Varanasi, City of Shiva

Varanasi, the last major stop of my time in India, was the most intense city in India I had a chance to visit. I can't imagine another city in India possessing the intensity and feel as unique as Varanasi. The city is renown for pilgrims coming to burn there loved ones and allowing their ashes to drain into the holy Ganges river. The center regions of Varanasi near the banks of the Ganges are extremely crowded and have numerous narrow and winding lanes and an incredible array of shops and businesses. The ghats, the steps leading down to the river, number over 100, most of them bathing ghats with several used for cremation purposes. Many of the ghats are associated with legends and other Hindu mythology. The ghats stretch on for miles, making for some quality walking and sight-seeing. At the moment the monsoon season is over in Varanasi and the Ganges river has fallen in height considerably, at least 20-30 ft it seems looking at watermarks along the walls. It is now possible to walk much further down the steps of the gnats than would have been possible last month. During the peak of the monsoon season the river rises to heights nearly completely covering over the height of the steps, which can be quite steep and high is some areas. During this time I would imagine the city and riverfront area has a much different feel, as there is much less area on the steps for people to congregate and hang out, particularly for the morning and evening pujas.
In many areas powerful hoses and generators are out hosing out large piles of mud and sediment which deposits itself during high river time. I would imagine the operators must uncover some interesting discoveries from within the deposited mud, probably much bones and parts of bodies. I had heard that those who can't afford cremations are often tied down which heavy rocks or other apparatus and tossed into the river after they have died. Often times these corpses wash ashore when they have decayed enough to loosen out of whatever was holding them down. I never had the experience of seeing any bodies floating around however. Others I have spoken to have talked of seeing dogs gnawing away at the riverbank on decomposing corpses.

The busiest, most colorful, and probably most spectacular of the ghats is Dashashwamedh Ghat. A group of priests daily perform various pujas, or religious cermonies, in the evening at this ghat, including "Agni Puja" (Worship to Fire) wherein a dedication is made to Lord Shiva, River Ganga, the Sun, Agni (Fire), and the whole universe. It was quite fascinating watching these performances during the evening, as crowds of devout Hindus and as well as tourists flock to the ghat to observe the performances lasting for over an hr. In a center area next to a guardrail sit countless beggars and medically downtrodden, many looking plagued with leprosy and deformed or missing limbs. Pretty much all of them sit with begging pots or outstretched hands asking for money. The levels of poverty and those living in the streets are staggering. Even if you give change to one person you have hundreds and thousands more asking a moment later. Mixed in with the people on the gnats are the everpresent cows, goats, dogs, and occasional monkeys making quick raids for food. The visual stimuli is overwhelming, not too mention the noise and everpresent strench of the place.

The primary burning gnat is Manikarnika Gnat, located a little bit north up the Ganges from Dashashwamdgh Gnat. Here 24 hr burning of corpses is going on, with constant smoke and activity surrounding the area. Walking the narrow lanes in the blocks surrounding the gnat is it quite common to bump into processions of men carrying corpses on their way to their burning location. Apparently only certain lower caste and untouchable men are employed in the process of carrying the bodies. Huge piles of wood are stockpiled and waiting to be used to burn up the bodies. Apparently it is a very precise operation how much wood and what kind to be used for each body. Wood gets quite expensive so it is weighed out carefully and the exact amt needed is used. Those with more money can pay for more expensive and desireable types of wood as well.


I was walking around in the narrow alleyways and lanes surrounding the gnat when an Indian offered to show me where the bodies were burnt. I knew there had to be some kind of catch involved but I decided to follow him on the way to the burning gnat anyway. I was taken to a bld overlooking the burning grounds. Here I was immediately approached by another Indian asking if I wanted to take pictures of the burnings. I had interest in taking some pictures as it was such a unique and surreal experience, with the wrapped up bodies smoking away on the wood stacks. The guy was unfortunately asking crazy amts of money to take photos, like over $10 US a pic, saying that the money would be going towards the cost of wood or other associated costs. This I hardly believed for a second, as many Indians I have found to be masters of conning and creating ploys to make money for themselves out of unsuspecting tourists and visitors. I stuck around for a few more moments before I had an everpresent older woman approaching me with her hands out begging for money, at which point I decided I had had enough and it was time to get out of the place. Apparently the Indian wasn't pleased with me not handing out money and tried to get in my face and grab my arm as I was walking away. When I ripped it away and and headed for the steps to get out of the place, he followed me and made as though he was going to attack me or something. I felt for no second scared or intimidated by this fellow, as he was a bit smaller and wouldn't have had much chance against me. However with the seemingly infinite crowds of other Indians nearby it wouldn't have been a wise choice to start anything. Later on I heard from other Indians that it is a somewhat common occurance for fights and other altercations to occur in the burning ghats areas between tourists and aggressive solicitors. There is also a presence of organized crime and mafia in the area which I read about in Lonely Planet and heard more about later, contributing to a culture in this area as wel as the train station.

One other burning gnat in town, although of lesser importance than the Manikarnika Gnat, is the Harischandra Gnat. At this gnat I experienced much less hassle and aggravation than the previous one. I met two Indians here alongside the river and was invited up to a small Hindu ceremony a short walk away, for a small fee of course. The one Indian was supposeably a Swami or something of that nature. Before the ceremony he jumped in the Ganges and bathed with soap, attempted to clean himself in the sacred yet filthy waters. Then I was led up to a balcony area adorned with a Shiva figure and several of his tridents, along with a group of other Indians. There was a small fire going on in which began wiping ashes on various areas of himself. The Indians whipped out a chilam, an Indian style smoking pipe made of what seems like clay. Here they inserted a combination of hashish and tobacco. I decided to be polite of course and take one hit on the pipe. However I am not a big fan of tobacco as it makes me nauseous and didn't feel like getting particularly high on hashish. It was suggested that we get some bhang and made some lassis, or bhang milkshakes. Bhang is a type of Indian marijuana concoction derived from the leaves, flowers, and buds of the plants being mashed down. It is legal in Indian and can be seen sold in various locations, sometimes advertised as Official Govt Bhang Shop. At the store we went to it was sold in small pastry like balls called 'golees', similar to the little donut balls sold in the west at Dunkin Donuts. To make the bhang lassi other ingredients are added to make the shake, including either milk or water, sugar, spices, etc. I wasn't sure exactly what bhang was although I had heard much about it and didn't know much more about it other than it being derived from cannabis. Apparently it is an intoxicant and its preparations and uses are regarded as sacred to the Gods, particularly Shiva. Varanasi, being the holy city that it is, is sometimes referred to as the 'City of Shiva.' It is a very popular drink here along the ghats and is often used as boost for meditation and to help achieve transcendental states, particularly among the sadhus. After drinking the concoction is took about 30 mins before I starting feeling the effects. Everything felt amplified and it was quite amazing walking through the narrow alleys and streets and experiencing all the sensory input in the altered state, not that one necessarily needs anything to feel like they are in an altered state while in Varanasi, as otherworldly as it it. I only drank one small cup of the concoction to be on the safe side, while the other more experienced Indians had no problems helping themselves to multiple cups. This small cup turned out to be enough for me and I feel fortunate to have been able to experience such a sublime and unique Indian experience.
One other memorable ghat I visited was the Meer Ghat. Nothing particuarly noteworthy about the riverfront portion, but to the side of the Ghat was a Nepalese temple featuring Kama Sutra type carvings and sculptures. The sculptures essentially showed sexual type situations and erotic positions, which is supposed to be the only temple of its type in the city.

A great experience I had one morning in Varanasi was taking a boatride with several guys I met at my guesthouse on the Ganges as the sun was coming up. It is a popular thing to do at dawn as many pujas, or religious ceremonies, are taking place up and down the river. Arriving at the river about 5:30/6am, the city was much more peaceful and calm before the masses wake up and everyone hits the streets. At the river the 3 of us, 1 guy from Australia and the other from England, I don't remember their names, piled onto a boat with another Indian rowing us along. We rowed up the river past observing the riverfront come alive and masses of Indians making their way to the river for cleaning and prayer. Even though the Ganges river is considered sacred by Indians, it is still amazing that they go to the river for cleaning and other purposes and don't get violently sick. The river is outrageously polluted and filthy and there wouldn't be a chance I would step foot in this portion of the river. Apparently countless sewer lines dump huge amts of raw sewage into the river. Business industry and factories along the length of the river have no problem deposting waste, chemical and biological, into the river as well, creating an absolute cesspool of bacteria and potential disease. However none of this seems to perturb or put off Indians getting into the river. Occassionally you will see a foreigner with white skin swimming through the water, god knows whats going on in his mind.


It was beautiful seeing the sun coming up over the horizon and lighting up the day. It one area there were a large group of yogis dressed in orange practicing yoga and doing sun salutations at this time. All along the stretch fascinating looking sadhus, Indians which have renounced worldly life and devote themselves to spiritual enlightenment, could be seen out around the banks meditating. Their were many of boats moving through the water carrying tourists up and down the banks. One noticable boat was filled with Thai monks dressed in their orange monk garb. Activity along the banks become more busy by the minute as Indians made their way to the river.


After the boatride, we were driven to three main temples in the city, these being the Durga Temple, the Rama Krishna or Tulsi Manas Temple, and the Hanuman Temple. The Hanuman Temple was the most interesting as scores of the macaque monkeys were all over the place. In the Hindu religion Hanuman is the Monkey God, hence this temple was in tribute to him and monkeys were given free reign within the place. Typically u don't want to get too near these particular red-butted monkeys as they can be quite tempermental and will threaten attack if they feel threatened. However here they were a bit more easy-going as they are treated with the reverence of a god.

Another spot on the outskirts of Varnasi I visited was the village of Sarnath, one of the four main pilgrimmage sites for Buddhists to visit. Here the Buddha supposably made his first sermons after he reached enlightenment in Bodhi Gaya, about 6 hrs from here on train. The site was full of ancient ruins and many temples, many representing various Buddhist countries including Thailand, Tibet, China, Japan, Myanmar, etc. There was a large museum which was unfortunately closed this particular day. About 30 minutes away from Varanasi, it was a nice escape from the constant noise and chaos of the city.


I had hoped to visit Bodhi Gaya and get a glimpse of the supposed tree that the Buddha achieved enlightenment nearly 2500 yrs ago. It is not the actual tree in which he gained enlightenment, as this tree is said to have been removed to Sri Lanka. From Sri Lanka a segment of the Bodhi tree was cut off and brought back to Bodhi Gaya, and has apparently grown back to a full-fledged tree. I would have been able to get a train ticket to Bodhi Gaya, but there were no tickets from Bodhi Gaya onward to Kolkata with the exception of an expensive 1st class ticket which I didn't feel like spending the money for. Bodhi Gaya is half way from Varanasi to Kolkata, and I didn't feel like traveling to Bodhi Gaya, and back to Varanasi, then all the way back in the same direction to Kolkata.
The rickshaw drivers, both motor and foot-powered, were constantly pulling along side of you if u were walking and asking if u needed their services. One of the rides on the main road leading to the busy Dasaswameth gnat from near my guest house was perhaps the craziest and most exciting ride I ever been on in my life. With the crowds and traffic near bumper to bumper capacity, the driver expertly swerved and turned, stopping mere inches from bumpers and pedestrians and each time expertly avoiding any contact or accident. Essentially he was driving no different than every other driver out there, but the Indian drivers have perfected the art of driving in this chaotic and superdense environment. I just held on tight to on eof the rails in the back seat and enjoyed the ride. I don't think the two guys from my guesthouse were as thrilled with the ride as I was. Perhaps it was too intense or scary for them. The rickshaw drivers are masters in navigating through the extreme entanglement of traffic and I had total faith in our driver. I'm sure accidents occur quite regularly but I didn't feel any fear. Afterwards I told myself I was going to have to take another one of these rides, even though I typically prefer walking as I enjoy walking and being on my own two feet, plus saving my money.