The Holy City of Varanasi

The Holy City of Varanasi - 1-4 Feb 2001

Our four days in Varanasi was the most fascinating and magical part of the trip for me. With the help of our 'Mercury Man' guide Manu, we explored the impossibly narrow and winding streets of the bazaar, and the endless human panorama of the bathing ghats on the Ganges. The ghats are where it's at in Varanasi (formerly Benares). From dawn to late in the evening they are aswarm with pilgrims washing away their sins (and brushing their teeth), children selling orange flowers for garlands, small gatherings of sadhus smoking hashish, small gatherings of aging American and European hippies smoking hashish, a chaotic array of stone temples, brightly-painted residences, the vivid aarti fire ceremonies in the evening, and the Ganges itself -- cool and incredibly refreshing (or so I'm told).

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the plane from Agra to Varanasi

Varanasi airport welcome

   Airport security in India would be a good model for the U.S. The decor of our jet dated to ca. 1963.

Jacquard loom - programmed by punched cards to print saris

sari shop splendors

sari shop - Djien, Mary, Elaine

   First stop: a sari shop - an outlet for the sari factory in the building next door. Many transactions were enacted.

dawn trek to bathing ghats - Bob, Sharon, Sonya, Michael, Gene (Sherry)... and some citizens

dawn trek - woman selling flowers

   On our second day in Varanasi we arose very early indeed to board a dozen bicycle rickshaws (Dharmaram and colleagues) for a chilly

Mary in boat

sunrise over the Ganges

   trek of several miles to the Daswamedh Ghat, where we boarded a boat for an unforgettable hour-long trip up and down the river, as

ghats

our boatman

Susan, Theresa, Manu,
Bob, Sharon, Michael, Sonya

   the sun rose on the opposite shore. It was very quiet, and most serene. We got to see the the full variety of the ghats, and the life

ghats - with temples, and odd orange boat

ghats

   that was beginning to stir on them as residents descended to start their day with a dip in the holy waters.

ghats and ferry boats

same ghat as at left (from a postcard)

   The ghat at lower left is where Tom, Trish, Theresa and Warren realized that they'd become separated from the rest of the group.

ghats

ghats

ghats and bathers (remarkable shot)

   A native boy who remembered us from the previous day found our comrades, earning 100 rupees from Theresa for his efforts (!).

pilgrims take their dips - Mary L.,
Leonor, Mary Ellen, Phil, Shelly, Mary

Phil in the Ganges, Mary under the Ganges

   Many of our number found their way into the holy river, assisted by the kindly fellow above, who was probably never properly com-

Rick, pretending not to peek
[photo by Joy B.]

leaving the ghats - for a tougher environment - Tom, Rick, Joy, Theresa, Richard, Sonya

   pensated for his efforts. Much changing of clothes occurred next -- a special treat for the oarsman stranded at that end of the boat.

Shiva temple

Shiva temple -
swastikas, interesting sign

Phil and Susan in rickshaw

   Varanasi is sacred to Shiva, and apparently, to his ever-present lingham, to which we paid our respects in this temple.

Mary - near Lahiri Mahasaya's house

doorway to home
of Lahiri Mahasaya

relatives' shrine for Lahiri
Mahasaya

   One important reason for visiting Varanasi was to honor the memory of Lahiri Mahasaya - at his former home in a narrow alley not far from the ghats, and at a nearby shrine constructed for him by members of his family.

Buddhist temple at Sarnath

Sarnath temple - golden Buddha

   We spent the better part of a day at nearby Sarnath, where a temple commemorates Buddha's recitation of his first sermon,

murals depicting life of Buddha, Sarnath temple

    to his earliest disciples, ca 590BCE. Buddhism enjoyed a great flowering in India in the 3rd century BCE, under Ashoka, and then

mural - Buddha leaving home

mural - baby Buddha

   declined. It was introduced to China ca. 500CE, and then found itself very welcome in Japan, where the Mahayana strain developed,

Buddha preaching his first sermon

Buddhist stupa and Jain temple, Sarnath

    and later Zen Buddhism. Among the visitors we saw at Sarnath were Japanese Zen Buddhist monks, and many people whose

Sarnath - Gene, Susan, Sherry, Manu, kids

sign explaining Sarnath [partly readable]

    sun-roasted features suggested that they were from Tibet, Bhutan, or Nepal.

Warren jamming with
local dancers and musicians

python lullaby

python, mongoose,
and savvy handler

   Silly things happened on occasion... not entirely explainable...

Warren, Mary, Dharmaram, Bob, Sharon

shoeshine men

passing locomotive

   Just riding through the streets of Varanasi is a very rich experience, especially in Dharmaram's bicycle rickshaw.

Golden Temple
[from a postcard]

ancient bazaar near Golden Temple

shopping

   The Golden Temple is off limits to non-Hindus, but the streets are friendly, teeming, and full of strange and wonderful things.

ghats at evening, before aarti ceremony

Manu (aarti ceremony)

shrine at the ghat

   The mesmerizing aarti ceremonies, full of clanging bells and blazing torches, enliven the ghats every evening.

at the Clarks Hotel, Varanasi

our beloved Tourist Vehicle,
at Clarks Hotel, Varanasi

   ...and then we boarded our long-suffering bus for the long ride to Allahabad, and the pleasures and trials of the Maha Kumbh Mela.

    First posted 12 Aug 2001. Last tweaked 19 Sept 2001.