Varanasi is an amazing Indian city, specifically because of all the ghats along the River Ganges. The main streets are hectic and loud and everything you could imagine an Indian street to be. But there are all these narrow side streets crowded with shops zig-zagging in all directions.
On our first morning this kid popped up out of nowhere and became our tour guide for the morning. He waited for us to finish our breakfast, and then took us down to the river to see the main burning ghat, Manikarnika. It’s the most auspicious place for a Hindu to be cremated. We got a guide (who stressed he was a volunteer at a hospice nearby and not a guide, but who knows) and he was very knowledgeable about the entire process. It was SO interesting learning all the different steps in the cremation process.
The bodies are covered in white cloth and are carried down to the Ganges on bamboo stretcher. There the body is dipped in the water to be cleansed of sins. The pyres closer to the water are for individuals from lower castes, and the further from the river the higher the caste. It takes about 200kg of wood to burn a body, and each type of wood has a specific price. The price of the basic wood is150 rupees/kg (approx $3.25 CAD) so the minimum cost to cremate a body is 30,000 rupees or $650. For sandalwood the cost is much, much higher.
The bodies are placed on pyres which are then stacked with wood. To light the fire, a flame must be brought from this eternal fire that has been burning for over 3,500 years. I’m not so sure I believe that that same fire has been burning. Someone must’ve fallen asleep on the job at some point in time! A man in the family has to light it. No women are allowed down near the pyres, because they could become too emotional and start crying, which would disturb the soul of the deceased.
During our time there, we were able to see the ritual from start to finish. We could see feet sticking out from amongst the branches, and it sounds disturbing but it really wasn’t that strange to see. It just seemed to fit with everything going on.
Bodies are continuously being cremated, 24/7/365. Our guide told us that it takes 3 hours to cremate a body, but I thought it was longer than that. The whole experience was so surreal I really wanted to take some photos but out of respect photography isn’t allowed.
At the end of our tour, our guide asked us for donations towards the cost of wood. We gave him 500 rupees between the 4 of us ($11) and he kept asking us for more money. We weren’t sure if he was legit or if we were getting ripped off, so we didn’t give him any more.
The burning ghat as seen from the boat:
The burning ghat as seen from the boat:
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