A Portrait of India- Part 2 Varanasi, Mecca for hindus

From Delhi we flew to the spiritual capital Varanasi, the oldest living city in the entire world and the most densely populated, which has welcomed pilgrims since the 6th century b.c.  words, photos and even videos can not describe the quality of  what that feels like.  it  was like going back in time 2000 years ago except with the addition of motorized vehicles and wall to wall people. i realized these people never have a moment of silence or privacy/space from others during their entire lives- it's no wonder they are so expert at going within to meditate into stillness and finding peace by dunking in the water of the Ganges. interestingly enough, i recently read that there is virtually no bipolar disorder in India.  you would think the overcrowded conditions would result in mental illness but it turns out  that an over focus on material gain causes mental illness while human connection and divine purpose prevents it. but there are different problems here.  on our visit to the birthplace of Buddhism where Buddha gave his first speech after his moment of enlightenment under the tree, there was a 5 year old girl holding a starving baby, begging outside the museum.  it was a haunting image that will never leave me- like one you see in those adds for aid relief in which the scrawny body of the baby has a huge head and big eyes of suffering.  it jolted me to my core and i was literally shaking from the sight.
from the museum we headed to the banks of the Ganges on which Varansi sits.  this is the mecca for Hindus- they are all dying to die there because they will go more directly to  the paradise of their afterworld.  as we rode through the streets to make our way to the river this is what we saw-

it is a sea of humanity on utter chaos, yet they all seem to have a direction and purpose in the midst of the noise, dust and confusion

as we made our way to the banks of the ganges for our sunset riverboat paddle i was greeted by a swarm of girls selling little paper bowls filled with candles and marigolds used for sending your wishes into the river.  up until now i had only come across boy hawkers and beggars who are politely aggressive, if that makes any sense.  of course i had done my part to support them, buying their trinkets and handing out money and candy.  but, seeing these young girls touched me in such a deep way because mostly for this trip the theme of the role of women kept coming up for me. so, even though the little candles only sell for 10 rupees each (25 cents)  i bought 5 for 500 rupees ($12.50)  from the oldest girl in the pink dress, knowing the mothers were right there sitting on the steps and would use the money for family expenses.  well, i'm sure none of those girls had ever seen that kind of money but i wanted them to feel empowered. by the time we returned from the boat ride an hour later, word had spread through the area and it felt like every kid in Varanasi was there waiting for me to get off the boat and hounding me for more.  it was a challenge to make it back to the bus and an elder man was shooing them away from the bus- you'll see this in a pic.  when we got to our point on the river i lit my 5 candles, one for each girl, and made a wish that they come to know some of the goodness i have and that i come to know some of the goodness they have.  the divine joy of these people is palpably intense and was catchy.  here are pics of the ganges experience. there are various ghats along the river, steps leading down to the water for different everyday functions- bathing, laundry, praying, cremation and ritual~

i'm having a problem loading Ganges photos so i will publish this and follow up with a new post~
sorry for the technical difficulties.  it got messed up from a video that wouldn't load.

A Portrait of India- Part 2- Varanasi

take a ride through the chaos of the sea of humanity that is Varanasi, the oldest, living, most densely populated city on the planet as we make our way to the banks of the Ganges River

A Portrait of India- Part 1 Delhi

please indulge me in reliving my 3 week india tour which casey gifted me as our honeymoon trip for our spiritual marriage, by sharing some photos as i try to process and integrate this amazing experience.  as you will see india is a land of paradoxes and extreme contrasts.  we stayed in the top hotels in the world which lie in the midst of utter poverty.  but, i must say the word that i came home with from that land is SMILE, for they are truly the smiling people even in the harshest of conditions.
we began our journey in Delhi, the capital and a very urban city. we stayed at the fancy Oberoi hotel and here are some pics of the hotel.  i am mostly going to let the pictures do the talking~

these are lotus flowers floating in the reflection pool

there are bowls of water with rose petals everywhere

life size screen

decadent dining

this is me swimming in the pool below our room- we did a lot of swimming on this trip in some really nice pools

view from our room

can you see the marigold leis on the headboard- flower fragrances at every turn, even in our sleep

casey gave me some great laughs

here are some scenes of delhi-

beautiful semi precious stone inlay on one of the marble temples

the men all hang together- a lot of sitting around "thinking" time for them

the women are so colorful and close.  notice them holding hands.  the men hold hands as well.

arm in arm- these girls are wearing the modern version of the saris

entire families, babies and all on small motorcycles.  notice the men are the only ones wearing helmets- this drove me crazy. most of the women ride side saddle

i bought this bag my first day for $5- it held everything i needed

pilgrims visiting a memorial to Ghandi

Ghandi's memorial- they keep a fire burning 24/7- this man is circling the memorial with incense.  those gold flowers are marigolds which are used in rituals everywhere.

the everyday every moment greeting is namaste- this has a subtle effect on spirit when you do it all day

and other inspiring reminders

the tight traffic was intense

casey in front of the red fort

ancient painting on a building using plant pigments

amazing palaces everywhere.  so many i lost track

 

 

little children are on their own to beg in the streets and their bosses or parents are always hidden close by. this was very very hard.  i brought bags of candy which i doled out whenever possible

the arch of india

the crowds and traffic are hard to capture here

here are some shots of the qulb minar victory tower- another ancient site

loved all the detailed carving

the women are for the most part the laborers

yet they stick together and have their private respites

 

 

my initial sense of india was one of being embraced by the goddess and it was a deeply romantic feeling which infused my bond with casey with a high joy.

little did i know that these initial couple of days were very tame in comparison to what lay ahead.   for next we went to Varanasi, the mecca of india on the ganges river, the oldest living city in the world and the most densely populated. that will be next in these series of posts. thanks for touring with me