Varanasi, also known as Kashi/Banaras, is nestled on the banks of the Ganges (Ganga) River and exhibits the true essence of India.
It is one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities.
“Banaras is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together,” said American writer Mark Twain.
Myths and hymns speak of the waters of the Ganges as the fluid medium of Shiva’s divine essence and a bath in the river is believed to wash away all one’s sins.
Families travel from near and far to bury their dead and see the bodies carried through the streets before they’re set alight and their souls are set free.
On the first day of our visit, we found that this old city’s narrow lanes are only meant for walking. At most you can get around on a two-wheeler.
While you are walking, you have to be careful because if you walk blindly, you are bound to step on cow dung.
Honking is also something that people love to do, no matter whether there is traffic or not.
I don’t consider myself very religious, but because we were in the city of temples, we made sure to start our tour at the Kasi Vishwanath Temple. This temple is at the heart of many pilgrimages.
It is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas in India and is considered the most important one.
As we were waiting in a long queue to get inside the temple, a priest came and applied a yellow and red tilak on our foreheads made from a paste of sandalwood and vermilion as a religious mark.
After two hours of standing in the slow-moving queue full of people chanting “har har mahadev” at the top of their lungs, we finally got a glimpse of the deity’s idol.
Varanasi is not only famous for its temples and narrow alleys, it is also well known for its lip-smacking delicacies.
We headed to the nearest food joint — Kaashi Chaat House — and relished every bite of a variety of chaats that had their own distinctive flavours.
By now it was dark so we decided to go to the Assi Ghat, one of the 84 ghats in the city.
Ghats are the beautiful riverfront steps that join the city and the river.
This southernmost ghat is situated at the confluence of the Assi and Ganges rivers, duly marked by the presence of Sangameshwar Mahadev temple.
When we were hardly a kilometre away, we got stuck amid a huge crowd and instead of going further we decided to return to our hotel.
The next morning we headed to have malai toast, which is unique to Varanasi.
Malai is the topmost layer of milk. Varanasi’s buffalo milk is thicker than usual, so when boiled and served, the cream is super tasty and thick.
It is spread on toast and sugar is sprinkled on top — a real treat for the taste buds.
From there we hired an autorickshaw and went to see the Namo Ghat.
The renovated Khidkiya ghat is popularly known as Namo Ghat because of three large hand sculptures folded in a “namaste”.
For two days the incessant and omnipresent noise had given us headaches.
But then we visited Sarnath, away from the crowded city.
Sarnath is a Buddhist pilgrim spot and is the place where Lord Buddha preached for the first time after achieving enlightenment.
One of the main attractions of Sarnath is the 24-metre high statue of Buddha. It is India’s tallest standing statue of Lord Buddha. There were Japanese, Thai, Tibetan and many other temples and museums nearby that were all worth visiting.
However, no trip to Varanasi is complete until you have attended the majestic ritual of thanksgiving — Ganaga Aarti — to the river goddess, Ganga.
Every evening, elaborate, colourful ceremonies are held on the steps of Dasaswamedh Ghat. You have to arrive early to find a good seat.
We booked our seat on a houseboat to watch the performance.
Those performing the Puja, dressed in saffron-coloured robes, stand on small platforms near the river. They perform slow dances where large, flaming lamps are moved around in synchronised patterns.
At other times, the priests hold incense sticks and waft smoke through the air while chanting prayers.
The pounding of the tabla vibrates around you, and the ringing of bells is continuous behind the spiritual chanting.
After the rituals were over, we travelled by boat to all the ghats of Varanasi where we ended our Varanasi trip and boarded the next train to Agra.
