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Varanasi - Last stop

 

"Om Namah Shivaya...Om Namah Shivaya...Om Namah Shivaya" (literally in Sanskrit "I bow to you Shiva") is the most common mantra heard and repeated anywhere in Varanasi, the home of Shiva, the sacred city according to the Hindus, the place to go to die by being cremated to stop the cycle of rebirths and be reunited directly with the universe and the cosmos created by God Shiva freeing the soul to heaven.

There is only one place where this happens, the Manikarnika Ghat, one of many Ghat (derived from the english word "gate") which give access to the Ganges, the sacred river, the river of life, mama Ganga, where every Hindu is immersed in its waters to purify the soul from sins and be forgiven.

 

When you arrive at the Manikarnika Ghat the atmosphere is surreal, it has not absolutely the feeling of being in a macabre place as they are burned the bodyes. The ceremonies which take place continuously from morning to night, 24h-24h, every day for centuries, are carried out in an extremely normal atmosphere, under the gaze of passers-by, onlookers, tourists, stray animals, children and of course the families of the deceased, all busy in something, those who pass by there, who carries something, the seller, who cleans, who beg, those who drink chai (the typical Indian tea made from milk), who talk, those who work, those who play, in short it is a ceremony extremely sacred to its meaning in a very normal and daily context in the life of Varanasi.

 

After a while we witness the ceremonies, since they occur 4/5 simultaneously, you begin to understand the ritual, the sequence of actions, then more than someone approaches you to give explanations, sometimes with the second goal to seek offer with the purchase of firewood excuse for those who do not can afford it. It can safely be stationed on the steps of the Ghat on the terraces or in the surrounding area for a panoramic view of the blazing wooden pyres on the banks of the Ganges, it observes what happens sometimes dipped in soot carried by the wind, away from the horn of a busy city, chaotic, sprawling, with the curiosity that you can have for something never seen before but especially with the reflections that each one is led to ask for what you are seeing and what they think in relation to the concept of death and what, if any, can there after.

 

The Hindu belief is that by being cremated in the city of Varanasi is to interrupt the cycle of rebirth thus freeing the soul in heaven or you go to reconnect directly with Shiva, with the universe he created. No reincarnation, no new ground loop. Varanasi, last stop.

 

 

 

India, Varanasi - Manikarnika Ghat, considered by Hindus as the most sacred place in the world to die and be cremated.

From the time of death no more than 24 hours pass before the bodies of the dead are laid on the Ghat steps by the side of the Ganges where they wait to be cremated.

The body is wrapped in a white sheet and covered with an orange drape, it is transported by family members on a bamboo stretcher and immersed in the Ganges for the last purification. The body is then left to dry for 40 minutes before being cremated.

The Ganges is considered by Hindus a sacred river. The belief is that by swimming in the river on a daily basis it will purify the soul in order to attain salvation. The name of the river derives from ‘’Ganga’’ the God who came from heaven and cleansed the Indian people, so for this during the cremation ceremony the bodies are immersed in the river to cleanse them from their sins.

Cows, dogs and goats roam freely among the family members and the workers and rummage around the wood-burning pyres eating what they find.

When the body is dry it is placed on the wood pyre for cremation. Each pyre consists of roughly 160 kg of wood.

The wood is stacked in the streets near the Ghat and the wood used the most is that of the Mango tree. The families who can afford it, generally those from the higher caste, buy the better quality Sandalwood.

For the men additional wood is placed over their chest, while for the women on the pelvis. Fat is scattered over the body to facilitate fire and sandal wood powder and incense to mask the smell in the air.

It is normally the eldest son or the closest male member of the family who presides over the cremation ceremony. He wears white and his head is shaved as a sign of respect.

The head is shaved by the barbers who everyday position themselves in close proximity to the Ghat steps.

No matches, lighters or inflammable liquids are used to ignite the wood, only the burning straw from the sacred fire which as the legend states has been burning for 3500 years day in and day out inside the temple.

Relatives patiently wait and assist at the cremation.

The body is left to burn for 3 hours, after which what remains of the torso is thrown in the waters of Ganga. According to Hindu belief, cremation is seen as a way of purifying and liberating the soul from the body to heaven.

Each day at the Manikarnika Ghat watched by family and spectators between 100 and 150 bodies are cremated. Not all people are allowed to be cremated, the Holy men, children under 10 and pregnant women as they are considered already pure, therefore do not need to be cremated. Whereas the lepers because they are considered impure and also those who have been bitten by snakes, due to the fact that Varanasi is the city of the Hindu God Shiva, represented by a snake wrapped around his neck.

Varanasi is the city of Shiva, the creator and lord of the universe. For this reason, Hindus come to die in Varanasi. Once the soul leaves the body through cremation, the soul is purified and joins Shiva the Maker of the Universe, interrupting the cycle of reincarnation.

                                                                                   all images are copyright SmallBoy and may not be downloaded or reproduced in any manner without permission of the author

tutte le immagini sono copyright SmallBoy e non possono essere scaricate o riprodotte in alcun modo senza il permesso dell'autore

 

 

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