Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh

hello all,

we've spent the last couple of days in Varanasi. unfortunately, i was hit with a 24 hour bug and was without food (can you imagine me...without food?!?!) while Mel feasted. one upside of my being sick was the resting and relaxation we found in lazing around the hotel... this rest proved to be helpful for our 5am wake-up call today.

this morning, we took a sunrise boat trip along the Ganges River. noted as the most sacred of cities in India, Varanasi is the site where Hindu pilgrims come to accomplish a number of things. coincidentally, i had charged my battery but forgot to put it in my camera, (Mel's camera can't post pics cos we don't have the cord) so i'll attempt to describe to you what i saw this morning...

we were warmly greeted by our guide, Tripati, at 530am. without inquiry, he let us know that he was a brahmin priest, and the highest of all castes. i suppose tour guiding was his daytime job as he taught lessons in the Hindu temple on sundays as well. we arrived in the Old City, and learned that the layout of the city was intentionally made so that each street would inevitably always lead down to the holy Ganga (hindu name) river. as we walked the stone streets, weaving thru alley ways we saw a handful of people beginning their morning prayers chanting in the temples, clanging their bells, lighting the incense and throwing orange, yellow and pink flowers at various gods and goddesses. we reached the steps of the high banks that overlooked the Ganga and began our descent towards the river. with each step, we moved closer towards a floating wooden boat that awaited our arrival.

lined along the Ganga are around 80 ghats - river front dwellings. in these ghats are where people wash their sins, their laundry, themselves, perform cremations, and a number of other activities. as our boat curved its way thru the river, we heard the eery chanting of a small child as it echoed thru the river banks...this chanting was soon followed by a deep resonating voice of an adult male. there are 2 ghats where cremations take place, and we rowed past both of them. we learned from our boat guide that the first one performs both "electric fires" and "good [riverside] fires". for 500 rupees (about $1.00CAD), you can have your body cremated in the electric fire. for about 2000 rupees (about $4.00CAD), you can have your body cremated by the river. what's the big deal about being cremated along the Ganga, you might ask? hindu followers believe that if you are cremated in the Ganga river, you will achieve moksha - a breaking of the cycle of life (reincarnation) and enter into nirvana (an eternal state of bliss with no more suffering). we later made our way to the other ghat where only river side cremations took place. the smoke, the dark grey ashes...there's not much else i can say about that sight.

as we rowed north, the sun began to rise on our right-hand side, and it seemed like our senses were competing between the ghats on the left, and the sunrise on the right. as the sun rose, so did worshippers from the river...arising from the Ganga, they would position themselves towards the direction of the sun and chant while pouring holy water on themselves. further up the banks we saw laundry being slapped against rocks. we learned that a lot of the laundry being done here was for local guests houses and hotels. hmm...did we sleep on holy bedsheets, we asked? it was quite a sight to see the white handwashed linen draped along the banks as it waited for the sun to rise and dry it out. as the sun rose, the banks were lit with a golden hue. we welcomed this warmth as it always ensured that the mosquitoes buzzing in our faces would soon flee.

we rowed for about an hour, but have at least 10 hours worth of conversation, im sure. we carried on afterwards to one of the largest Hindu Temples in Varanasi (there are around 22,000!!). respectfully, we walked thru the temple where i had somewhat of a theological discussion with Tripati til the end of our trip. he assured me that he knew what he was talking about, as he was a man of the cloth :) these conversations have left many thought in my mind, which im sure i will chew on for the next 14 hours on this lovely train we have coming up. curious what i talked to him about? be sure to ask me when im back, and i'll gladly fill you in.

one can't come to Varanasi and not contemplate spirituality/faith/the afterlife. you can't avoid it. in fact, a promotional brochure even called it "a trip of self-discovery". while Mel and i didn't come hear to achieve any sort of enlightenment, we did discover a number of things about this country that has hosted us so very well for the last few weeks. my observations have lead me to the belief that faith and culture are very much intertwined here...from the socio-economic structure, to the political arena, and the everyday conversations people have with each other (or don't have because of castes), we are walking amidst a culture that reverently lives each day in the presence of the spiritual. is that good or bad? well, i guess that's up for each of us to decide.

see you in Darjeeling,
dL