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Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
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General Information on Varanasi
Population: 793,542 (1981)
Altitude: 81 m
Best time to Visit: October to April
Information on
Varanasi
Varanasi, also known as Kashi or Banaras is the
India’s most sacred city. Varanasi is also called
as the city of light. Varanasi, the holy city is
situated on the northern bank of the River Ganges
in Uttar Pradesh. Varanasi derives its name from
the two tributaries of the |
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Ganga
which are Varuna and Asi, between which it is situated.
This city is visited by over one million people from all
over the world. Varanasi is one of the oldest living
cities in the world. It is one of the most famous Hindu
pilgrimage city in India. Varanasi is situated at an
altitude of 81 meters above sea level. This city is not
only linked with Hindus but it is linked with Buddhism
and Jainism as well. Each year over one million pilgrims
visit this place.
History of Varanasi
According to the legends, Varanasi was founded around
ten centuries before the birth of Christ. It was
probably already an important town by the 7th century BC
when Babylon and Nineveh were at the peak of their
power. The Buddha came to it in 500 BC. This city also
finds its place in various holy epics like Vamana Purana,
the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and in some of the
Buddhist texts. Varanasi was also known as "Avimuktaka",
"Anandakanana", "Mahasmasana", "Surandhana", "Brahma
Vardha", "Sudarsana", "Ramya", "Kasi", "Kashi" and "Banaras".
Nearly 5000 years ago, Kasikanda described the glory of
the city in 15,000 verses in the Skanda Purana. In it
Lord Shiva says, 'the three worlds from one city of mine
and Kasi is my royal palace therein'. On the eve of the
rise of Buddhism in the 6th century BC, the kingdom of
Kashi was one of the 16 Janapadas (great nations) that
occupied the territory from the Kabul valley to the
banks of the Godavari. Fa-Haien and Huien Tsang, the
famous Chinese travellers also visited this city in the
4th and 7th century A.D. Varanasi was the capital of the
Gahadavala king, Jaichand, who was the most powerful
Indian king just before the establishment of the Muslim
rule in India. Under the Mughals, Varanasi formed part
of the province of Oudh. According to a legend, the
Ananda, one of the chief disciples of the Buddha, had
wished that the Buddha had died in Varanasi instead of
Kushinagara. This indicates the importance of the city
in the 5th century BC. The earliest inhabitants of
Varanasi were the Aryans who contributed to its growth
as a great centre of culture, education, commerce and
craftsmanship. Students from all over the country came
to visit the city and its fame drew the attention of the
rich and powerful. Its temples and mansions were
ransacked on many occasions from the 11th to the 18th
centuries. It was raided by Muhammad of Ghazni’s army in
1033. In 1194 Qutb-ud-din Ghori defeated the local
Raja’s army and Ala-ud-din Khalji, the King of Delhi
(1294-1316) destroyed temples and built mosques on their
sites, and for a brief period in the 18th century it was
known as Mohammadabad. Despite its early foundation
hardly any building dates before the 17th century and
few are more than 200 years old. Strikingly there have
been no archaeological finds of any antiquity at the
site.
Varanasi stands as the centre of Sanskrit learning in
northern India. Sanskrit, the oldest of the
Indo-European languages, is one of learning and
religious ritual and has been sustained here long after
it stopped being used as a living language elsewhere.
The Sanskrit University, for example, has over 150,000
rare manuscripts. Hindu devotional movements flourished
here, especially in the 15th century under Ramananda and
Kabir, one of India’s greatest poets lived in the city.
Tulsi Das translated the Ramayana from Sanskrit into
Hindi. |
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Festivals of
Varanasi
The city of Varanasi celebrates a number of
special festivals. During the first month of the
calendar, pilgrims perform the circumambulation of
Kasi Dharmakshetra, as laid down in the
scriptures. Ganga Dasara celebrates the day when
the waters of the Ganga reached Haridwar. Now.
Nagnathaiya at Tulsi Ghat enacts the story of
Krishna jumping into the Jamuna to overcome Kalia,
the king of the Serpents. Also a fair is held at
Chetganj to remember the occasion when
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Rama’s
brother Lakshman, cut off Ravana sister’s nose when she
attempted to force him into a marriage. At Nati Imli,
Bharat Milap, the meeting of Rama and Bharat after a
separation of 14 years is celebrated with great ceremony
with the Maharaja of Varanasi attending in full regalia,
on elephant back. Music festivals are mainly held in the
winter months between December and February.
Tourist
Attractions in Varanasi
Ghats (flight of steps) and temples are the principal
tourist attraction in Varanasi. Thousands of pilgrims
and devotees visit this city to make holy prayers, to
meditate and to purify themselves by taking a bath in
the holy river Ganges. There are about 100 Ghats in
Varanasi which are situated on the west banks of the
river Ganges. The other main tourist attraction in
Varanasi is the Kashi Vishwanath temple or the Golden
temple. This temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The
other main places in Varanasi are the great mosque of
Aurangzeb, Durga temple, Bharat Mata temple, the
Ramnagar Fort Museum and Banaras Hindu University.
Sarnath and Bodhgaya are also situated near by Varanasi.
More....
Handicrafts of Varanasi
Varanasi has always been a centre of trade and commerce.
The place is also known for silk weaving, embroidery and
metalwork. Today Varanasi is famous for ornamental brass
work, silks and embroideries and for the manufacture of
glass beads, which are exported all over the world. The
significance of Silk in India’s traditional life is
deep-rooted. Silk was considered a pure fabric, most
appropriate for use on ceremonial and religious
occasions. Its luster, softness and richness of its
natural colour gave it precedence over all other
fabrics. White or natural coloured silk was worn by the
Brahmins and ‘twice born’. Women wore bright colours and
the darker hues were reserved for the Sudras or lowest
caste in the hierarchy. Silk garments were worn for
rites of passage like births and marriages, and
offerings of finely woven silks were made to deities in
temples. It has been suggested that this concept of
purity may have given impetus to the growth of
silk-weaving centres around ancient towns like
Kanchipuram, Varanasi, Bhubaneshwar and Ujjain, a
tradition that is kept alive today. Varanasi is also
famous for the silk brocades and beautiful Banarasi
saris. Banarasi saris are some of the most sought-after
ones throughout India because of their extraordinary
weave and texture.
How to reach Varanasi
By Air:
There is a direct, daily flight connection between
Varanasi and New Delhi. Various flights also operate
between Khajuraho, Kolkata, Mumbai, Lucknow and
Bhubaneshwar. The airport is 22 km from the centre.
By Rail:
Varanasi is an important and major rail junction. It is
connected with all the major cities across the country
like New Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, Gwalior,
Meerut, Indore, Guwahati, Allahabad, Lucknow, etc.
By Road:
Varanasi is connected to the rest of the country by good
roads. Varanasi is about 565 kms from Agra, 128 kms from
Allahabad, 765 kms from Delhi and about 405 kms from
Khajuraho. |
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