Varanasi

💡 About Varanasi

Varanasi, on the banks of the sacred River Ganges in northern India, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and the spiritual heart of Hinduism. Also known as Kashi or Benares, this holy city is believed by Hindus to be the abode of Lord Shiva, and to die here is thought to grant liberation from the cycle of rebirth.

Life and death play out openly along the ghats — the great flights of stone steps descending to the river — where pilgrims come to bathe in the holy waters at dawn, priests perform elaborate rituals, and funeral pyres burn without pause at the sacred cremation grounds. It is an intense, overwhelming and profoundly moving spectacle.

Each evening, the mesmerising Ganga Aarti ceremony fills the riverbank with fire, chanting, incense and thousands of flickering lamps set adrift on the water. Boat rides at sunrise offer an unforgettable view of the awakening city and its timeless devotions.

Behind the ghats lies a labyrinth of ancient lanes packed with temples, silk shops and street food. Chaotic, sacred and unlike anywhere else on Earth, Varanasi offers an unfiltered and unforgettable encounter with the soul of India.

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