Holiness
Assi Ghat, shortly before dawn. This might be my favorite photograph of the whole year. The colors really did look like that.
Out of all of the holy places in a very holy country, Varanasi may well be the holiest. Varanasi lies on the Ganges River southeast of Delhi. The Ganges River is considered to be holy by the Hindu faith, so devout pilgrims make their way to Varanasi to immerse themselves in the waters. They bathe, dip, swim, pray, splash, launder, and wash in the river. Some even die there. Hindus believe that dying in Varanasi liberates the soul from the endless birth/death cycles they’d otherwise be subjected to if they died elsewhere. Cremations occur at the burning ghats on the side of the river, and bodies are carried down to the Ganges to their final resting place. The thing is, thanks to the mix of garbage, sludge, sewage, and creamated bodies that enter its waters, the Ganges is actually septic. Some uneducated people don’t know. Other people know and don’t care.
As you could imagine, Varanasi was a whole new level of intensity for us. To be surrounded by so much faith and so many private moments that are lived out loud in public was fascinating and overwhelming. The septic waters may not be scientifically capable of creating new life, and people may be dying all around, but Varanasi is one of the most alive places I’ve ever been.
Even though Varanasi is a holy place, above all else it is an actual city. This school bus rickshaw made us smile.
We typically took the auto-rickshaws and passed up the ones that are pulled by bicycle because it just seemed so uncomfortable to force another human to pull our weight around by his own.. This guy looked so crestfallen when we first refused the ride that we reconsidered and decided we should give him an opportunity to earn a living too. Although the slow ride made us miss the beginning of the night ceremony at the Dasaswamedh Ghat, riding on the cycle rickshaw gave us a totally different perspective than the noisy, exhaust spewing auto-rickshaws.
Candle selling in Varanasi appeared to be a big business.
All around, Hindu pilgrims make their offering to the Ganges.
Dasaswamedh Ghat, around 7:30 p.m.
This man looked very solitary despite all of the fervor behind him.
Varanasi is one of those places where you struggle over whether you should really be there, paying to observe real life, but in the end you participate like everyone else and try to make yourself feel better by saying, well at least I'm just observing, not intruding. We paid this man to row a boat down the Ganges at dawn like so many other tourists. The rowing is hard work and he was quick to let us know it, playing on our heartstrings with tales of his children in broken English to ensure a tip. Travel. It's complicated.
Sunrise on the Ganges. The light created is one of the most incredible things I've seen in my whole life. It makes the brown waters luminescent.
It also makes the ghats on the side of the river glow.
Lighting candles to offer to the Ganges.
Everyone is doing their own thing in close proximity as if the others aren't there. Bathing, laundry, praying, sitting.
What an amazing place. Thank you for showing it to me through your eyes…we lost our courage before we got there. It was a place I was looking forward to…to see such faith.
Absolutely amazing photos. My Indian friend Shilesh had told me about the rivers. I’m so glad you captured it all to show us.
Great photos!
People are dying all around not only in Varanasi )
What beauty and magnificence…I think the top one is your best photo yet, too! Also very glad you captured such an amazing experience so that we may take part.
BY FAR BEST PHOTOS YET! And I haven’t even gotten to look at them. I’m still in japan on photos!!! I’m sure you know this, but the twilight hours produce the best pictures, both in the am and pm. I can’t wait to dive into your album!!!!