Varanasi

 

After a short and terrible nights sleep in an overpriced hotel in Jhansi we went back to the Train station to get our local train from Jhansi to Varanasi. The train station was busy, really, really busy. We were slightly worried we wouldn’t get a place on the train despite having booked ahead.

The reason is was so busy was the train was going through Allahabad, and it just so happened the Kumbh Mela festival was underway. Kumbh Mela is considered to be the largest festival in the world, with about 100 million people making the trip from across India and the rest of the world to bathe in the Ganges. So considering India is busy, Kumbh Mela takes things to the next level.

So, the train was packed, think rush hour on the London tube, but with cows. We had a good 5 hours of this, eventually some how we got a seat in a carriage full of inquisitive Indians waggling their heads at us enthusiastically. I’d sat next to some sort of Hindu monk who was very chatty in broken English and hand signals. It was a very interesting chat until he found his favourite yoga magazine and began making me look at every page. I’m not against Yoga per se, but when the people doing it are completely naked and in some very compromising positions it’s quite hard to keep it together!

After sometime some of the carriages occupants began pointing at my guitar, after some discussion amongst themselves they decided that we should play something for them. Over the din of the train and the talking in the train Matt, Rob and Myself decided we’d introduce the carriage to Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Deep Blue Something. The guitar was unpacked and we launched in to the song with gusto. I’d say our rendition was pretty good considering we didn’t really know the words. The affect on the carriage was as if we’d made some sort of faux pas. The once chatty carriage was now completely silent and the smiling faces had been replaced by looks somewhere between worry, confusion and disbelief. Needless to say the guitar was packed away and we all pretended to sleep until we reached Varanasi. Definitely an interested train journey!

When we go to Varanasi we began our search for a hostel, many were fully booked because of the nearby festival so we found we ended up staying in one of the more up market hotels. When we found the rooftop restaurant we decided that it had been a very fortuitous expenditure. As the sun went down behind the Ganges we watched kite after kite take to the sky. It was great to watch the Kites edge closer and closer to each other and then swing to attack – if you’ve ever read the kite runner, it was just like that. We sat with a beer and some food watching the battles unfold. After it went dark we went out to explore.

After negotiating the labyrinthine passages of Varanasi – many blocked by ruminating cows – we eventually made it to the burning Ghats. Varanasi is a holy city. Hindu’s believe that if you die in the city you break out of the reincarnation cycle and you will achieve enlightenment. When bodies die the family must pay for the body to be burnt on the Ghats and when the bodies are nothing but ash, returned in to the Ganges. It’s very disrespectful to take pictures of the burning Ghats so we just sat in front of a few and watched the ceremonies taking place.

At first it was hard to accept that there were bodies being burned in front of us. The bodies were brought down hidden under canvas and it wasn't until we had been sitting and watching for a good 30 minutes that it really hit home what we were witnessing. As we were watching one of the helpers reached in to the fire and pulled out something from the edge of the fire that was then rested on the top; it was a leg.

We chatted to locals about the ritual that - to us - seemed hard to comprehend. Many of those who come to Varanasi to die are not Rich, they have often saved for years, like a pension for the after life. Wood is expensive and paying for the whole process is - for the majority of the population - very, very difficult. Many opt for cheaper woods that don't burn as hot, and also in varying quantities meaning sometimes there is not enough wood to burn the entire body. This can result in body parts floating down the Ganges. Despite us finding this quite jarring and so different from what we are used to in the west, what really stuck with us was the incredible belief and faith we had witnessed in those we met.

After the Ghats we carried walking along the Ganges and taking in the bustling and electric atmosphere. We found a large crowd watching another ceremony watching some people doing some sort of dance with some ceremonial torches. After the dance some sugary puffed rice was handed out (I think it had been blessed). People were going crazy and there seemed to be a real danger people could get hurt! People would get some rice and eat it and then leave happy – I wasn’t quite sure of the significance of it all but a nice woman gave us all some and indicated we should eat it, we did and she looked very happy. We thanked her and then went to look at the goats nearby who were eating woven baskets. They also looked very happy.

The next day we spent exploring Varanasi and moving very slowly through the crowed streets. We also booked a trip out on the Ganges at sunset so we could watch the chaos from the peace of the water. I seem to remember our boatman was called “Lucky” or something to that effect. I also remember that both Rob and Matt were both terrible at rowing and caused the boat to spin either left or right, but never go straight. Rob and Matt lit some floating candles and said prayers. Then placed them on the Ganges and watched the slow current take them in to the distance.