The sanctum of Bharat Mata Temple is a large hall containing an immense marble relief map of India, surrounded by a circumambulatory walkway. The map is said to be perfectly in the ladder, both vertically and horizontally. The huge marble relief in Bharat Mata Temple (Mother India Temple), inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi, displays Indian subcontinent and Tibet. The map of India is highlighted with its rivers, mountains & tirthas, the sacred places well known to Hindu pilgrims. It’s interesting to see the course of the Ganga and Yamuna through the mountains and the course of the Kaveri across south India. The engraved map is symbol of dense relationship between Mother India’s anthropomorphic form and the map form of India. The pilgrims perform circumambulatory walk, called ‘pradakshina’ (प्रदक्षिणा). They faithful consider the circumambulation a pilgrimage to the four ‘dhams’ (चार धाम) of India –
Badrinath, Rameshwaram, Dwarka & Puri. Though offering flowers, garlands, fruits, money etc is discouraged but, the pilgrims, owing to religious zeal, offer bright marigolds onto the map of Mother India. A heap of marigolds can be spotted upon Rameshwaram, one of the Chardham where Lord Ram had established a Shivalingam. In nutshell, Bharat Mata Temple in Varanasi is depiction of Hindu ethos that treats India as mother goddess and delineates ancient India’s geographical boundaries.