Varnasi - Travelogue

Cow shits all around, narrow streets, dirt unhygienic all around that's Varnasi.
Its an Old City which has very huge buildings. Buildings very narrow and tall and seems to be unapproved.
The streets are a maze, it will take a couple of days to really understand the route to your hotel. But after that the fun begins, you seem to have unlocked the matrix and wherever you go.. you know how to explore and how to come back safely. You see shiva lingas everywhere in varnasi. Not to mention the teas served in mud cups and also the jalebis served in the road side.
The Ganges:
They have this Ghats which it seems are some 100 in number. A Ghat is nothing but a set of staircase leading to Ganga and all streets have a Ghat.
The most famous are Harischandra Ghat and Ganga Ghat which is where the corpse pyres are burnt!! I heard they burn some 400 corpse per day.
If you are in the street you will see many corpse taken away every hour and they cover the corpse with a beautiful shawl.
In Ganges bank you see everything.. corpse pyre, ppl bathing, Children playing cricket in the ghats, boats with the travellers, Some ppl performing rituals, Buffallo bathing ..
I was in Varnasi during Muharram time and Varnasi has a high Muslim population. The Muslims constructed a structure with wood and some decorative clothes.. it looked like a tomb. They took a procession of that structure in all the streets finally they came to a Ghat and took a boat and dumped that structure in Ganga.
There I saw Her!! Saw Ganga embracing everything.... right from the Muslim's tomb model structure to buffaloes excrete to ashes from human pyre and also the small boat with a diya offered as prayers from Hindu. She embraces all!! and She is the epitome of patience!!
Clapping Hand:
In one of the Ghats I saw one guy clapping his hands left hand over right.. I thought this was some kind of prayer. Then I heard some more claps when I was walking in the street.. I thought someone was calling me ...and then I realize this clapping was to powder a material which they will put in their mouth. These ppl always have paan in their mouth!! I think everyone will die of throat cancer!!
Temples:
The Vishwananthar and Annapoorni temple had a lot of security.. mobile, camera and pen were not allowed. You will be physically checked at least a couple of times (in addition to passing through the scanning gate) before going inside the temple. I later came to know there was couple of blasts in Varnasi in recent years.
The Vishwanathar temple has a Saptharishi Pooja and you can get a ticket for 50Rs. If you ever go to Varnasi get a ticket and watch this pooja which happens at 7 P.M everyday. A very interesting ritual. 7 ppl first do abishega and decorations to Shiva linga and they sing a song in between , this song I can compare only to the scenes in Mongol, in that movie the soldiers after every victory gleefully hum with their jarring voice.
My parents say that it was Sama Veda which these ppl were uttering. Towards the end of the ritual there was a Deepa Arthi were the 7 ppl move arthi to the linga and ring their bells, the ringing of the bells were well supported by a percussion instrument and they sang a song.. should be Sama Veda. It was a scintillating experience. If you are in Varnasi don't miss this Saptharishi Pooja.
After visiting Vishwanathar and Annapoorni we were taken to a small temple, they said it was Vishalakshi temple. I just can't believe it. Such a small temple!! A far cry from Madurai Meenakshi and Kanchi Kamakshi temple...but what to do as the saying goes, "Moorthy siridheninum Keerthi Perithu".
Varnasi temples art seems to be very rudimentary.. the Ganesha and Hanuman idols in the temple were usually done in a red stone and they seemed out of shape. In other temples the Idol is just a brass mask!
The Rickshawala:
Cycle Rickshaw is still the main mode of transport and they don't have motors in it. Runs just by human power. On Makarsankranti I decided to go to BHU (Banaras Hindu University) Birla temple. I was told by my hotel caretaker that it would cost Rs 15 for 1 way trip to the Birla Temple. I went to the Rickshaw stand and they said Rs30 I bargained for Rs20 and sat on the rickshaw and then I realized.. the Birla temple was more than 4 km. It took about 15 mins to reach the destination. I knew Rs20 is not the correct amount but my ego prevented me from giving the rickshawala extra amount. In Chennai auto driver will start murmuring during the last mile usually to get more money but this guy dint!! Finally I got down from the Riskshaw and gave him 20 Rs and I looked at his face and I see contentedness.. peace in it. He took the money and made a namaste and told something in Hindi which I infer to be, "Have a good day".
BHU:
I roamed around BHU for sometime and I saw Art everywhere. There were some students in Birla temple who were practicing some songs may be some event is coming up. Some more ppl doing a skit. I came out of the temple and walked around BHU campus and saw 1 person sculpting a statue another girl having a big chart were she is drawing a picture. Art.. art everywhere
The Kite Runners:
Children were flying Kites all the time, but it peaked on Makarsankranti. Do these children have any other option other than Kite..no. With narrow roads and tall buildings, this seems to be the only sport to pursue. I gleefully saw the Kite festival scene from the kite runner little did I realize the inconvenience. When I walked in the street my slippers were usually pulled by the kite thread and also the threads kept falling from sky all over the streets.
Some more places:
If you are in Varnasi try visiting Sarnath, the place where Buddha started his teaching. Also Choli Amman, Kalabayravar (the place where you get Kasi Kayiru). Also take some time to roam around the Ghats and if you are there in the evening have a look at Ganga Arthi.
The Tail Piece:
Remember you can never get Bangalore Thakkali in Bangalore. I went to a big sweet stall in Varnasi and asked for 'Kasi Halwa'. The merchant replied, "We don't sell Kasi Halwa". I pointed to a sweet which looked like Kasi Halwa and asked what it was. He replied, "Karachi Halwa"