Muslim celebration in Varanasi

On December 6, 2011 Varanasi and other Indian cities with Muslim population became a place for a large-scale Muslim Muharram mourning activities. That invariably included zangir-zani (beating oneself with chains).

On Muharram, Muslims take out large processions and mourn the killing of Imam Hussain, the grandson of Prophet Mohammed, who was martyred some 1,330 years ago at Karbala in Iraq on the 10th day of the Islamic month of Muharram. Major mourning processions were held in Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Hyderabad and other cities.

The police had beefed up security to ensure that the day passes off peacefully - and it did.

Dussehra Ganga festival in Varanasi

Ganga Dusshera is a holy festival celebrated on the tenth day of the month of Jayeshta. The festival is devoted to the worship of holy river Ganga.

It is believed that the ‘Gangavataran’ (the descent of the Ganga) took place at this time. On this day, places such as Varanasi, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Garhmukteswar, Prayag etc. hold special significance.

A huge number of devotees flock to numerous ghats located on the west bank of the river Ganga to bathe in water and carry the river clay home to venerate. A bath in the Ganga is believed to purify the soul and clean it of 10 sins. In Varanasi the special aarti sounds bounce across the city, and in Haridwar aartis and meditation are also performed by a large number of devotees on the river banks.

Ganga water is stored in sealed pots in homes and is used on sacred days.

Easter cake - synonym of lingam?

Easter cakes - they look kind of Indian, don't you think?
Not only the shape, but the way of decoration looks very similar to Indian lingams, no?

Elephants in Varanasi

If you thought, that elephants are only for South India, if you thought, that Varanasi is all about cows, monkeys and goats, you would have been as surprised as we were, seeing the elephant walking down to the Main Dasashwameth Ghat.

It was on Shivaratri, one of the major festivals in India, commemorating the wedding of Lord Shiva. On such a special occasion they even brought the elephant there.

He was part of a huge procession, that seemed quite bizzare to the Western eye, everyone very solemn and festive, dressed up accordingly to the sacred meaning of the parade.

Varanasi hotels fully booked for Shivaratri

You have to really hurry up to book the hotels in Varanasi, if you plan to arrive there in the beginning of March for Shivaratri.

Quick email exchange with a handful of them showed that most average-price(which at least have rooms with hot water) near-the-ghats hotels are fully booked for March 1-2.
Forget about Divya, Haifa, Temple on Ganges, Ganges view on Assi ghat.
Rashmi Guesthouse near Dasashwamed is fully booked for March 2-3 and almost no vacant room remains for March 1.

Good luck to everyone, meet you there, on ancient Varanasi ghats!

Harvest day celebrated in Varanasi

Holy dip in the Ganga, donations to poor on the ghats and kite flying marked the celebrations of Makar Sankranti (locally called 'Khichdi') on Friday, January 14.

Makar Sankranti marks the transition of the Sun into Makara rashi (Capricorn) constellation.
It is a major harvest festival celebrated in various parts of India. When the sun moves from the Tropic of Cancer to the Tropic of Capricorn in mid-January, it commemorates the beginning of the harvest season and cessation of the northeast monsoon in South India.

While the traditional Indian calendar is fully based on lunar positions, Sankranti is one outstanding solar event. So while dates of all Hindu festivals keep changing as per the Gregorian calendar, the date of Makar Sankranti remains constant over a long term, 14 January.

Makar Sankranti, apart from a harvest festival is also regarded as the beginning of an auspicious phase in Indian culture. It is referred to as the 'holy phase of transition'. It marks the end of an inauspicious phase which according to the Hindu calendar began in mid-December. It is believed that any auspicious and sacred ritual can be sanctified in any Hindu family, this day onwards. Scientifically, this day marks the beginning of warmer and longer days compared to the nights. In other words, Sankranti marks the termination of winter season and beginning of a new harvest or spring season.

Many cities celebrate it in different ways, but in Varanasi there were a lot of kites flying high.

The markets across Varanasi were flooded with colourful kites available in different shapes and sizes to lure youngsters and elderly alike.

Besides kites, shopkeepers have brought a wide variety of manjha (sharp thread used to fly kites) and pareta (the wooden dumble on which the thread is wrapped).

The influence of Chinese stuff is visible in the market of kites as well these days, said Sanjay Aggrawal, a wholesaler of kites in Gadaulia area on Wednesday.

"Now, we have a wide range of colourful kites available in different shapes and sizes. The list includes butterfly kites, warrior kites (in the form of fighter planes), multiple kites or serial kites that are tied together to form a series and the dragon kites that are available in the form of dragon. Similarly, Chinese pareta and manjha are also giving a good competition to the tradition products," he added.

The kite-flying tradition that was earlier confined to the old parts of the city (Pucca Mahal) along the ghats on the banks of holy Ganga has slowly spread to other parts of the city.

People nowadays love to fly kites at new places like the sand-beds in the middle of the Ganga, said Purushottam Aggrawal, a kite trader.

He said that the involvement of foreign visitors and tourists has added glamour and attraction to the festival, locally called khichdi.

from The Times of India and online sources