Varanasi20 Mar 2012
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Evening Aarti at the ghats
Early morning at the Ganga
Watching Bollywood on the Ganga
| This morning we took a Spice jet flight to Varanasi in the state of Uttar Pradesh, the fourth largest and most populous. It took 40 minutes and out of the windows we could see snow capped mountains - was it the Himalayas, we wondered? Varanasi was always going to be a highlight and as we made our way down to the Ganges for the evening Aarti at the Ghats the mood and scene around us was incredible. From time immemorial this has been a great religious centre for Hindus and one of their most sacred places of pilgrimage. Needless to say we were not alone as we watched the priests arouse the deities by blowing in conch shells, chanting and clapping. They also went through a synchronized sequence of waving incense and oil lamps and bell ringing. People made offerings of floating lit candles and flowers to the river. There were lots of Holy men, Sadhus also known as Babas in saffron robes who you could consult regarding any of life's problems, be it health, love, wealth. Many were legitimate and others only there to make some money off the tourists. Sadhus are sanyasi, or renunciates, who have left behind all material and sexual attachments and live in caves, forests and temples all over India and Nepal. They are widely respected for their holiness and sometimes feared for their curses. The next morning we got up early to reach the river for a glorious sunrise. We again went out on a boat and saw all the different ghats, one for bathing, one for laundry. We also saw the cremation ghat which was stockpiled with wood and had a cremation in progress. It was peaceful watching from the river as the sun rose and people went about their religious rituals in and around the water. Thousands of faithful come daily to the banks' to bathe and pray. In Hinduism, the river Ganga is personified as Goddess and holds an important place in the Hindu religion. In Hindu mythology, bathing in the river causes the remission of sins and facilitates the attainment of salvation or nirvana. This deep-rooted truth is proved by the fact that people travel from distant places to immerse the ashes of their kin in the waters of the Ganga at Varanasi. Occasionally we would spot a Westerner who had embraced the Hindu religion and was sitting in the lotus position, meditating in the glow of the morning sun. Later in the day we visited Sarneth where Buddha preached his first sermon in 590BC. It is one of the holiest Buddhist sites in the world. Whilst listening to our guide explain the site to us we were rushed by a group of excited adolescent school boys who wanted us to be in their photos. |
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