Planning the Varanasi trip and the overall experience.

I wanted to visit Varanasi ever since I went for an Art of living meditation course. I told my high school friend, Jayanti Rajan, who was a Hindu Brahmin to go with me because I thought she would know all the procedures we needed to follow at Varanasi. And lo and behold, after a couple of years, Jayanti came up with the decision to accompany me to Varanasi. It was a dream come true for both us. Jayanti's sister Lakshmi got us reservations in Ram Bhavan which was situated right on the ghats. This enabled us to access the ghats at all odd hours. We two were adventurous and fearless as a team and pushed the bar in many ways. People warned us of cheats in Varanasi and we found none. We found the people of Varanasi to be extremely honest, not greedy, helpful, and very friendly. Even the weather was kind so that we could make the best of this once in a life time trip.

Jayanti (in blue) and me at Sarnath.

Shopping and the Banarasi paan

The Banarasi pan was quite the treat. It had many ingredients including expensive perfumes. The panwalla was quite proud of his handiwork and took his time while making it. I found shopping in Varanasi quite a joyful experience. Everything was reasonably priced. The saris I bought were really beautiful and became even more beautiful with time as I looked at it more. I highly recommend buying saris while visiting Varanasi.

The many temple visits

We visited many temples at Varanasi. At every step there was a temple. The most famous ones were Kashi Vishwanath and Kali Bhairavi. After every visit my forehead would be filled with kumkums and basmams, many colorful threads would be tied on my hands, and I would end up wearing many garlands. All the priests would pray for me and my family. These prayers are very precious to me and helped me become closer to my family. When I started the trip I wanted to find god but I ended up finding family instead.

Sarnath

Sarnath is the place where Buddha gave his first sermon after attaining Nirvana. The place where Buddha roamed and meditated gave me goosebumps. It was so holy.

I also saw the Ashoka pillar for the first time in the Sarnath museum. I was a bit disappointed that I was not allowed to photograph it. It was really huge and grand. No wonder it is the national emblem of India.

Sarnath Stupa.

Parts of the Ashoka pillar at Sarnath stupa site.

A dip in the Ganges

Regular people are scared of taking the holy dip in the Ganges. Everyone warned us that the waters were dirty. But me and Jayanti decided to do what millions of Indians have done in these waters for thousands of years. But we decided to take a boat to cleaner waters to take the holy dip. Thus, we entered the Ganges at 5 in the morning. The water was icy cold. I went along with my friend's enthusiasm and chants. She was definitely happy. I could feel that the water was refreshing on my skin. It was sharp and cold. Like no other water. Almost therapeutic. I know if it was not this cold and if I stayed in the waters longer I would have learned more about the water. But ten minutes was all that we could handle. There is more mystery to the water of Ganges. Some corpses like that of kids are not burned but are supposedly drowned in these waters. It is what we call dirty that cleanses us. Perhaps the proposed cleaning of the Ganges may take away what is spiritual about the Ganges. Someone wiser than me might know a lot more about the waters of the Ganges. All I can say is that definitely there is something magical about these waters.

The Ganga Aarti

The Ganga Arti is a prayer with smoke and lights. These Artis happen all along the Ghats during sunrise and sunset. Perhaps these simple poojas to river Ganga keeps India safe and holy. Almost every house in Varanasi has a temple. The divinity of the place is upheld by regular people more than priests. I hope the oldest city of the world, Varanasi, remain spiritual for thousands of years to come.

The Goddess Ganga.

The Manikarnika Ghat

People say the Manikarnika Ghat is where people have the most intense experiences when they visit Varanasi. This was true for me too. These Ghats shake you from within. I sat a little far away from the Ghats and watched. It was unnerving that every flame burning was a corpse burning. And corpses lined the stairwells waiting for their turn to burn. Every minute a dead body arrived. It disturbed me in a way still I do not understand and softened me to the core. Tears ran freely with the understanding that everyone will die. Every living being I befriend will die. Death of a loved one is tragic for the living. But then towards the evening I saw people who witness these happenings on the Ghats every evening smile and pray to the river Ganges. I know that this is what we all must do. We must celebrate life with all its tragedies like the people of Varanasi. I truly liked the populace of Varanasi. Very friendly and kind even to the meanest of creatures. An owl was chased by a bunch of crows and fell in to the water. People in the Ghats shouted at the boatman to rescue it. The boatman then picked the owl up and allowed it to rest in his boat. No need for nature conservationists in Varanasi. The whole city cares. I wish the world was a little like Varanasi.