Wari walking

On the 11th day of Aashaadh (June-July), an ocean of devotees, having undertaken an arduous two-week journey on foot, descends on the temple town of Pandharpur, in Maharashtra, for a glimpse of their Lord Vitthal, a manifestation of Vishnu. Those who undertake this centuries-old pilgrimage, known as wari, are known as warkaris. Singing praises and dancing to the rhythmic beat of cymbals and the mrudunga drum, the warkaris convene either in Dehu or Alandi, from where the procession, also known as palkhi (literally meaning palanquin), begins.

Sant Tukaram, a poet-saint, is said to have popularised the wari custom during the 1600s. He was a follower of Sant Dnyaneshwar, considered to be the spiritual guru of the warkaris, who at the age of 15 wrote a Marathi commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, thus making available the divine knowledge that previously only the Brahmin priests had been allowed to access. This, then, is the essence of wari: to break down norms surrounding caste and creed and open up worship to everyone.