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.