Varanassi

Our first full day in Varanassi was a Monday, which is traditionally Shiva's day. Varanassi is Shiva's city and Monday is very busy. We were dropped off by tuc tuc on the outside of the old city. We had to cross two round-abouts. The noise of the trafic and the horns was overwhelming. The smell of the roads, the cows, the poo, the rubbish - it was a complete assault. We did not recognize many things; was this the Varanassi that we had visited before? We felt lost and overwhelmed, wondering why on earth we had brought our family here. We found a roof top terrace and got our bearings. We headed for the ghats. The nearest ghat happened to be the main burning ghat. There was no hiding from what was going on. Bodies are wrapped in cloth, and taken by boat to be washed in the Ganges after which they are burned in public. There are about 300 cremations a day that happen at the Ghats in Varanassi. It is quite an industry. About 200 kg of wood is needed to burn one body. This is stored by the river side and constantly shipped in. The family attending the cremation look happy; this is so that the soul of the departed is not disturbed. After the cremation the ashes are spread in the river. We headed upstream. We had decided to go for pizza on the other side of town. We took a boat ride to get there. After about 10 minutes, the body of a baby floated past our boat. Babies, pregnant women, Saddhus (holy men), people who suffer with leprosy  or small pox are all not cremated, instead they are burried in the Ganges river. Again, there was no hiding from what we saw. If there was any doubt, the boat man made sure that we knew what we were looking at. We arrived at Assi Ghat. Surprisingly we made the transition from wood burning bodies to wood burning pizzas remarkably easily. Varanassi itself somehow helps visitors to cope and come to terms with what is on display.

The evening was magical on the river as we hired a boat to watch the evening puja, or worship ceremony, to the Ganges river. Candles are lit and placed on the river as loved ones, alive and departed are remembered. We joined in, remembering family and friends from home, as one at a time, we let the candles and marigolds float downstream.

During our stay in Varanassi, we kept going back to the old city, drawn by its rich tapestry and caleidoscope of life; at once often utterly incomprehensible yet complete; intense and overwhelming but leaving you wanting more; with everything on display but with many layers of hidden meanings.

The children drew quite a crowd and we met many kind and interesting people. In Sarnath, the place of Buddha's first sermon, an Indian elderly gentleman, a Buddhist teacher, sat down with us and explained the essence of Buddhism to us 5.  We met many children from all walks of life, often bumping into them several times. Rickshaw drivers would recognize us from the previous day and say hello. We had all come to love the city by the time we left and I think we will return again one day.