CULTURAL TOURISM IN MARWAR

(Erstwhile Marwar State of Great Indian Desert) A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

By: Dr. Mohan Lal Gupta

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Cultural tourism has become the largest peacetime movement of people in the history of mankind today. Fortunately Marwar has a great potential of cultural tourism. Its history, geographical conditions and tough climate have given this opportunity. The typical geographical and climatic features of this land made the human life very tough but in medieval centuries, the bigger threat came from invaders who were encroaching from all sides. The people of Marwar fought against their enemies to save their land, cows and religion, not to save their women, wealth or children. There were endless wars with endless results. The warriors of this land were eating coarse cereals like Bajra and Moth and pushing their enemies to the boundaries. These typical characters developed this area into a typical cultural region. This cultural region is situated in the eastern part of Great Indian desert- The Thar. I born and brought-up in the Thar. My heart is poured with its cultural beauty. My lungs are filled with the fragrance of its soil and my blood is made of the deep water of the sand dunes. That is why; I decided to do this tough job for foreign tourists who come in big number every year to see the cultural beauty of the region. There is no village, no hamlet and no piece of land which doesn't possess the cultural beauty, cultural heritage or tourism destination. I have tried to cover the different aspects of Cultural tourism of the area. In spite of Cultural Values, Traditions and Practices, readers can find details of Forts, Palaces, shrines, Havelis Temples, Mosques, Church, Historical Gardens, Bagechis, Ponds and Wells, Museums and Academies, Paintings, Handicrafts, Festivals, Fairs and Infrastructure development and challenges of Cultural Tourism in Marwar.