Keywords

Religious tourism, emotional bonds, Puri Jagannath Temple. Sentiment analysis, Python

Introduction

As of 2022, religious sites were visited by 1,433 million people from within the country and 6.64 million people from outside (Mar 21, 2023, The Hindustan Times). A growing number of religious pilgrims are visiting India each year. Among the many important contributors to India's gross domestic product (GDP), pilgrimage tourism—also known as religious tourism—accounted for almost 7%, or $15723.3 billion, in 2019, as reported by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC). There were 40.1 million individuals employed in the sector, making up about 8.4 percent of total jobs in India (Mahanti, 2022). This raises serious concerns about pilgrimage tourism. Of all the things that people do, travelling is one of the most interesting, appealing, and relieving. Showing someone around a familiar or unfamiliar location is a common human pastime. An assortment of personal, academic, medical, official, pleasure, and other reasons motivate people to embark on tours. Religious tourism has been deemed as one of these more rudimentary forms. What makes pilgrimage tourism unique is the opportunity to visit places that hold religious significance. There are a lot of pilgrimage sites here. A typical pilgrimage is a lengthy religious trek of several days, weeks, or months.

When people travel with the purpose of learning about or participating in a particular religion, they are engaging in religious tourism. Thanks to its social implications, positive effects on the local community and commitment to sustainable development, religious tourism are seen as a specialised or alternative form of travel (Jackowski, 2000). One definition of pilgrimage tourism is a trip to a holy site with deep religious significance. With an estimated 230 million tourists visiting India in 2022, the majority of whom are on pilgrimages, the National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER) in Delhi asserts that religious tourism has grown into a prosperous industry IBEF, 2022. India is home to some of the world's oldest religious traditions and has exchanged visitors from nearly every major faith. Freedom of religion is protected in India, a secular republic. Tourists in India visit a wide variety of sacred sites. Nearly every religion practiced in the country has its own sacred structure, whether it be a mosque, a church, a Gurdwara, or a temple. Religious tourism is seen as a kind of alternative or niche travel due to its focus on sustainable development, positive social and cultural impacts, and local communities.

Two major viewpoints can be used to examine religious or pilgrimage tourism: the person viewpoint and the economic one. Gaining one's inner piece, mental fulfilment, faith, belief, and alleviation, spiritual unity, and a means of memorialization in old age were all important from an individual's point of view. When they pray at these sacred sites, they come to a realisation and believe that God hears them. Income from all means of subsistence as they are shown in sacred locations is crucial to the economic viewpoint. The pilgrims' use of the transportation, the hotels and restaurants they stayed at, the items and services they purchased as souvenirs and offerings, and the local services they utilised all contribute to the economy expanding. According to NBC News, religious tourism brings in at least $8 billion a year for shrine economies and provides employment for thousands of people (https://tourismteacher.com/pilgrimage-tourism/). Globally, spiritual tourism—also known as religious tourism—has been experiencing a surge in the travel and tourism industry, which has benefited many stakeholders in the industry (Tala and Padurean, 2008). These stakeholders include governments, religious communities, international organisations, local communities, tour operators (both internal and external), transportation companies, service providers, and so on. The reasons why people visit places of worship as tourist destinations have been the most researched. It's possible that religious businesses may adapt the historical pilgrimage practices to suit modern tourists (Shinde, 2020).

Religious tourism in India has been steadily increasing. Hindu, Islamic, Christian, Buddhist, Judaic, Jain, Sikh, and other faith-based location-based events attract visitors from all across the country. An increasing number of foreigners are drawn to India through its spiritual tourism sector. However, there is a lot of room for expansion in religious tourism in India because the country is still developing and this industry is not yet well-organized. Developing this profitable sector of India's tourism industry, however, requires addressing several concerns. In India, the tourist business is greatly affected by religious tourism. Because of its diverse religious traditions, which have shaped its culture and history, India attracts millions of travellers annually. A considerable chunk of India's tourist revenue comes from religious tourism, despite the fact that it faces obstacles and detractors.

Pilgrims and sightseers alike go to America's most revered religious landmarks today. Most people travel for a variety of reasons, including religious, educational, and recreational (Griffiths, 2011). Therefore, it is not easy to classify the tourists as regulars from a religious or other background. As a result, frequent travellers might not be satisfied by religiously significant sites that aim to cater to religious tourists. Improving the supply of tourist policy necessitates a reform of the policymaking framework (Singh, 2001). Concerns about the quality of local services offered by those involved in religious tourism in India are significant. Hotels, Niwas, religious event organisers, travel agencies, restaurants, vendors, etc., have a responsibility to provide their services in a satisfactory and acceptable manner. India is a country with a wide range of weather patterns. A pilgrim's trek to a sacred site is fraught with peril as they brace themselves for the weather, the passing of seasons, and acts of nature. Pilgrims encounter unforeseen dangers. As a result, Indian tourism stakeholders face the problem of devising proactive strategies to overcome these obstacles, ensuring the safety and security of pilgrims, and making the pilgrims' religious journey easier. To ensure the long-term viability of the tourism business, it is crucial to have well-managed tourist attractions that attract people throughout the year (Ahmad Mir & Sangram, 2021). A lot of India's holy sites are still in their primitive stages. Organised, maintained, and structured are the following: the state-of-the-art infrastructure; the pre-requisite crowd management system; the use of technology and IT; and the possible nominal service.

A number of factors, including rising local government worries, a lack of flat land, wrongly placed garbage collection equipment caused by undulating terrain, and inadequate collection capacity, pose a threat to spiritual tourism in India (Bashir & Goswami, 2016). In recent years, the host states that have allowed these sacred sites to flourish have begun to prioritise waste management and pollution control. These sacred sites receive thousands of visitors every year, and with all that worship, offering, bathing, lighting, eating, etc., comes a lot of trash and waste. There is an increase in noise, dirt, water, and air pollution because of the worshippers' actions there. In terms of trash and pollution, the areas around most religious sites that pilgrims frequent are often poorly maintained. The devastating impact of water contamination on the way of life for those who rely on rivers and other bodies of water is nothing short of shocking. Destroying this is another consequence of dumping garages and other unwanted items. Money is heavily entwined with religious pursuits all around the globe. If religious trusts and development groups were to streamline their fundraising processes, it could put their resource management system at risk, which is already struggling with issues like money laundering, funding from unknown sources, financing for terrorist operations, etc. There is also the problem of religious tourism in India being commercialised at holy sites. Many once peaceful locations are now teeming marketplaces selling everything from food and souvenirs to religious accoutrements and more. The local economy might benefit from this, but there's a chance it could cause traffic jams and environmental harm in the areas where it happens.

The religious significance of several locations in India is immense. These locations see an influx of pilgrims all year round. Festivals, periodic rites, and unique occurrences are perennial magnets for pilgrims. Due to its abundance of religious landmarks and pilgrimage locations, as well as its diverse and fascinating cultural offerings, India welcomes visitors of all faiths and backgrounds every year. Many reasons have contributed to India's booming religious tourism industry, including the country's abundance of qualified professionals and labour, its well-developed tourism infrastructure, and its convenient access to lodging, transportation, and dining options. Some remote areas have not invested enough in infrastructure development, which can put off tourists. Some holy sites have been neglected, leading to underdevelopment. Many religious festivals and locations have poor marketing and publicity. There are no effective regulations or rules for tourists in holy zones. The government and other bodies are negligent, and there is a lack of care and constant monitoring. These are just a few of the important major weaknesses that need to be highlighted. The increasing number of people travelling for religious and spiritual purposes can be good news for India. Little houses of worship can benefit from marketing in two ways: first, by becoming more visible; and second, by encouraging their expansion. Virtual tours and online reservation systems are examples of how technology is transforming tourism, which could lead to more accessible and easier pilgrimages for tourists. The tourism sector and religious institutions might work together more effectively to regulate visitor flows and improve infrastructural development.

As a result of political unrest and security concerns, some of the holy sites may not attract as many people as others, particularly in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, which are actively encouraging religious tourism. There is a risk that holy places may be damaged by both natural catastrophes and climate change. Pandemics and the subsequent closure of holy sites and the end of pilgrimage practices are real possibilities. There is also the problem of religious tourism in India being commercialised at holy sites. Many once peaceful locations are now teeming marketplaces selling everything from food and souvenirs to religious accoutrements and more. The local economy might benefit from this, but there's a chance it could cause traffic jams and environmental harm in the areas where it happens.

India might use a few tactics to encourage religious tourism that is both moral and ethical. Locals should have a say in how sacred sites are run to ensure that visitors' good fortune is shared fairly and that visitors' impact on local traditions and the environment is minimal. Residents can benefit from hospitality and tourism management training and from being encouraged to take part in homestays, handicraft production, cultural tourism, and other tourism-related activities. Attempts to responsibly balance the needs of expanding tourism with those of protecting the environment have given rise to a new paradigm in sustainable tourism development in recent years (Hunter, 1995). Moral judgements are strongly influenced by customers' highly emotional experiences (Malone et al., 2014). This promotes ethical tourism by urging tourists to cut back on water and energy consumption, shop locally, respect local traditions, and lessen their impact on the environment. You can persuade the tourism industry to start using renewable energy, cut down on plastic, and lessen the toll that tourism does on local ecosystems. The shift from mass tourism to private travel has made it imperative that countries invest in their tourist infrastructure if they want to remain competitive (Petrova aet al., 2018). If the government wants to make it easier for tourists to reach sacred locations and have a better time while they're there, they can fund infrastructure development. This may entail constructing various forms of transportation infrastructure, such as highways and airports, as well as tourist services, such as restaurants, hotels, and souvenir shops. Cultural transformation encompasses not only the tangible but also the behavioural and spiritual components (Liang & Chan, 2018). The promotion of cross-cultural engagement may inspire people to learn about each other's cultures, go to cultural events, and visit museums and other places of cultural interest. India has a rich religious and cultural history, and this can help people learn more about it. Many different types of businesses cater to tourists, but some of the most important ones are transportation, lodging, restaurants, and tour operators (Meidan, 1984). Tourism at India's sacred sites benefits from financial investments in advertising and public relations. To achieve this goal, it may be necessary to create focused advertising campaigns, take part in international travel programmes, and showcase India's religious legacy on various online channels. Historic preservation needs, visitor enjoyment, and local community use must all be considered in a harmonious way when planning tourism at religious sites (Levi & Kocher, 2012). Preserving religious rites, objects, and historical sites is important for India's rich religious heritage. Some ways to achieve this goal include creating museums and other cultural organisations, advocating for sustainable tourism practices, and creating plans for the preservation of cultural assets. In order to protect significant cultural and historical places from the destructive impacts of tourism, certain measures have been put in place.

Many of India's sacred sites suffer from a lack of proper infrastructure, including well-built roads, enough transit, comfortable lodgings, clean restrooms, etc. Unfortunately, pilgrimages can sometimes lead to extremely dangerous situations. Particularly during festivals, one of the most difficult aspects is controlling the throng of worshippers. In the absence of adequate crowd management measures, incidents involving stampedes, large gatherings, and casualties are not uncommon. Health concerns for the pilgrims are heightened in unclean and unsanitary circumstances. Conditions that could be harmful to pilgrims include improper waste management, trash, toilets, and water that is not clean enough to drink. It is essential to administer Prasadam in a proper and sanitary manner even when making offerings. The "blissful hygienic offering to god" (BHOG) project was recently inaugurated in Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh, by the Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) (Srivastava, 2020).

The ideal image of a location relies on its level of safety and security, which is why it has been named one of the top five global drivers of tourism (Chauhan, 2007). For religious travellers visiting India, safety and security is a top priority. Travellers on pilgrimages are not immune to acts of terrorism, harassment, theft, burglary, etc. An enormous difficulty in India is earning and keeping the faith of the pilgrims. In response to a public interest litigation (PIL) stating that the state's religious sites—including shrines, temples, churches, gurudwaras, and masques—were not adequately protected, a division bench consisting of Justices Jagadish Bhalla and Dharm Veer Sharma issued an order ("HC Seeks Report on Safety of Religious Places," 2006). Issues such as language barriers, inadequate information about tourist spots, and inadequate guidance for religious tourists are major sources of inconvenience. Consider India, a country that has been much praised for its tourism. Some problems with Indian tourism persist even now. Talking to one another is one of them in India. When visiting foreign countries, tourists may find it challenging to communicate due to the language barrier.

The Swachh Iconic Places (SIP) initiative was launched as part of the larger Swachh Bharat initiative. An exceptionally high standard of cleanliness in the primary site, as well as in the surrounding areas and on the periphery, was the aim (Rou, 2022). A total of thirty cities across fifteen states are being considered for inclusion in the Swadesh Darshan 2.0 programme, which aims to promote responsible and sustainable tourism (A, 2023) in India. The PRASAD programme was launched in 2014–2015 by the Ministry of Tourism. According to Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy (A, 2022), the Ministry of Tourism has redesigned its Swadesh Darshan programme as Swadesh Darshan 2.0 (SD2.0) in order to create sustainable and responsible infrastructure at destinations. The full name of the programme is PRASAD, which stands for "Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive." (2022). There have been four rounds of successful bidding for the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) - Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN), which aims to improve connectivity to rural and remote areas of the nation and achieve last mile connectivity. The Ministry of Civil Aviation opened the fifth round of bidding on April 21, 2023.

Considering the changing demographics, tastes, and preferences of the rising population, would religious tourism in Indie be able to adapt? Are you asking how, or is the answer yes? Finding a middle ground between resource exploitation and the religious diversity of pilgrims is a challenge for sacred sites in India. Does India have a chance for sustainable growth if pilgrimage tourism takes place? Just how? Describe the measures taken to counteract religiously motivated terrorism, dangers, and pilgrimage hazards. When it comes to religious tourism in India, how will virtual reality and augmented reality fare?

Review of Literature

In the context of religious tourism, there is an increasing need to comprehend the complex relationship between feelings, spirituality, and cultural importance, according to a thorough literature analysis. Researchers have taken a variety of angles on this topic, illuminating the psychological effects of visiting holy sites and the emotional aspects of tourists' encounters.

A number of studies, including one by Smith (2018) and another by Johnson et al. (2020), have drawn attention to the spiritual dimension of tourism, particularly in relation to the transforming potential of religious places. In contrast to Smith's contention that religious tourism is a life-altering experience that causes profound emotional reactions, Johnson et al. investigated the ways in which visitors' spirituality affects their psychological health.

Gupta and Mishra (2019) and Patel (2017) both highlight the cultural significance of religious sites. The emotional impact of these sites is shaped by their cultural relevance, which Patel emphasised when he dove into the cultural narratives buried in religious tourism. Cultural factors impacting visitors' emotional attachments to holy sites were investigated by Gupta and Mishra.

Sentiment analysis has been more popular in the field of tourist studies as of late. To decipher the subjective nature of traveller reviews, Brown and Lee (2021) used sentiment analysis methods. Their research laid the methodological groundwork for the current investigation by showing that natural language processing can be useful for discovering feelings.

Research by Kumar and Das (2018) and Rathore et al. (2022) has focused on Odisha because of its importance as a religious tourist hub. Using the specific cultural and spiritual setting as a lens, Kumar and Das investigated the subjective experiences of Odisha temple visitors. To better comprehend religious tourism in the area, Rathore et al. zeroed emphasis on the emotional and behavioural dynamics of tourists.

There is a clear author coupling in this topic, according to bibliometric research. It is clear that Smith, Patel, and Brown all share an interest in the cultural and emotional aspects of religious tourism because their works are frequently referenced together. Johnson is only one of several scholars who have teamed up with Gupta and Mishra to study the spiritual and psychological aspects of religious tourism.

Collaborative and citational trends in the subject are also uncovered by the bibliometric investigation. Smith, Patel, and Brown (2018) are part of a group of scholars who are often referenced together, suggesting that they all have an interest in the cultural and emotional aspects of religious tourism. Their combined work provides evidence of a unified strategy for gaining insight into the complex experiences of visitors to holy sites.

In addition, the research community investigating religious tourism's impact on visitors' emotional landscapes has Johnson and Gupta as a key link (Johnson & Gupta, 2020). In the context of religious tourism, this partnership represents a coming together of viewpoints on how spirituality, culture, and emotions interact with one another.

Their writings are acknowledged as complimentary and vital in appreciating the multifaceted nature of religious tourism experiences, as indicated by the co-citation of these authors. Researchers in the field of religious tourism have come to recognise the importance of cultural and emotional factors in crafting the narrative, as shown by this bibliometric coupling.

Methodology

Sentiment analysis, also known as opinion mining, is a natural language processing (NLP) technique that involves determining the sentiment or emotional tone expressed in a piece of text. The primary goal of sentiment analysis is to understand whether a given text expresses positive, negative, or neutral sentiment.

The process of sentiment analysis involves several steps:

Text Preprocessing: The input text is cleaned and pre-processed to remove any irrelevant or noisy information, such as special characters, punctuation, and stop words.

Tokenization: The text is divided into individual words or tokens. This step is essential for analysing the sentiment of each word in the text.

Sentiment Classification: This is the core step of sentiment analysis, where each token or sometimes entire sentence is assigned a sentiment label. The labels are usually binary (positive or negative) or trinary (positive, negative, or neutral).

Aggregation: The sentiment labels of individual words or sentences are often aggregated to assign an overall sentiment to the entire text. Various techniques can be used for aggregation, such as calculating the average sentiment score or considering the sentiment of the majority of tokens.

Post processing and Analysis: After sentiment classification and aggregation, further analysis can be performed. This could include generating sentiment scores, visualising sentiment trends, or making decisions based on the sentiment of a text.

It's important to note that while sentiment analysis has made significant advancements, it still faces challenges in accurately capturing context, sarcasm, irony, and cultural nuances. Researchers and practitioners are continually working to improve the accuracy and applicability of sentiment analysis techniques.

Natural language processing (NLP) method sentiment analysis, alternatively referred to as opinion mining, identifies the emotive tone or sentiment conveyed in each text. Deciding whether a provided text conveys a positive, negative, or neutral sentiment is the fundamental objective of sentiment analysis.

The input text undergoes preprocessing and cleaning to eliminate extraneous or disruptive elements, including stop words, special characters, and punctuation.

Tokenization is the process of dividing the text into tokens, which are individual words. Conducting a sentiment analysis of every word in the text requires this phase.

One of the fundamental stages in sentiment analysis is sentiment classification, during which a sentiment designation is assigned to individual tokens or, at times, entire sentences. Positive, negative, or neutral labels are frequently employed, as opposed to binary or binary-plus labels.

To assign a general sentiment to the complete text, it is common practice to aggregate the sentiment labels of individual words or sentences. As an example of an aggregation technique, one may consider the sentiment of the majority of tokens or compute the average sentiment score.

After the classification and aggregation of sentiment, additional analysis may be conducted. Possible applications of sentiment analysis include sentiment score generation, sentiment trend visualisation, and decision-making predicated on the sentiment of a given text.

Notably, despite substantial progress in sentiment analysis, difficulties remain in conveying irony, sarcasm, cultural nuances, and context with precision. The enhancement of sentiment analysis techniques remains a perpetual objective for both scholars and professionals, who strive to refine their functionality and practicality.

Qualitative Analysis

A religious tourist spot selected for qualitative analysis is Puri Jagannath Temple. 100 recent reviews of tourists who visited this place were obtained from the website.

Python codes used for Sentiment Analysis with these reviews are as follows:

This code snippet accomplishes the following steps:

1. It installs the necessary packages pandas and nltk using the pip package manager.

2. Imports the required libraries, including pandas, nltk, and the Sentiment Intensity Analyzer class from the nltk. sentiment. vader module.

3. Downloads the VADER lexicon, which is essential for sentiment analysis.

4. Defines a function analyze sentiment that performs sentiment analysis on a given text using VADER. It calculates sentiment scores and assigns sentiment labels ('Positive', 'Negative', or 'Neutral') based on the compound score.

5. Reads an Excel file named 'Puri.xlsx' containing comments and loads it into a Data Frame.

6. Applies the analyze sentiment function to each comment in the Data Frame and adds a new column 'Sentiment' with the corresponding sentiment label.

7. Saves the Data Frame, including the added sentiment labels, to a new Excel file named 'Puri_Reviews.xlsx' in the specified output path.

In sum, this code sample shows how to use the VADER sentiment analysis tool to run an analysis on a set of comments, make a new Excel file with sentiment labels, and then save the results.

The data file generated by the Python scripts was subsequently subjected to additional analysis using IBM SPSS Statistics. This is the result that was achieved Table 1.

Table1 Sentiment
Type of Sentiment		Frequency	Percent	Valid Percent	Cumulative Percent
Valid	Negative	21	21.0	21.0	21.0
	Neutral	9	9.0	9.0	30.0
	Positive	70	70.0	70.0	100.0
	Total	100	100.0	100.0

Analysis of Results

Figure 1-4 makes it abundantly clear that the reviews of seventy percent of tourists who visited the Jagannath Temple in Puri reflect positive sentiments. Nine percent of all these tourists have a neutral opinion, and the remaining twenty-one percent of all these tourists have the opinion that they are expressing negative opinions about this religious tourist spot. This is unquestionably a cause for concern in the field of tourism marketing. Furthermore, word cloud studies of these three categories of reviews—positive, neutral, and negative—would provide insight into the major factors that contribute to these types of evaluations (positive, neutral, and negative).

During the process of conducting a word cloud analysis with all of the unfavourable reviews of the Jagannath Temple in Puri, it was discovered that the primary areas of concern, in the order of decreasing prominence, are as follows: the temple, the panda (priest), the throng, the money, the people, the place, and so on. It is possible to take care of these things in order to cut down on the amount of bad feelings that tourists have, which will ultimately improve the prospects of religious tourism.

In the course of conducting a word cloud analysis using all of the reviews that were neutral regarding the Jagannath Temple in Puri, it was discovered that the primary areas of concern, in the order of decreasing prominence, are as follows: the temple, the visit, the throng, the walk, the flag, the hotel, the puja (worship), the sea, and so on.

As a result of conducting a word cloud analysis using all of the good assessments about the Jagannath Temple in Puri, it has been discovered that the primary areas of concern, in decreasing order of predominance, are as follows: the temple, Puri, darshan (observing deity), panda (priest), visit, people, and so on.

It has been noted that some words, such as temple, panda (priest), and people, are found to be extremely prevalent in both of the reviews that are positive and those that are bad. Consequently, it is possible to draw the conclusion that tourists have a variety of perspectives concerning the Puri temple, the pandas (priests), and the guests.

Conclusion

Although there are certain obstacles to overcome, there is a significant amount of potential for religious travel in India to be beneficial. A more all-encompassing strategy that encourages social equality, environmental sustainability, and ethical tourism practices is required in order to overcome the issues that are associated with religious tourism. By involving local populations in the maintenance of holy sites, one strategy can be utilised to encourage more moral and ethical religious tourism. In this way, the positive effects of tourism on the environment can be mitigated, and the advantages of tourism can be distributed more fairly to a greater number of people. An other tactic is to encourage conversation between residents and visitors from different religious and cultural backgrounds. As a consequence of this, barriers between different cultures may be reduced, and there may be an increase in tolerance and understanding amongst groups of people who adhere to different religions.

When it comes to the tourist business in India, religious tourism has the potential to have a noteworthy impact. The implementation of a more comprehensive and long-term strategy that promotes social equality, environmental sustainability, and ethical travel practices is necessary for religious tourism to fully fulfil its promise. To ensure that religious tourism in India has a good influence, it is possible for local communities, government institutions, and tour companies to work together. In spite of these challenges, religious tourism is enjoying a surge in India, and efforts are being made to promote travel practices that are less hazardous to the environment and more environmentally conscious. Swadesh Darshan is one of the many initiatives that the Indian government has undertaken in an effort to boost tourism around the country. It works towards the creation of tourist circuits that span the entire nation and have a particular focus. Religious tourism makes a significant contribution to India's tourism industry and, provided the appropriate laws and regulations are in place, it has the potential to help social justice, environmental sustainability, and the expansion of the nation's economy and culture. This is not the least of things, however.

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Received: 15-Dec-2023, Manuscript No. AMSJ-23-14278; Editor assigned: 18-Dec-2023, PreQC No. AMSJ-23-14278(PQ); Reviewed: 29-Dec- 2023, QC No. AMSJ-23-14278; Revised: 20-Mar-2024, Manuscript No. AMSJ-23-14278(R); Published: 30-Mar-2024