The name itself resonates like a mantra: Varanasi, Kashi, Benares. A city older than dreams, nestled on the banks of the sacred Ganges, a jewel set in the pulsating heart of spiritual India. Here, more than anywhere else, religious traditions are not simple folklore or observed rites; they are the lifeblood, the deep breath of an urban organism that pulses to the rhythm of the eternal. It is as if every morning, with the first ray of sunlight caressing the pearlescent waters of the river, the city is reborn, reweaving its tapestry of faith, hope, and mystery.
On the Bank of Light: The Morning and the Sacred Waters Dawn in Varanasi is a collective act of faith. The ghats, the monumental steps that descend towards the Ganges, slowly come alive, like a giant awakening. The air, still cool, vibrates with whispered prayers, the faint tinkling of bells, the splash of water poured by devoted hands. Pilgrims and inhabitants immerse themselves in the waters of Ma Ganga, seeking purification, absolution, the start of a new cycle. Their silhouettes against the rising sun are outlines of a millennial dialogue between man and the divine. It is a liturgy of water, as old as the thirst of the soul, where the simple act of bathing becomes an internal journey. Here, as the sensitive observer Pierre Loti wrote, one grasps the essence of an India that “lives in its religion as the fish in water,” and Varanasi is the ocean of this total immersion.
The Fire and the Silence: Manikarnika, the Ghat of Transformation Then there is Manikarnika, the cremation ghat. Here, the fire burns ceaselessly, day and night. The smoking pyres, where bodies are returned to the element from which they came, are the beating heart of the doctrine of samsara and moksha. For Hindus, dying in Varanasi and being cremated at Manikarnika is direct access to liberation (moksha) from the cycle of rebirth. It is not a place of desperate mourning, but of serene acceptance. The rite is officiated by the Doms, the keepers of the sacred fire. The silence, broken only by the crackle of the flames and ritual chants, is profound and solemn, a constant reminder of the transience of all earthly things and the eternity of the spirit.
The Intertwined Alleyways: A Labyrinth of Life and History Leaving the ghats, one enters the galis, the labyrinthine alleyways of Varanasi. They are a tangle of history, color, and daily life. Every corner reveals a small temple dedicated to Shiva or Ganesha, a vendor of steaming chai, or a workshop of silk brocade artisans. It is here that the ancient and the modern clash and merge. Despite the apparent chaos—the sacred cows wandering undisturbed, the motorcycles weaving their way through pedestrians—there is a secular logic that governs this urban ecosystem. These alleys inevitably lead to the great temples, such as the famous Kashi Vishwanath, and tell, step by step, the story of a city never conquered by time, but rooted in it.
The Evening Gift: The Aarti on the Ganges The day concludes with the most spectacular and moving event: the Ganga Aarti. At sunset, the Dashashwamedh Ghat transforms into a stage of faith. Young pandits (priests) in saffron robes officiate a complex ceremony of thanksgiving to Ma Ganga. To the pounding rhythm of drums, bells, and mantras, they offer fragrant smoke from incense, votive lamps (the diya), and fire. The Ganges is illuminated by thousands of floating lights, small boats made of leaves and flowers released by devotees. The air is dense with spirituality and fragrant smoke. It is a vibrant and noisy celebration, yet at the same time intimately spiritual, sealing the daily cycle of life, death, and rebirth that makes Varanasi unique in the world.