Oh My Ghat

  

When you visit Varanasi you will be surprised how happy this city makes you feel. ​Life revolves around death in Varanasi, as you might know, but that's not as gloomy as it sounds! Here, death is the big attraction. After all: entering Nirvana at the end of a long life is something to celebrate. Kashi, Benares, Varanasi will leave you feeling 'respired'. This glorious city is changing fast, but amidst the chaos and noise the ancient spirit of the city still endures.

Believers say that those who are cremated on the Burning Ghat, attain Moksha: freedom from the endless cycle of birth and death. In the maze-like alleys surrounding the ghats, old people's homes, ashrams and death hotels, everywhere people are awaiting Moksha. Many have traveled for days to end their journey of life in Varanasi. They have embraced their nearing deaths, which they hope will come very soon. There is no grieving and no mourning. Old, local residents also prefer to stay as close to the Ganges as possible. Some don't even ever leave the city in fear of missing out on a run at Moksha. 

Everywhere in

Varanasi people are either eagerly awaiting Moksha or making a living out of it. Sometimes a very nice one, like Dom Raja

Varanasi feels like a year-round festival where dead bodies, all colorfully decorated and covered in flower petals, crowd surf through the narrow alleyways. The main stage is Manikarnika Ghat: the famous Burning Ghat and the largest crematorium ground in the world.