Beautiful Varanasi Ghat

                                  Beautiful Varanasi Ghat

Varanasi or Kashi is older than traditions. Varanasi presents a unique combination of physical, metaphysical and supernatural elements. According to the Hindu mythology, Varanasi liberates soul from human body to the ultimate. It is the Ganga Ghats of Varanasi that complement the concept of divinity. Ghats of Ganga are perhaps the holiest spots of Varanasi. The Ganga Ghats at Varanasi are full of pilgrims who flock to the place to take a dip in the holy Ganges, which is believed to absolve one from all sins. There are number of temples on the bank of the Ganga river in Varanasi. It is believed that people are cleansed physically, mentally and spiritually at Ganga Ghats. It is at the Ganga Ghats where we see life and death together. For thousands of years people have been thronging these Ghats to offer their morning prayers to the rising sun. There are more than 100 ghats along side Ganga in Varanasi. Some of the prominent and popular Ghats at Varanasi are the Dasaswamedh Ghat, Manikarnika Ghat, Harischandra Ghat, Kabir Ghat and Assi Ghat.

A boat trip along the river provides the perfect introduction, although for most of the year the water level is low enough for you to walk freely along the whole length of the ghats. It’s a world-class ‘people-watching’ stroll as you mingle with the fascinating mixture of people who come to the Ganges not only for a ritual bath but also to wash clothes, do yoga, offer blessings, sell flowers, get a massage, play cricket, wash their buffaloes, improve their karma by giving to beggars or simply hang around. Assi Ghat , the furthest south of the main ghats, and one of the biggest, is particularly important as the River Assi meets the Ganges near here and pilgrims come to worship a Shiva lingam (phallic image of Shiva) beneath a peepul tree. Evenings are particularly lively, as the ghat’s vast concreted area fills up with hawkers and entertainers. It’s a popular starting point for boat trips and there are some excellent hotels here. Nearby Tulsi Ghat , named after a 16th-century Hindu poet, has fallen down towards the river but in the month of Kartika (October/November) a festival devoted to Krishna is celebrated here. Next along, Bachraj Ghat has three Jain temples. A small Shiva temple and a 19th-century mansion built by Nepali royalty sit back from Shivala Ghat , built by the local maharaja of Benares. The Dandi Ghat is used by ascetics known as Dandi Panths, and nearby is the Hanuman Ghat , popular with Rama devotees (Hanuman was Rama's monkey servant).
Harishchandra Ghat is a cremation ghat – smaller and secondary in importance to Manikarnika, but one of the oldest ghats in Varanasi.

Above it, Kedar Ghat has a shrine popular with Bengalis and South Indians. Continuing north from Scindhia Ghat, you soon reach Ram Ghat , which was built by a maharaja of Jaipur. Just beyond it Panchganga Ghat , as its name indicates, is where five rivers are supposed to meet. Dominating the ghat is Aurangzeb’s smaller mosque, also known as the Alamgir Mosque , which he built on the site of a large Vishnu temple. Gai Ghat has a figure of a cow made of stone. Trilochan Ghat has two turrets emerging from the river, and the water between them is especially holy.Spiritually enlightening and fantastically photogenic, Varanasi is at its brilliant best by the ghats, the long stretch of steps leading down to the water on the western bank of the Ganges. Most are used for bathing but there are also several ‘burning ghats’ where bodies are cremated in public. The main one is Manikarnika: you’ll often see funeral processions threading their way through the backstreets to this ghat.