Vishnupad at Gaya: The Footprint That Made a City a Place of the Dead

The account that explains why Gaya is Gaya is the story of Gayasura, and it is unusual in that the asura is the hero.

As the tradition tells it:

• Gayasura performed austerities of such intensity that he obtained a boon: whoever saw him or touched him would be freed of sin and attain liberation
• This proved a problem for the ordering of the worlds, since the mechanism of merit and consequence stopped functioning as it should
• The devas approached him and asked for his body as the site of a yajna, and he consented
• The yajna was performed on him, and he remained still through it
• When he continued to move, a stone was placed on him, and Vishnu pressed it down with his foot to hold him steady
• Gayasura asked for a boon in return, that the place bear his name and that rites performed there for the ancestors be effective

The footprint in the Vishnupad sanctum is understood as the mark left by that pressing.

What the katha establishes is worth noticing. The site's power comes from an asura who asked, as his final request, that a place exist where the dead can be served. The tradition names the city after him and honours the request.

Pind daan is the offering of pindas, balls usually of rice, barley flour and sesame, made to the ancestors, and Gaya is the principal site in India for it.

How the rite works in outline:

• The family engages a gayawal pandit, the priests of Gaya who hold the hereditary role of conducting these rites
• Sankalp is taken, naming the ancestors for whom the offering is made
• Tarpan, water offering, is performed, typically at the Falgu river
• Pindas are offered at a sequence of vedis, ritual stations, across the city
• The Vishnupad sanctum, the Akshayavat and the Falgu are the principal stations
• The full traditional circuit runs to many vedis over several days, though most families perform a shorter sequence

What should be understood:

• The rite is performed for parents, grandparents and the ancestral line, and also for those who died without rites being performed
• It can be done at any time of year, though Pitru Paksha is the traditional period
• Fees and arrangements should be agreed in advance with the pandit, and this is worth doing carefully, as at any large pilgrimage centre
• The rites involve fasting and specific observances, which the pandit will set out

For most families this is a solemn and emotionally significant journey, undertaken once, and the city's entire economy and rhythm are shaped around receiving them.

Two features of Gaya are inseparable from the rites, and both carry their own katha.

The Falgu river

• The river flows past Gaya and is dry on the surface for much of the year, with water below the sand
• Local tradition explains this through the Ramayana, in the account where Sita, performing rites for Dasharatha at Gaya, is compelled to bear false witness by the river and curses her to run underground
• Devotees dig into the sand for water when the surface is dry, and tarpan is performed there
• A rubber dam project in recent years has created a water body near the ghat, changing the practical situation

The Akshayavat

• The imperishable banyan, held to be undying, where the final pinda of the Gaya sequence is offered in many traditions
• Tradition holds Sita to have granted it a blessing after the same episode
• It stands within a temple compound at a short distance from Vishnupad

What these two add to the site is texture. Gaya is not one shrine. It is a landscape of stations, each with a story, through which a family moves in sequence performing rites, and the movement itself is part of what is being done.

The fortnight of Pitru Paksha, in the dark half of Ashwin, is when Gaya receives its largest gathering.

What happens:

• Lakhs of pilgrims arrive over the fortnight, from across India and from Indian families abroad
• The city runs a mela administration, with accommodation, sanitation, crowd management and dedicated arrangements at the vedis
• The Vishnupad temple, the Falgu ghats and the Akshayavat are at their busiest
• Gayawal pandits work through the days conducting rites for family after family
• The Pitru Paksha period ends with Sarva Pitru Amavasya, the day on which offerings are made for all ancestors

Practical guidance for a Pitru Paksha visit:

• Book accommodation far in advance, since the city fills completely
• Arrange your pandit in advance if possible, through family connections or a known reference
• Agree charges beforehand in writing or clearly in speech, and be cautious of intermediaries
• Expect long days on foot, and plan for heat, crowds and queues
• Carry the details of the ancestors for whom rites are to be performed, including names and gotra where known

For those who cannot travel in Pitru Paksha, the rites can be performed at other times of year, and many families do exactly that to avoid the crush.

Practical notes.

Getting there

• Gaya Junction is a major railway station on the Delhi to Kolkata line, well connected across India
• Gaya airport has domestic and some international flights, particularly for the Buddhist circuit
• Patna is about three hours by road
• Autos and taxis run throughout the city, and the temple quarter is walkable

When to go

• Pitru Paksha in Ashwin, the traditional fortnight, when the city is fullest
• Any other time of year for a quieter performance of the rites
• Winter is the most comfortable season for a general visit

At the temple

• Dress modestly, remove footwear at the designated place
• Follow the queue arrangements, which are strict during the mela
• Photography restrictions apply in the sanctum area
• Non Hindus may face entry restrictions at some shrines, so check locally

Nearby

• Bodh Gaya, about 13 km, the site of the Buddha's enlightenment, one of the most significant Buddhist sites in the world, visited by pilgrims from across Asia
• Mangla Gauri, the Shakti Peeth on the hill above the city
• Barabar caves, further out, among the oldest rock cut caves in India
• Rajgir and Nalanda, within reach for a longer trip

A closing note. Gaya is a place people come to out of duty and grief, and the atmosphere reflects that. It is not a festive pilgrimage. Visitors who are not there for rites should be aware of what is happening around them and hold themselves accordingly.