If there is one thing we fear—and fear it most desperately than death itself—it is the dread of living a life without significance. This dreadfulness has become more prominent as we advance technologically in our struggle to master the external world. We chase impossible goals that turn to ashes in our own hands. Our interior world remains unexplored, uncultivated, and barren. Even though we have enjoyed remarkable technological progress, the psychic cost has been great. It is like we have dangled ourselves over the edge of a rocky promontory.

The world that we have made for ourselves is a very complex one indeed. Particularly in the Western world, where life is vastly easier and most people live longer, eat more, and work less. Many live in private homes and drive to work alone in their own cars. Office workers communicate instantaneously across continents through telephone, fax, and email. Industries crank out new goods faster than people can buy them in ever-bigger shopping malls. All these advantages come at a price: new kinds of health problems, many caused by dirty air and water left behind by industries, the loss of parkland as highways devour open spaces, and sprawling desolate suburbs where neighbors are strangers and fear of crime isolates people behind locked doors.

Psychologists and psychiatrists lay more and more emphasis on the mental health of the people living in highly automated urban surroundings and rightfully advise leisure and recreation activities, which need not necessarily mean physical rest but also genuine mental regeneration. But in what form? The answer is tourism that is sustainable in nature.

One of the world's foremost espousers of Vedantic philosophy is India's Ramakrishna Math & Mission, which has been spreading the essence of Vedanta—on living a meaningful life, which is perfectly in accordance with the Vedas. The Vedic way of life is as eco-friendly as one can possibly imagine. A visit to the ancestral village of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa, the spiritual Guru of India's great cyclonic monk Swami Vivekananda, is tranquility personified. The Gar Mandaran-Kamarpukur-Joyrambati tourist circuit will come as a total surprise to the discerning international visitors. The slow-moving ox carts still ply on the village roads, the thatched hutments are still in existence, joyful jatras (village theatres) are still performed by rural artists, cows and buffaloes are still being used in tilling the soil, and the popular folklore is still alive even to this day in spite of the onslaught of modernity.

The burgeoning surge in the number of visitors, both domestic as well as international, who visit the Gar Mandaran-Kamarpukur-Joyrambati tourist circuit is due primarily to the essence of Sri Ramakrishna’s ideology – “The Christian is not to become a Hindu or a Buddhist, nor a Hindu or a Buddhist to become a Christian. But each must assimilate the spirit of the others and yet preserve his individuality and grow according to his own law of growth.” How inspiring indeed!

The Vedanta Philosophy endeavors to lead mankind to the place where there is neither the Vedas nor the Bible nor the Koran; yet this has to be done by harmonizing the Vedas, the Bible, and the Koran. And it all started from two minuscule villages (Kamarpukur and Joyrambati) located in one of the remotest corners of the state of West Bengal. The circuit is replete with sparkling water bodies, ruins of old buildings, and temples that bear ample testimony to its rich virile past. The lush green hinterlands surrounding the Gar Mandaran-Kamarpukur-Joyrambati tourist circuit offer breathtaking scenic vistas of the romantic Bengal countryside. There are also the quintessential rural Bengal sweet shops that still churn out mouthwatering traditional Bengali sweets like jelabi, nolen gurer sandesh, rajbogh, lady keannie, kalo jam, payesh, etc. that are sure to make the most discerning foodie succumb to his or her taste buds.

During the festival season, the Gar Mandaran-Kamarpukur-Joyrambati tourist circuit, particularly Kamarpukur and Joyrambati, takes on a whole new look. The two main festivals—Durga Puja and Kali Puja—are celebrated with great pomp and grandeur. Equally impressive are the celebrations of the birthdays of Sri Ramakrishna and Holy Mother Sarada Devi, which attract visitors from all over the world, and it’s carnival time out here.

The security that mankind knew once is now long gone. The faith that knit our lives together slowly unraveled with the intrusion of science. The paradigm shift in the West’s worldwide view over the past century has rendered God, if not dead, at least coolly marginalized. It is the “spiritual outlook” that gives meaning to life. It is the spiritual approach to life that recognizes that our lives have meaning and that there is a purpose and a goal.

It is this element of security that is on offer in the Gar Mandaran-Kamarpukur-Joyrambati tourist circuit. Add to it the characteristic features of religious tourism, and you have all the makings of an “Eden on Earth.”

Volunteer opportunities

These days, discerning international travelers crave an experience that is elevating and enriching. Today’s travelers are no longer interested in "homogenized “mass tourism.” With the burgeoning growth of eco-tourism and sustainable tourism, the concept of “volunteer tourism” has now made its presence felt in the fast-changing global tourism industry. One of the principal reasons for the growing popularity of “volunteer tourism” is the opportunity to travel safely and cheaply.

In the Gar Mandaran-Kamarpukur-Joyrambati tourist circuit, there will be opportunities galore for overseas volunteers to offer their skill and expertise in restoring the monuments and temples, as well as natural and cultural heritage sites that are intimately connected with the life and times of one of India’s greatest spiritual giants, Sri Ramakrishna. The opportunity to live with a local family and even attend lively temple services with the simple village folks can indeed be a very rewarding experience.

The Gar Mandaran-Kamarpukur-Joyrambati tourist circuit is poverty-ridden, and according to Suzanne Edmonds from the USA, who had recently visited the villages of Kamarpukur and Joyrambati – “When you see the dreadful sight of poor children sifting through garbage, you inevitably tend to carry that image back home with you. And once you are at home, you marvel at the privileged life that you lead as you relax with the Jacuzzi.”

An increasing number of people are joining the volunteer tourism bandwagon to make their holidays fun-filled and joyous. From rebuilding homes in tsunami-hit Southern India to teaching English in a remote hamlet in Thailand, volunteer tourism is on the rise.

It has finally dawned on the holidaymaker that it’s doubly exciting to perhaps lead a relief mission in earthquake-hit Gujarat to donning the scuba diving gear to collect vital data related to the dolphins in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

Volunteer tourism is essentially tourism with ethics. The volunteers abhor the very idea of experiencing an alien culture through the windows of a hotel room or bus. Today’s volunteer tourist is quite willing to part company with a 5-star deluxe hotel room for a night’s halt in a poor fisherman’s hut in one of the remotest corners of planet Earth. As tourists, they go back home with an experience that is elevating and that their holidays had a purpose, which no amount of “sunbathing” could have bestowed.

As a philanthropic organization, the Ramakrishna Math & Mission has been providing charitable and philanthropic services to the poor and the needy. With a dedicated set of monks who are also experts in relief and humanitarian works, the Ramakrishna Math & Mission has carved a niche for itself as an organization that has provided high-quality humanitarian assistance to millions of underprivileged Indians.

Today, as a result of extending unmatched humanitarian services to the nation for many decades, Ramakrishna Math & Mission has its own hospitals, mobile dispensaries, schools, colleges, and technical training institutes. Needless to say, there is always the need for skilled and qualified people who are in a position to impart education and training to the budding youths of India, offer the light of education among the tribal, or even provide maternity facilities to the rural womenfolk.

The spirit of “volunteerism” is particularly noticeable amongst North Americans, Australians, Western Europeans, as well as the Japanese people.

Volunteer tourism is known to have a “Domino Effect.” Volunteers from affluent western countries are very often known to sponsor holiday trips for the local host families with whom they share a deep understanding. While there are others who repeatedly keep on visiting their volunteer holiday spot and kind of get captivated and obsessed with that holiday spot.

Volunteer tourism isn’t just meant for the young and agile. In fact, there are instances galore of people who are 60+ embarking on a volunteer holiday and being involved in challenging projects involving the preservation of natural and cultural treasures in a destination of their choice.

As far as the villages of Kamarpukur and Joyrambati are concerned, there are opportunities galore for volunteer tourism activities. Apart from the common activities like imparting education to the poor village folks and providing medical relief to the needy, one key area that might have a lot of relevance is to involve volunteers from abroad to be associated with the restoration of temples and structures that are intimately associated with the Ramakrishna Movement. Volunteers from affluent Western countries like the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, France, the Netherlands, etc. may be offered the opportunity to join the local community in their restoration efforts. This is one great opportunity for the people of the Western world to put their heart and soul towards the preservation and protection of one of the great spiritual centers of India.

There are many full-time as well as lay monks associated with the Ramakrishna Math & Mission that can guide volunteer tourists with knowledge of the philosophy of Sri Ramakrishna, the legend of the life and times of Sri Ramakrishna, and the personal stories of the great saints associated with the movement.

Conclusion

The Government of India’s Ministry of Tourism and the Department of Tourism, Government of West Bengal, may deliberate and formulate a comprehensive policy for regulation and management of religious tourism in this region which gels with the requirements of the existing tourism policy of the state of West Bengal. This would help in sensitizing the pilgrim tourists and spiritual seekers, who form a major component of the entire tourism in the region, to the needs of development and sustenance of “environment-friendly religious tourism” in the region.