The Way of Life - South India and Kerala - page 933

Pilgrimage
Devout Hindus are expected to go on a yatra (pilgrimage) at least once a year. Pilgrimages
are undertaken to implore the gods or goddesses to grant a wish, to take the ashes of a
cremated relative to a holy river, or to gain spiritual merit. India has thousands of holy sites
to which pilgrims travel; the elderly often make Varanasi their final one, as it's believed
that dying in this sacred city releases a person from the cycle of rebirth.
Most festivals in India are rooted in religion and are thus a magnet for throngs of pil-
grims. This is something that travellers should keep in mind, even at those festivals that
may have a carnivalesque sheen.
Read more about India's tribal communities at www.tribal.nic.in , a site maintained by the Indian govern-
ment's Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
INDIAN ATTIRE
Widely worn by Indian women, the elegant sari comes in a single piece (between 5m and 9m long and 1m wide)
and is ingeniously tucked and pleated into place without the need for pins or buttons. Worn with the sari is the choli
(tight-fitting blouse) and a drawstring petticoat. The palloo is the part of the sari draped over the shoulder. Also
commonly worn is the salwar kameez, a traditional dresslike tunic and trouser combination accompanied by a
dupatta (long scarf).
Traditional attire for men includes the dhoti, and in the south the lungi and the mundu are also quite often worn.
The dhoti is a loose, long loincloth pulled up between the legs. The lungi is more like a sarong, with its end usually
sewn up like a tube. The mundu is like a lungi but is always white.
There are regional and religious variations in costume - for example, you may see Muslim women wearing the
all-enveloping burka.