banares diaries
Wednesday 19 November 2014
Delving Deep Into Varanasi
It is not a mere city, much more than that, it is a
phenomenon. The city of lights, learning, life and death, hope…epithets are not
enough to define Varanasi. More than 5000 year old city still standing tall
amongst all others, which has got hidden answers to all questions that a human
being can have in a lifetime. Lot of civilisations and cities have thrived and
then perished, Varanasi one of the oldest cities of the world is still being inhabited
by the people and flourishing, a silent witness to all the greed and atrocities
of human beings over years. Why? May be because Varanasi is the eternal capital
of the god of destruction, Lord Shiva who himself has created Varanasi with his
trishul, as per the legend. From time immemorial Ganga is flowing just like
time which doesn’t wait for others, a symbol of faith. In Banares everything is
connected with people’s faith in some or the other way, from food, accommodation,
fashion, accessories, aarti, sadhus, a dip in ganga and what not. People making
use and earning from the faith. Their faith so strong that I used wonder if
faith can be deceiving!!
From time immemorial, people are trying to assert their identity and power
at Varanasi. Why Varanasi? Why not some other place? Even religions trying to
establish their identity ,superior to another. This creates disparities among
the people. Everyone wants Varanasi to be their own. They create separate sections
for themselves so that their identity doesn’t get faded away with time or it
stands out.
Inspite of all these things, there are certain factors which
hold the people of Banares united, a binding force. Digging out those forces
was indeed a difficult task for which talking to people and having a close
watch on them was essential. The ghats play a vital role in unifying people of different
faiths. Each religion is given separate ghats to perform and practice their
religious activities, no religion is dropped out, thus diginity of people
belonging to different faith is upheld. Even if there are separate ghats for
each religion, they can come and participate in the celebrations and other
activities of other religious groups showcasing the value of secularism.
Another thing, which is considered as a unique identity of Banares
is Pan. One can find all sorts of people in front of a pan shop. The interesting
thing I noticed is that, you will not find many Muslims in a hotel owned by a Hindu
and vice-versa. But if it is a pan shop, owned by a Hindu, Muslim or whoever,
you will not find such kind of segregation. So in a way, pan act as binding
force among the people of Banares.
River Ganga has its own role in the lives of each and every
person of Varanasi and it’s not necessary that he should be a Hindu. Many
people do not believe in the sanctity of Ganga, they accepts that it is
polluted, still Ganga is a part of their identity. Some doesn’t have any
religious connection with the river still they would like to spend their
leisure time sitting on the banks idly and watch the river flow as some unknown
force is dragging them to Ganga. All of them realises and accepts that they are
a part of the river culture which is thousands of years old. Many a people find
their livelihood connected to the river like boatmen, fishermen, priest,
sadhus, floating diyawalas etc. So in a way people belonging to different
caste, creed and religion are dependent on a single entity.
According to me, the most interesting aspect acting as a
binding force is the relentless chaotic crowds. The people of Varanasi loves
crowd. They doesn’t look at it with fear or suspicion as an outsider would do.
And these crowd dint start today or yesterday, these crowds has been there for
years. In a crowd one could hardly segregate people on the basis of their
religious beliefs, caste, creed and religion. The effect of crowd is much
profound in the ghats and narrow gallies. In a crowd one can find different
types of people, coming from somewhere, destined to go somewhere and in between
spending some time together. In the crowd you can also find people helping
others who are totally unknown to them, thus creating mutual love and respect. These
crowds create a festive mood in Varanasi people which is evident when one can
see people from different backgrounds dancing and singing together in the
crowd.
A 9 days trip nevertheless a life time is not enough to
unpack 5000 years old city. The city itself is a perfect example of yin and
yan, activity and inactivity and life and death thus revealing the harsh
realities of life. And each and every place in Banares has got a story to tell,
that too the same story in different perspectives. I feel so small and humble
after spending about 9 days in such an old historic city.
9 CAPTIVATING DAYS
Our journey to Varanasi started in the early morning of 2nd November. Cold
breeze was blowing, people in jackets and pullovers, some smoking to get a
little comfort from cold.
It was after long time that I was going in flight which made
me little nervous at first but everything became alright after 10-15 minutes.
Some random thoughts were flashing in my mind like a bullet faster than the
speed of plane in which we were travelling. Just imagining how would be
Varanasi , about the height at which we were travelling, the desire of human
beings to conquer heights. While looking through the window into the sky I
couldn’t find any clouds. The wing of the aeroplane in the pale blue sky
appeared like a photograph which is well framed, when looked through the
window and it appeared we were not in
motion.
We reached Varanasi by noon, went to the famous Banaras
Hindu University, one of the oldest universities in India, with a campus of
more than 1300 acres of land. That evening we went to the Viswanath temple
inside the campus, which was built by Pandit Madan Mohan Malvya, who is also
the founder of the same university. It is very big two storeyed building. Shiva
is the main deity there.One could see the main idol, a shiv linga from all four
cardinal directions as there is garbha-griha. Some temple musical instruments
were played which created a positive vibe that the whole temple along with our
bodies started to vibrate. That feeling is beyond words.
The next day all of us were very much excited to go to the
ghats. The roads to the ghats are narrow, crowded with people coming to the
ghats, roadside vendors, barbers, cycle rickshaws, horses and cows.
On the way we saw small boys of the age group 10-12 wearing
white dhoti and kurta, walking in a line. I got a feeling that those kids were studying
Sanskrit, vedas and other religious books. At that moment my thought went back
to my hometown in Kerala, where one can find kids wearing white kurtha and
paijama and wearing white skull caps, who studies Quran and other Arabic texts.
All these religions want the coming generations not to forget what their
religious leaders preach. I was wondering do these kids really enjoy learning
these things or is it because of compulsion from their parents. In the mean
while someone spotted a photo studio “Santhosh Chaya Chitra” where one could
find the old , big-fat camera. I was thinking even at the height of technology
people are attracted towards vintage stuffs.
Assi ghat (the first ghat we visited) began with a row of
beggars, sadhus and small shops selling flowers and other stuffs. The silent
serene Ganga flowing for years, in which pilgrims were taking holy dips. The
Ganga may be filthy to the outsiders, but is pure and holy to those people. We
went Tulsi ghat where one could find to a venerated old Hindu religious complex
consisting of 3-4 small temples. There one could find an old man in his 70’s
wearing a white dhoti and tilak on his forehead teaching Sanskrit slokas to 2
small kids. I was wondering about the relevance of such teachings in the
current world scenario.
Then we walked along
the ghats which differ in their degree of importance. Some of them are totally
empty, some occupied by stray cows and dogs where as some are closely packed
with people. Later we reached Harish Chandra Ghat. All of us were very much
curious and disturbed to see 3-4 bodies being cremated at the same time.
Everyone stopped there for a while, there were around 10-15 people including
some foreigners sitting on benches having a close look on the happenings. Then
we went to Dashaswamedh Ghat , the most fabulous of all ghats. Colourful
umbrellas and flags were erected there hinting of some upcoming festivals. The
most fabulous aarti happens at this
ghat. Then we headed towards the major cremation ghat- Manikarnika. This one is
the dullest of all ghats. Flags and buildings which are unoccupied had turned
into black due to the adsorption of the dust and smoke. More than 10 cremations
were happening at the same time. Photography is prohibited on that ghat. There
were shops selling items needed for cremation like earthen pot, flowers , and
clothes. Logs of wood were piled here and there. But the place is bustling with
people.
The next day we went on a boat ride in ganga. We started in
the early morning from Assi Ghat. Even in the early morning ghats were filled
with people . The Ganges is so wide that it was impossible to see the other
side. Sun appeared like a red dot in the sky. The Ganges is flowing, hoping
that the flow never stops, giving salvation to thousands of souls. Hundreds of
people are taking bath in the holy Ganga, time stands still in their
unflickered faith. People performing the morning aarti, sun god standing above
all whose image gets captured on the surface of Ganges. The boat man Raja says
proudly “we drink this water, but nobody in our family is sick”, reassuring
people’s faith in Ganga. One could see all the ghats from the boat which are
splendid and distinct from each other. Along the ghats you can find so many
temples. The so called cursed , slanting, sunken temple whose lower half is
below water, prompts us to ask so many questions with the 5w’s and H. Kids
diving into the river and swimming, for them the river is a swimming pool,
while for others the wide ghats are their cricket pitch. On the surface of water
one could find so many things floating starting from the warm-vibrant diyas to
cold corpses covered in white clothes.
From the next day onwards we started exploring Banares all
by ourselves. We went to the ghats and were little bit confused what to do, so
we started roaming along the ghats. Later I met a guy, Nazeem Aman from Patna, who is in his 20’s and was feeding
fishes in the ganges with small balls of maida dough. He works in a textile
mill. He says “ I don’t believe in the sanctity and holiness of Ganga, but
there is some unknown factor which is attracting me towards it. Whenever I get
free time I come and sit on the banks that too for hours” When asked about
cleaning Ganga and ghats he told that a change in government doesn’t bring
about the needed result. A change in attitude of people as a whole is needed.
Later we went to the narrow gallies to find some authentic banarasi foods. We
went to Dalmandi , which comprises of very closely packed shops and narrow
lanes. It’s a predominantly a muslim area as you can find that most of the
buildings has domes and minarets with Arabic inscriptions hanged or carved.In
those lanes one could find all kinds of shops starting from Tea, kabab ,
biriyani, panwala, chudiwala, textile and jewellery shops to shops selling
electronics and other duty free items and dry fruits and nuts. These area again
reminded me of certain places near my hometown where one can find narrow
streets selling all sorts of stuffs, which is also a Muslim dominant area.
There we went to a small hotel to have Moradabadi Biriyani. There it was
written “NO BEEF”. I asked the owner “Why so?”. He told me “otherwise, Hindus
will not come”. So even though for making profit, in a way he is being secular.
He also told me that those gallis are very old and built by the British. There
were many other hotels other than that, mostly the customers were also Muslims
, I could identify them as they were wearing white skull caps.Then we went in
search of Kachouri galli asking each and every person whom we met, but when we
reached there couldn’t even find a single kachouri shop. So we went back to
Assi ghat on a cycle rickshaw, still very popular on the streets of Varanasi .
Its very nice to travel in a cycle rickshaw, but you will feel bad when the
rickshaw guy struggles to pedal and have to get down and push it. On the sides
of the streets you could see small hotels with the names of Hindu gods and
goddesses , where most of the customers are Hindus. I feel that discrimination on
the basis of religion applies to hotels and the food they serve.
It was Dev-Diwali next day. We went to the ghats in the
evening, all of which were illuminated with lights. People lighting chirag to eliminate
the darkness around them. People were gushing to the ghats. In a way, crowd is
also a centre of attraction, there lies a hidden beauty with it.In a crowd
there are so many people, from different region, speaking different languages,
believing in different faith , but all under a single umbrella-the crowd.
Coming from somewhere going to somewhere and in between, spending some time
together. To an outsider, the crowd is totally chaotic, suffocating and
frightening. But its completely different to a person from Varanasi. They enjoy
being in the crowd, to them it’s a not a new thing. Their loud chatter , doing
dance steps and shouting “har har mahadev” are evidences for that. In each ghat
you can find a different music ranging from soothing religious bhajans to
rocking DJ music. The ghats with all the illumination turned Varanasi literally
into the city of lights. At Harish Chandra Ghat cremation was still going on,
even though it was a festive occasion. Music was played there also, at the same
time bodies were being cremated.While the whole ghats were celebrating
Dev-Diwali , a few people were mourning for the departed. The crowd is least
affected by these sentiments as these cremations happens 24x7 at Varanasi.
There were some people who were trying to make money out of these crowd, small
vendors selling tea and other chat items. There were also some so called “sadhus”,
trying to exploit whoever they meet in the crowd by asking for money. It was
really a wonderful experience of being in such a crowd.
Next day , Prime Minister , Mr Narendra Modi was coming to
Varanasi , So all the gates of BHU were closed till noon. So we went to the
sculpture department of BHU, where we found some students working on sculptures.
I felt that when compared to the efforts they put into their works, the
sculptures are not getting enough recognition. Later, in the afternoon we went
to the ghats .Each time you walk along the ghats, you place yourself closer to
Varanasi .We walked to Harish Chandra Ghat where we could find corpses about to
be cremated ,as if waiting for Lord
shiva to give Taraka mantra in their ears to get liberated from the cycle of
life and death and attain salvation. The people who work in the cremation
grounds were chatting with each other, some playing cricket metres away from it.
Nobody is concerned much about the cremation, as they see it everyday,
everytime they cross that ghat. Foreigners coming and sitting near the
cremation ground, watching the corpses burn, may be out of curiosity or
strangeness or realising that nothing matters once the person is dead,
understanding the karma in between life
and death. Dead bodies of people who were once rich or poor, burned in the same
ghat , so close to each other, later their ashes going to the same Ganga. We
then moved to a hotel near Bhelupur, Kerala Café , which is a 42 year old
establishment. The owner of the restaurant is Mr Ramdass Nair from Ottappalam,Kerala,
who is in his early 50’s.He came to Varanasi along with his brother who worked
in LIC Varanasi. The restaurant was filled with people from different regions
and countries. He finds himself more attached to Varanasi than his hometown. He
tells that the people of Varanasi are very good and encouraging, who were very
much helpful for him in establishing his identity at Varanasi. He tells “even
though there are lot of people belonging to different faiths and beliefs in
Varanasi, everyone lives in harmony and peace. Problems occur only when some
anti-social elements instigates something which eventually flares up. He told
me about a swamiji from Kerala near Tilmandewar temple. We then goes there,
sees the huge “swaybhoo” shivlingam, where we also found the idol of Ayyappa,
predominantly south indian hindu deity. But we could not find the swamiji
there.
Next day we again went to the ghats and did some sketches.
While sketching , a man came to us and introduced himself telling “I am Kyote
Han, I am from South Korea”. He enquired what we were doing and further told us
that he is an industrial designer and is fed up with his works and wanted to
take a break which should be spiritual, so he chose Varanasi. He tells that “Varanasi
is the city of hopes and desire”. He explained that there is a hope and desire
behind every lamp which is floating on the Ganges and also the hope that the
souls of the departed whose bodies are being cremated at Varanasi , gets
liberated. We again went to “Kerala Café”, where Mr. Nair told us that each
state is allotted with a ghat and the ghat for Kerala is Kshamewar ghat. He
told us that there are two old homes in that ghat namely Travancore satram and
Cochin satram, but both of them are unoccupied now. Then I went to the old
gallies of Tilmandeswar, which were paved with bricks, it was an area occupied
by both Hindu and Muslims. I roamed along some unknown streets and gallis which
were occupied mainly by silk traders and paan shops. Later I felt like
sketching some old buildings, so I asked a shop owner if I could sit in a
corner of the verandah of his shop, but he denied. I don’t know why, there was
no one in the shop, may be out of suspicion. Then I found out another space,
but this time I dint ask for any permission, I sat there and started sketching,
sun disappeared and the sky turned black and it was difficult to continue
sketching, a guy came out of the building in front of which I was sitting, he
went inside again and switched on the light outside on seeing me sketching. And
I thanked him for his kind heart. It also made me think about the difference in
the characters of people and their perspective about an outsider.
Next day we went to Sarnath, the ancient town which has a crucial
role in Indian history.There we saw the lion capitol of Emperor Ashoka in the
museum of ASI. It has got a vital part in the origin of religions like Buddhism
and Jainism. There are remains old Buddhist monasteries around which devotes
were walking chanting some verses in pali. Then we went to Ramnagar fort which
is on the other side of Ganga through Pandit Madan Mohan Malvya Bridge. Inside
the fort one could see a full fledge collection weapons like gun, swords and
arrows and a collection of vintage luxury cars which includes Cadillac, Plymouth
and Mercedes. The palace also had a wide collection of antiques made of ivory
and metals. In the evening we went to the ghats again where I met Mr. Wattez
who is aclinical psychologist from Paris. He was in his early 60’s.He told that
foreigners consider india to be the home of all unfriendly stray cows and dogs
.He tells “ there is nothing to be afraid of these poor animals, they are quite
friendly”. According to him Varanasi is all about Ganga, he tells that everyone
coming to Varanasi should take a dip in Ganga, even though it is polluted and
dirty. He tells “ Ganges is the soul of Varanasi and without Ganga Varanasi would
not have flourished. “He also feels that the culture and tradition of Varanasi
should not be affected by the massive inflow of tourists. He is totally against
westernisation. He tells that people should prefer chai over coke and also
tells that such American soft drinks should be banned in Varanasi. Then I met
Mr B S Yadav, who is a very elderly person in his early seventies. He is an ex-military
officer. He has come to Varanasi from some other town for doing some funeral
rites. He tells that it his dharam to do that, however big or rich he is.
According to him, each and every religion is given respect in Varanasi. Separate
ghats are given to each religion , so that they can do their religious
practices at their respective ghats, thus reaffirming equality and secularism.
He also tells that these religious people can go to other ghats and participate
in the celebrations and other functions of other religious groups.
The next day, which was our last day at Varanasi, we decided
to visit Kashi Vishwanath. We started at 5 am in the morning. By 5:40 we
reached the entrance, the darshan queue was pretty long then itself. We had to
stand in queue for about 3 hours. The security check was also quite tight
there.I could see a military watch tower near the temple. I was wondering why??
But on close check I noticed that there was a mosque next to
the temple-the gyanvyapi mosque , constructed by Aurengazeb after destroying an
existing temple supposedly. The temple
and mosque were divided with a huge wall made of iron bar on top of which there
is fencing too. It just created a feel of international border as seen in
movies. Police and military officials were roaming everywhere holding guns in
their hands. The Kashi Vishwanath temple is smaller than I thought, it was
covered with gold. Near to that is the famous gyanvyapi well, which is covered
with a plain white cloth. The person standing in front of us told that there is
a shivlinga inside that well which is supposedly a part of the temple destroyed
by Aurangazeb. Lot of people were taking pradakshinas around the well. The well
was the centre of interest for most of the people. I was wondering if that well
became the centre of interest because of the power of the shivlinga inside it
or the fact that it is an evidence of destruction by a ruler of another religion. The crowd
intensed and people started pouring milk on which shivlingas they can find. The
main idol-the shivlinga is very small and luckily by the grace of god I got a
chance to touch it amidst the crowd. I felt relieved after touching it as if
some mission was fulfilled.
So after spending almost 10 days at Varanasi we started our
journey back to Bangalore in the afternoon.
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