Overview
An ancient city and a centre of learning for over 2000 years. Varanasi is the holiest of pilgrimage places located on the banks of the river Ganga. It is also commonly known as Banaras. Considered as the centre of earth in Hindu Cosmology, every Hindu is expected to visit this holy place at least once in a lifetime and if possible pour the remains or ashes of cremated ancestors here. Varanasi is one of the oldest inhabitated cities in the world and probably the oldest city of India. American writer Mark Twain wrote “Benares is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together.” According to legend, the city was founded by the Hindu deity, Lord Shiva, around 5,000 years ago. Varanasi was a commercial and industrial centre, famous for its muslin and silk fabrics, perfumes, ivory works, and sculpture. It has the holy shrine of Kashi Vishwanath and it is also one of the twelve revered Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva. Hindus believe that bathing in the river Ganges remits sins and that dying in Kashi ensures release of a person’s soul from the cycle of its transmigrations. Varanasi is one of the holiest places in Buddhism too, being one of the four pilgrimage sites said to have been designated by Gautama Buddha. At Sarnath Gautama Buddha is said to have given his first sermon about the basic principles of Buddhism. Ghats – Varanasi’s principal attraction is the long string of bathing Ghats which line the west bank of the Ganges. Ghats are the steps which lead down to the river, and houses two burning Ghats, where bodies are cremated. Great Mosque of Aurangzeb – It has been constructed using columns from the Biseswar Temple razed by Aurangzeb. Durga Temple is commonly known as the Monkey temple due to the number of monkeys that have made it their home. Tulsi Manas Temple – Famous medieval age poet and author, Tulsi Das, lived here. Benares Hindu University The Bharat Kala Bhavan at the university has a fine collection of miniature paintings and sculptures from the 1st to 15th centuries. Alamgir Mosque Locally known as Beni Madhav Ka Darera, this was originally a Vishnu temple erected by the Maratha Chieftain Beni Madhav Rao Scindia. Aurangzeb destroyed it and erected a mosque in its place, but it is a curious Hindu- Muslim mixture with the lower portion of the structure, entirely Hindu.
