and the inherent scientific meanings that were codified in the mystical tradition and continued as part of religious tradition.
Keywords: cosmic order, equinox, mythology, sacred geometry, spatial pattern, solstice, sun images, zodiac.

The Ganga (Ganges in anglicised form) river perceived as the liquid energy of Shiva and eulogised in mythologies as the river of immortality has always been symbolised as river of grace and Hindu integrity. There are many sacred sites and centres of pilgrimage along the Ganga River from the source to the mouth that might do to encourage an ecological conscience and preservative pride in Indian culture. These include Gomukha, Gangotri, Devaprayag, Rishikesh, Haridvar, Kankhala, Soron, Bithura, Prayag/Allahabad, Vindhy¬achal, Chunar, Varanasi, Patna, Sultanganj, and Gangasagara . Ritualistic pilgrimage to the historic and sacred sites along the Ganga is a spiritual form of recharging and recycling energy back to its original source. A short description of the heritage sites and cities are given in the sequence . Consists of 3 Maps, and 14 B Coloured photographs, and selected references.

The 'ritual landscape' is result of maintenance of sacredness and of reciprocal and interfacing relationship between human faith and landscapes in the trajectory of 'time-space-ritual' routines through variety of rituals and performing functionaries. The bank of the Sarayu River at Ayodhya consists of a number of sacred places where devout pilgrims perform variety of the rituals that emerged to form a distinct ritual landscape, thus developed ritualscapes. Ayodhya is the sacred place not only for Hindus, but also to other religious groups, like Jains, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Muslims; that is how multicultural ritual landscapes emerged. Every year around 1.9 million pilgrims pay visit to Ayodhya, and pay visit to variety of sacred places and perform rituals, including sacred walks along the three important pilgrimage routes, i.e. Panchakroshi, Chaudahkroshi, and Chaurasikroshi. The present paper describes the historical and mythological values of varying components of ritual landscapes in the frame of variety of religious places, and finally attempts to develop Ayodhya as a city of global understanding and harmony.
Keywords: ritual landscapes, ritualscapes, sacredscapes, faithscapes, pilgrimage and routes, religious heritage.

In its convention in 1972 UNESCO instituted a special body called World Heritage Committee. Until July 2017 there have been 167 State Parties (countries) as members. In the World Heritage List, 1073 (July 2017) properties are enlisted. It has been realised that the cultural and natural heritages are increasingly threatened by destruction not only due to the traditional causes of decay, but also by changing social and economic conditions. It has further been decided to adopt a general policy, which aims to give the heritage a function in the life of the community, and maintaining it in a sustainable way for the future generation, in the purview of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Smart City vision. For any property or site to be enlisted, the Unesco WHC has passed a general criteria and regulations. From India 36 properties are enlisted in WH List (as on 12 July 2017), however “The Heritage sites, Riverfront and Pilgrimages Routes of Ayodhya” has not yet been proposed for inclusion, mostly due to political complexity. This essays attempts to critically examine the rationales for proposing Ayodhya as a heritage city in the WH List. In this context the status of Ayodhya on the scale of UNESCO-WH List, the implications of the present Master Plan, and related strategies are appraised and described.
Key words: Ayodhya, Unesco WHL, cultural heritage, cultural landscapes, heritage zone, Master Plan, Intangible heritage.

Sarvesh Kumar (born: 09 February 1987) has been awarded Ph.D. thesis on the topic “Cultural Landscape and Heritage of Ayodhya-Faizabad: A Geographical Analysis” in  2018, under the supervision of Prof. Rana P.B. Singh. He has presented papers on various aspects of Ayodhya in six International Seminars held: 4-ACLA Symposium at Bali (Indonesia, 2015), 1-APELA Forum at SNU Seoul (Korea, 2015), 2-APELA Forum at SNU Seoul (Korea, 2016), 33-IGU World Congress  Beijing (China, 2016), 5-ACLA Symposium at Lampang (Thailand, 2016), 6-ACLA Symposium at Vladivostok (Russia, 2017, presented by co-author Rana P.B. Singh), and in several National and International Seminars held in India, and he has credit to publish fourteen papers on these aspects of Ayodhya in journals of repute, like South Asian Affairs (Gifu, Japan, 2013), The Geographer (AMU Aligarh, 2015, 2017), ACLA Proceedings (Bali- Indonesia, 2015), Context (Gurgaon, 2017), and Practising Geographer (2017), and in series from Springer, and Routledge. He is also member of the APELA, Asia Pacific Environment Landscape Association (SNU Korea), ACLA, Asian Cultural Landscape Association (SNU Korea) [serving as Secretary], ICOMOS, International Council on Monuments and Sites (India), INTACH, Indian National Trust for Art, Culture and Heritage (representing Ayodhya), and ABISS Akhil Bhartiya Itihas Samkalan Samiti (U.P.). He is also a Founding Secretary of "DHARA", an youth organization devoted to Nature-Culture Conservation in holy cities like Ayodhya since 2018.
Mob.: [+091]-93074 79877 and 0-87562 59470, Email: sarvesh1k@gmail.com
web: https://banaras.academia.edu/RanaPBSINGH/Papers/
# All his works (with abstracts) highlighted here.

Urban regeneration is the attempt to reverse that decline by both improving the physical structure, and, more importantly and elusively, the economy of those areas. In all regeneration programmes, public money is used as an attempt to pump prime investment into an area. In the context of urban regeneration, the term ‘culture’ seems to refer mainly to those developments and activities that form part of the deliberate and conscious production of space urban cultural and sacred landscape. It appears currently to refer to anything from architecture, heritage buildings and attractions to the visual and performing arts, festivals and religious events, to spiritual satisfaction, entertainment and leisure complexes. Urban cultural and sacred landscape can be an integral part of larger ensembles, such as historic cities, and cultural landscapes. The Indian sacred and pilgrimage city situated on the right bank of Ghaghara River (Sarayu), it is primarily an ancient tirtha (riverfront sacredscapes) and salvific place that has settlement continuity since at least ca 800BCE. Ayodhya is the sacred place not only for Hindus, but also to other religions of India, like the Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhs, and Islam (Muslims) this is described in Hindu mythologies as the birthplace of Lord Rama, a major deity of Vaishnavite group. Ayodhya records a number of rituals, festivities, pilgrimages journeys and important ancient temples, river ghats (stairways and bathing places), holy tanks, holy wells, and holy ponds and their aesthetic qualities and heritage values; those are the representative grandeur of art and tangible and intangible heritage values of the city. Presently around 1.5 million pilgrims pay visit to Ayodhya every year on various religious occasions. The city has example of role of urban culture in framing of sustainable urban regeneration in various forms i.e. culture as a panacea for economic decline, culture as political, culture as a source for social good, culture as environmental enhancement, culture as commercial or business opportunity, culture as symbolic and prestigious and culture as everyday life.
Keywords: Urban regeneration, cultural landscapes, riverfront sacredscape, pilgrimage.

The concept of Indian Cultural Landscape refers to a complex cultural mosaic and network of spatiality of time, temporality of space, sacrality of nature and overall the encompassing manifestation of transcendence of man who since time immemorial is trying to make a strong bridge between conscious mind and super-conscious divine. This way the interplay has been part of constant and continuous evolutionary drama between earthly Man and cosmic Nature, turning into various built-structures and traditions that maintained continuity-maintenance-transformation and changes, of course always keeping the essence of the past that processed and get transferred from one generation to another. This makes the aliveness in the lifeways of the people and culture. Concept of cultural landscape has root in geographical thought and commonly accepted as one of the best strategies to understand and project the vividness and commonality of landscape and culture. This essay is an attempt on the line of critical appraisal of history of Indian Cultural Landscape, and its selected manifestive representations, e.g. cosmic rhythm and mandala, Bharat as Devi, the ‘motherly’ Ganga River and sacred sites, and intangible heritage.
Keywords: Indian Cultural Landscape, heritage, cultural heritage, religious symbolism, Hindu cosmogony, sacredscapes, global message.

The mountainous villages of Shirakawa-gō and Gokayama are well known for the unique architecture of their “Gassho” farmhouses, and enlisted in UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995. These villages with their Gassho-style houses subsisted on the cultivation of mulberry trees and the rearing of silkworms. The large houses with their steeply pitched thatched roofs are the only examples of their kind in Japan. Due to the difficulty of access until recent times, the relations between this area and the outside world were very limited ― and this long isolation gave rise to the unique culture and traditional social systems, folklore and customs, which have maintained their continuity. Taking people participation, environmental assessment and behavioural approach this paper throws light on the deeper heritage values, their role in nature conservation and cross-cultural and comparative studies. The paper also reflects the experiences as ethnological report based on the personal experiences during December 2004, the time when the Tokai Hokuriku Jidosha Do, the national highway passing nearby was opened.
Keywords: Cultural heritage, Gassho farmhouses, heritage tourism, heritage conservation, traditional system, World Heritage site, heritage preservation, nature-culture interface.

From India 35 properties are enlisted in WH List (till October 2016), however ‘The Riverfront Ghats of Varanasi’ has not yet been proposed for inclusion, mostly due to political complexity and lack of strong movement from the stakeholders. Framing tourism and cultural development in holistic frame for national and international resource within the purview of the ancient roots of heritage properties and traditions of spirituality, sacrality and pilgrimages that have a long tradition and continuity in India, the government of India has recently conceptualised programme of HRIDAY and PRASAD with an aim to strengthen and promote the heritage sites and centres of pilgrimage-tourism in making the environment green and sustainable while befitting into the roots of culture, traditions and society and also image of the site. This essay attempts to critically examine the rationales for proposing Varanasi as a heritage city in the WH List and the problems faced in this process since last fifteen years. In this context the status of Varanasi on the scale of UNESCO-WH List, the implications of the past and on-going Master Plans and City Development Plan, governance strategies and issues of public awareness are examined and appraised. Under modern pace of urban planning, the key issues of heritage values and their conservation are put at the margin. The narrative and stories explained here will further help in making conservation strategy for other historic-heritage cities in South Asia.
Keywords: dharohara, heritage planning, HRIDAY, contestation, Master Plan, PRASAD, public participation, SDGs, Smart City.

Hinduism is experienced through its spirituality, sacredness, architecture, and landscape. Hindu temples are Hinduism’s coded religious messages, constructed of symbols, designs, iconography, and depictions of historic and literary events. Combining and unifying these elements, Hindu temples communicate the divine. Eight of the 32 UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites (WHS) in India fall in the category of the religious heritage of Hinduism, viz. Chola temples, Hampi shrines, Mahabalipuram, Pattadakal, Khajuraho, Sun temple, Elephanta caves, and Ellora caves. To date 51 properties are listed in the WHS’s Tentative List from India, and 7 of them are associated with Hinduism, viz. Bishunpur, Ekambra, Hoysala, Srirangapatan, Kakatiya, Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple at Srirangam, and Majuli Island. In Southeast Asia, there are 5 religious WH sites, viz. Prambanan Temple (Indonesia), Angkor Wat (Cambodia), Pashupatinath Temple and other temples (Nepal), Mỹ Son Sanctuary (Viet Nam), and Mother Temple of Besakih (Bali, Indonesia). The case of Varanasi’s Riverfront is a unique Religious Heritage and cultural landscape, still waiting for inscription in the WHL, however due to internal politics and lack of coordination, the process becomes too complicated and difficult. As recent discourses identify the unique characteristics and heritage value of Hinduism and its temples, it will affirm the value of the divine in the human experience.  As a result, pilgrimage-heritage tourism will promote and contribute to global understanding.
Keywords. Heritage ecology, Hinduism, Krishna, Riverfront heritagescapes, Shiva, Southeast Asia, Varanasi, Vishnu, World Heritage Sites.

These Tables and Charts (82-pp.) of various Pilgrimage Routes (Yatras) of Banaras/Kashi/ Varanasi are systematically arranged according to the puranic (ancient religious literature) description while identifying their location (with area, neighbourhood and house numbers). This is for the first time that all the major deities, images, temples and shrines are located with full identification, along with the list of the unidentified ones but refereed into the Skanda Purana – Kashi Khanda. This covers List of all the 84 Ganga Riverfront Ghats and their associated Jala Tirthas (sacred water sites), and all the 29 Yatras (pilgrimage circuits) -  Goddesses on the Cosmic circuit, Panchakroshi, Vishveshvara Antargrihi, Nagar Pradakshina, Avimukta, Kedar Khanda, Omkareshvara Khanda, Jyotir Lingas, Svayambhu Lingas, Uttrardik Yatra, Dakshindik Yatra, Ashtayatana, Chaturdash Ayatana, Vishveshvara Lingatmak, Ekadash Rudra, Bhairava, Sapta Rishi, Surya (Sun god), Vara (week days) and Nava Graha, Masika, Sapta-ritu (seasons), Devi Yatra, 56 Vinayakas, Pancha Vinayakas, Panchamrit Vinayaka, Ashtapradhana Vinayaka, other Vinayakas, Vishnu Yatra, Vasu Yatra, and Mahakupa Yatra.
Singh, Rana P.B. 2009. Banaras, the Heritage City of India: Geography, History, and Bibliography. Also, historical chart, a list of 1100 shrines and divinities and their locations, and Hindu Festivals, 2006-15. Pilgrimage and Cosmology Series: 8. 22 x 15cm, 456 pp.; 13 statistical tables, 32 figures; 1276 entries. Indica Books, Varanasi. ISBN: 81-86569-85-5.

This BIBLIOGRAPHY was first published on 31 December 1993, and updated in 2009 (ref. Singh, Rana P.B. 2009. This is the latest version (updated 15 June 2017), which consists of  1545 [63,640 words] entries, classified into 16 thematic groups: A. Books, mostly in English, with select annotation: 359, B. Research Papers & Essays (mostly English): 650, C (i). Persian Works, Translated: 4, C (ii). Urdu Sources: 4, D. The Sanskrit sources on Kashi/ Varanasi (selected): 59, E.  Books/ articles in Hindi: 101, F.  Marathi Sources: 2, G. Bengali Sources: 3, H. Published Reports/ Government Documents: 27, I.  Electronic Publications: 22, J. Film (English): 11, K. Japanese Sources (in Japanese): 13, L. Unpublished Dissertations, selected: 115, M. Unpublished Reports: 10, N. Govt. Publications, Census, etc. : 11, O. Unpublished Reports (Varanasi: Inscribing Heritage Zones for WHL UNESCO): 03, P. Unpublished (Undergraduate) Fieldwork Projects, The University of Wisconsin Program: College Year in India: 152. ## This is prepared & fully protected under copyright © by Rana P. B. Singh and Pravin S. Rana; to be used strictly and only by having written permission from the authors/compilers.

This short essay, illustrated with five figures/maps 6 photographs, describes in short the general introduction to the Assi area, southern neighbourhood of Varanasi, emphasizing the heritage sites for the purpose of heritage-walk in intimate manner with an aim to have ‘Deep experiences of the Heritage’ and ‘Realising the inherent values and reveal oneself’. This covers the site introductions of: 1. Jagannath Temple, 2. Asi Ghat, 3. Lakshminarayana, 4. Asi Sangameshvara, 5. Birthplace of Rani Lakshmi Bai, 6. Tulasi Ghat, 7. Tulasi Akhara, 8. Arka Vinayaka, 9. Amareshvara, 10. Chamunda/ Mahisasurmardini, 11. Lolarka Kunda – Lolarkeshvara Shiva, 12. Charmamunda-Maharunda/ Nava Durga, 13. Banakhandishvara (Sadhuvela Ashram), 14. Siddheshvara (inside Goyanka Sanskrit School), 15. Panchamandir – Kurushetra Kund, 16. Ananda Bagh (“garden of bliss”), 17. Durga Temple, 18. Tulasi Manas Temple, and 19. Sankatmochan Temple.

In the Oriental world sacred schemata (cosmogram) and related myths are basic concern in the evolution of holy centres. The city of Varanasi represents a complex mix of the cosmocised structure and local sacrality, and has grown without the support of sacred kingship. There exist fifty six pilgrimage circuits, of which five are the most popular ‘and make the web of the cosmogram’. All the pilgrimage circuits and related shrines and sacred spots symbolically represent some aspects of the man cosmos relationship. Situated along the sacred Ganga river, Varanasi has been primarily an ancient tirthas (riverfront sacredscapes) and salvific city that record settlement continuity since at least ca 800BCE. Under the purview of Smart City development strategy through the interfacing programmes of HRIDAY (Heritage city Development and Augmentation Yojana) and PRASAD (Pilgrimage Rejuvenation And Spiritual Augmentation Drive) Government of India seeks to promote an integrated, inclusive and sustainable development of heritage sites (of Varanasi), focusing not just on maintenance of monuments but on advancement of the entire ecosystem including its citizens, tourists and local businesses. The riverfrontscapes are unique and represented with 84-ghats, and provoked to be taken as World Heritage Cultural Landscape. The spiritual sense of sacred geometry can furnish background that will help to understand the cosmic geography and heritage ecology of the city. 
Keywords: Cosmogram, cosmogony, holy city, SDGS, Riverfrontscapes, pattern, sacrality, sacred geometry.

Singh, Rana P.B. (2017), Kashi: ‘The sense of preserving Heritage is missing’; Chandra Swati (2017), Between chaos and Kashi: Thousands of kilometres away, in Kyoto, nothing is like Kashi. Back in Kashi, nothing is like Kyoto; and Singh, Pratap Vikram (2017), Zen and the art of cityscaping: Kyoto keeps the faith in managing civic infrastructure and city governance. These THREE short essays highlight the contemporary scenario and critical appraisal of on-going strategies of development of Banaras/Kashi – the city struggling to make balance between age-old living traditions and planned superimposing development programmes having intension to make this city Smart on the line of Sustainable Development goals and Resilient on the line of Habitat III.

Having a strong historical and cultural base India possesses a dilemma between the continuity of traditions and superimposition of techno-modernity. The inside realities are very hard! The only approach we need is “Humanistic: by the human being, of the humanity, and for the human peace”. Which turning we should follow? The Indian masses have to think and take turn while coping with the processes of globalisation and without any loss to their identity. India is a country of contrasts and diversities, e.g. presently there are thirty-six states, embracing 190 religious groups with 1,652 language and dialects in 12 language families with 24 different scripts, and 3,742 castes and sub-castes further grouped into 4,635 communities. Says Nobel laureate Amartya Sen (1996: 3, 7), “The internal diversities in India offer a great opportunity to learn from each other.  … We must also note that India has much to learn from India itself”.
The main crisis the humankind faces is the crisis of “thought-pollution”, but this can easily be resolved to a certain extent with awakening the spirit of “Self-realisation”. Remember, “if nothing in all the universe is frail as man, nothing likewise is so divine as he!” (Aurobindo 1979: 14). The feeling of this reality can promote global humanism (“whole world as one family”, vasudhaiva kutumbakam), the inherent force of ecological cosmology (cf. Singh 1999b: 84-85).

The growth of image from ancient to modern times clearly indicates our present struggle for survival, and lack of confronta¬tion and welcome to the strange (so-called). This reflects to the gap in understanding and awareness. Tuan (1986: 19) has very timely warned us: “We also fear the strange for obvious reasons. It disturbs and disrupts; it resists our grasping ego; it frustrates our desire to place, classify, or to make consoling forms. There are no doubts, different modes of religious appreciation. One mode is this awareness of the strange not only “out there” but also in the midst of the “quotidian”. This idea further emphasizes the role of environ¬mental cultural awareness with a view to preserving our cultural heritage while coping with the modern needs and value system.
It has been now accepted that “the human body is the first landscape we encounter and explore. It is likely that we carry the cogni¬tive imagery in our heads as well as the actuality of our own bodies as we approach the external environment. Landscape is our second major encounter” (Porteous, 1986: 10). In the light of history the imagery has been ever changing with the fact that man is becoming more individualistic. The bridge between the image and actuality can be made in the perspective of cultural heritage. In this line of thought Master plan of the Greater Varanasi urban region needs re¬orientation with an aim to preserve the cultural heritage and its aesthetic values.

This monumenntal, and rather first ‘all-comprehensive’, Atlas of South Asia is an outstanding production of the consistent devotion of Professor Schwartzberg. It is notable that it took a complement of 50 researchers and 25 cartographers’ full 15 years (1964-1978) to give its final shape. As informed personally, the Atlas has involved about US$ 2,000,000 during the course of processing. The basic idea of the Atlas has been initiated by late Prof. Jean O.M. Broek and Prof. Bernard Stein at the University of Minnesota; and later on charge has been taken by the editor under joint sponsorship of many institutions.
The editor ends his introduction with a philosophic advocacy that ... “whether the road ... be rough or smooth, it is broad and long enough to allow all those who would travel it room to proceed to best of their capabilities. Those who choose to do so will find plentiful rewards along the way” (p. xxxii). Through this grand Atlas he has been successful in bridging the gap between theory and practice with full justice of academic taste, collaboration and production of ‘accurate’, results what he says ‘pucka’ (the ultimate and solid).

The tīrthas (holy places, sacredscapes) of India provide examples of self-amplifying interactions between people and their cultural landscape. The five pilgrimage routes in Banaras symbolises the manifestation and archetypal representation of five koṣas, the ‘sheaths’. That is how koshas are analogous to the five gross elements of organism according to Hindu mythology. The mythologies give a cosmogonic outline to understand the archetypal nature of earth spirit ― a process making a place sacred and exposed in a frame of cosmic geometry. Born of the earth, of water, of fire, of space, and of air, the Hindu divinities are still here among us, still alive, of course invisible. The geographicality of the sacred territories, the pilgrimages and the related journeys, and experiential feelings of the pilgrims directly correspond to the making of complex web of metamorphosis that converged into sacredscapes and faithscapes of Banaras/Kashi.  Banaras is an example of the ‘cosmic whole’, an archetype of ‘body’.

Religion had played a role for controlling power in Indian monarchy in the ancient past, and in contemporary India too it played a role in the formation of religious landscape and corporate identity of religious heritage, through commonly using processions, pilgrimage, religious assemblies, religious fairs (melā), and sacred places. Ayodhya-Faizabad represents an aesthetic and unique type of cultural landscape and heritagescape that include natural, cultural, tangible and intangibles heritages, and variety of cultural landscapes. The city’s cultural landscapes, are illustrated with riverfront sacredscapes and faithscapes, sacred sites associated with Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Buddhist and ever Sufis (and other Muslims), and several other small congregations. The existence, maintenance and functioning of intangible heritages and sacredscapes make this city a role model for understanding spirit of place, ritualscapes, and finally a model for inclusive heritage development.

It has been realised that the cultural and natural heritages are increasingly threatened by destruction not only due to the traditional causes of decay, but also by changing social and economic conditions. It has further been decided to adopt a general policy, which aims to give the heritage a function in the life of the community, and maintaining it in a sustainable way for the future generation, in the purview of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Smart City vision. For any property or site to be enlisted, the Unesco WHC has passed a general criteria and regulations. From India 35 properties are enlisted in WH List (till November 2017), however ‘The Riverfront Ghats and Old Heritage area of Varanasi’ has not yet been proposed for inclusion, mostly due to political complexity. This essays attempts to critically examine the rationales for proposing Varanasi as a heritage city in the WH List. In this context the status of Varanasi on the scale of UNESCO-WH List, the implications of the present Master Plan, and related strategies are described.
Key words: Unesco WHL, cultural heritage, cultural landscapes, heritage zone, Master Plan.

ACLA: Asian Cultural Landscape Association, is a recently formed global body of landscape profession with members from all the countries in Asia (i.e. thirty-eight), and also those concerned to Asian Cultural Landscapes from any part of the globe. It represents the cross-disciplinary and interdisciplinary study of cultural landscapes in both governmental and non-governmental organizations. ACLA is a non-political, non-governmental and non-profit democratic organization in the service to make the happy, peaceful and sustainable cultural landscapes of Asia. President: Prof. Sung-Kyun KIM (SNU Korea), Vice-President: Prof. Rana P.B. Singh (BHU Varanasi, India).

As globalization accelerates, the expansion of pilgrimage has encouraged environmental cleanliness and ecodevelopment programmes having commitment to protect our living planet sustainably and awakening ourselves though deeper experiences – from realisation to revelation, ultimately that foster peace. The Green Pilgrimage Network initiative (GPN) has made the path easy and accessible. The Hindu temples should become models of care and respect for the Mother Nature, reflecting the deep values of Vedic tradition. The strategy of planning and conservation of sacred sites under IUCN are also important to link with pilgrimage-tourism on the line of the initiatives taken by the Green Pilgrimage Network initiative (GPN) organised by the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC) and the Bhumi Project. Already several pilgrim cities are registered in the GPN. Use of faith-based system and pilgrimages enveloping peace and cultural awakening would give a new response to environmental sensitivity, conservation and fostering peace. The alternative worldview of interconnectedness and holism is considered more relevant today, especially on the line of harmonious coexistence and global peace. Pilgrimage and spiritual tourism are accepted as common ways on this path, as illustrated in initiatives like Green Pilgrimage, Pilgrimage-Tourism, etc. Their vision, experiences and expositions will further pave the path in strengthening the good cause of IIPT. This can be illustrated with examples from pilgrimages in many countries; of course India presents the variety and distinction.

This book consists of fifteen essays that deal with links between ecology and shamanism, landscape and nature spirit, emphasising web of meanings imbued in the cultural tradition of portraying landscape as temple and territory as archetypal representation of the cosmos. In view of appreciating the path in this direction paved by David Kinsley (1939-2000, both on 25 April), this anthology is a memorial tribute to him by his students, friends, associates and admirers, including an essay that critically and rationally examined his contributions and their relevance today. Of course, there are books on the thematic or disciplinary-packed orientation, however rarely any interdisciplinary book that narrates many perspectives and facets around sacred geography of goddesses is published. This anthology fulfils that gap substantially, through the essays by scholars from religious studies, geography, anthropology and cultural studies.

On the line of 'deep ecology' and quest for searching and understanding the inherent messages, symbology is now accepted as common road to march upon. The idea of Earth as living nurture of life substance is a popular ideology even in the West, whose deeper roots are linked to Eastern mysticism. The way of Tantrism tries to integrate 'use' (bhoga) and 'meditation' (yoga) and provides a clue to understand the spirit of place. The inherent spirit and its expositions are vividly narrated in the complexity of mythology and symbolic expressions. The story of Chhinnamastā is a unique example of this mythology and set of symbols in the line of the tradition of the Great Goddess. The present paper is an ethno-geographic attempt to describe the mythology of the Chhinnamastā, rituals performed, her sacred complex shot into prominence at regional level recently and the activities there.

In India, the system of goddess (devi) worship and pilgrimage to their seats (shaktipithas) are one among many ancient living traditions. The absolute total number of goddess places in India, which runs into thousands, too attests the importance of goddess worship contemporarily. However, the levels of importance vary as per the textually prescribed and perceived greatness and superiority. Being the ancient most it is called Adipitha ('the primordial seat') and highly revered. Among shaktipithas, Kamakhya is the most venerable. The Kamakhya Devi temple is located in the vicinity of Guwahati, on a hill called Nilachal, the provincial capital of Assam – the major northeastern state of India. The present paper seeks to explain its historico-cultural background, mythological context, origin and symbolism, the sacredscape and the main temple's architecture, ritualscape, associated festivals, and the pilgrims' motive. Kamakhya's mythological context underlines its respectable place in religio-cultural history of India. The manifested form of the Goddess contains several symbolic meanings which assert her creative image. Over the years, increased number of visiting pilgrims has led to the growth of the several sacred shrines and other profane structures in the temple complex.