Varanasi has a known history stretching back to 1400 BC but the city has been destroyed by invaders then rebuilt several times over the centuries. Our guidebook describes Varanasi as the beating heart of the Hindu universe. Pilgrims flock to the Ghats (steps leading down to the water) that line the Ganges River flowing through the old city centre. For Hindus, the Ganges is the River of Salvation, an auspicious place to bathe, to pray, to die and to be cremated.It was blistering hot when we arrived on Friday – 44C and the 22nd consecutive day in Varanasi over 40. Varanasi’s electricity supply system is terrible and so there was no relying on air conditioning to stay cool indoors. At sunset we shared a rowboat on the Ganges with a woman from Switzerland. The boatman took us close to the many Ghats lining the river, including two “burning Ghats” used for public cremations. A large stack of dry wood provides the fuel and the family selects the pieces to be used – sandalwood is the most prized and the most expensive. The body, wrapped in white cloth, is carried down to the water’s edge on a stretcher and the wood placed under and around, then ignited. As we drifted past, the combination of the baking hot air and tinder dry wood produced fierce fires that did their job well in the several blazing pyres we saw on the riverbank. After dark we tied up with hundreds of other boats, and along with thousands of people standing on the Ghat steps, watched the nightly Hindu fire and music ceremony performed on the river’s edge.
We repeated the boat trip at dawn – the main activity now was bathing and clothes washing. Hundreds of people bathed then frolicked for awhile in the refreshing Ganges water before emerging to face the wearying heat of another day. We left our boat and walked back to the main road through the maze of narrow winding alleyways above the Ghats. Concentration was needed here – cattle and stray dogs, some of the latter a little too territorial for our liking, roamed the alleyways. They and other creatures also spread an assortment of manures on the ground, making it best to glance down at every step.
Despite its minor challenges, Varanasi is a unique, atmospheric place to visit. There’s no pretence here – life, and death, are laid bare. And that can only be a healthy thing.
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