Varanasi and Reflections on India
Two nights in Varanasi 11/ 8-10
Another 6-hour drive brought us to Varanasi (Banaras to Hindu’s), one of the oldest cities in the world, and for Hindus one of the world’s holiest places. The city hugs the bank of the Ganges River: which is also holy for Hindus. Pilgrims from all over India come to bathe in these waters, to wash their sins away, and to die here and be cremated along the shore of the river.
Sarnath Buddhist Temple and Learning Center: It is believed that Gautama Buddha preached his first sermon to his disciples on this site. Today it features a beautiful Buddhist Temple and the Sarnath Museum housing treasures of Indian Buddhist art. The walkway leading to the temple features lovely billboards with colorful images and words of memorable wisdom from the teachings of the Buddha.
Visits to the Holy River: We visited the river twice, taking a boat each time to view the shore from the water.
In the early morning it was quieter, but later it’s a busy and crowded city along the river, with many hotels and temples. Wide stairways called “ghats” lead directly from every shoreside building down to the water. Along the river men and children bathed in the waters. The river is clearly quite polluted, but according to Deependra, Indians believe that the holy waters of the river will never make them sick. We also saw some cremations in progress, but taking photos is not allowed.
Our evening visit was much more crowded, both on the shore and on the water. With a lightly hazy sky, the evening colors were subdued. As the sun set, the temple priests begin to perform the aarti, the sacred light ceremony along the banks of Mother Ganga.
We arrive in our boat near the site of Ganges Aarti, a daily Hindu ritual to honor the River Ganges. The priests (in orange) perform the ceremony while thousands watch from the land and from boats. For Hindus, this is a once in a lifetime pilgrimage- to Viransai and to attend the Aarti.
Farewell Dinner: Our OAT tour wraps up with a Farewell Dinner at our hotel in Varanasi. Deependra made this lovely experience. He arranged for us all to be garbed in traditional Indian costumes. The women’s arms and hands were decorated with new henna designs. And we even enjoyed a brief concert featuring an accomplished master of the Sitar. And another lovely dinner.
From here, we fly back to Delhi for one night’s stay. And then we fly out – for us it’s to Morocco.
Reflections about India:
Deependra was a terrific guide (Trip Experience Leader in OAT lingo) and offered so much to help us understand and connect with Indian culture. He was friendly, warm and often quite humorous. As he told us on more than one occasion, “If it’s not chaotic and difficult — you’re not in India.”
Indian Cities: They’re very crowded and most people are very poor. There are some nice parts of town, where the middle-class and wealthy will live, but most live in poverty. Rural villages are also quite poor and dirty.
Garbage is ubiquitous. Along the side of the road, we’d see piles of garbage, often attended by goats or cows, even in big cities and out in the country. In cities men will simply turn to a quieter corner to urinate on the wall. While driving, people just toss their garbage out the window. Nevertheless, when we visited people’s homes, we found them to be clean and lovely, even if just outside the front door, things were filthy and smelly.
Deependra Explains: Indians value cleanliness, so their homes and clothes are spotless, but until recently they didn’t think of that outside their homes. The government has more recently encouraged keeping the outdoors clean as well. While some progress has been made, it takes time for a culture to embrace such new things.
Sacred Cows: It’s not just religion or tradition here, but for many Indians their cows are breadwinners. They produce milk, so they are not for dinner. Cows, goats, sheep, and pigs are everywhere and usually running quite free. You’ll see them along country roads and on streets in crowded cities and villages.
Country Mouse vs. City Mouse: Indian city dwellers tend to welcome more modern, and more western, practices while their rural cousins remain more traditional. While more young city folks are looking for a “love” marriage, their country cousins prefer “arranged” marriages.
Arranged Marriages: We came to understand and appreciate arranged marriages as we learned more about Indian culture. Unlike our western culture which emphasizes our individualism and freedom, the Indian culture is far more committed to family. They seek to make their families proud and never to make choices that would dishonor the family. Indian weddings are huge events as two families come to celebrate together. The family spends huge amounts on the wedding, because it’s an important investment in the future. Where we set money aside to support ourselves in retirement, they spend money on the wedding, trusting that their children will support them in their elder years. Thanks to traditional arranged marriages, India has one of the lowest divorce rates in the world. So perhaps there’s something to be learned from Indians who meet their spouses on their wedding days and learn to love and appreciate each other after they are married.
Persistent Hawkers: In so many tourists spots, we were hounded by hawkers trying to sell toys, souvenirs, scarves etc. They’ll get right in your face, and several hawkers would surround just one of us, pushing their own products. Deependra advised us that it’s best to absolutely ignore them and walk away. They take even a “No, thank you” as an invitation for more salesmanship.
How’s the FOOD?: Indian food is fantastic, and we enjoyed every meal along the trip. But there is one warning: The Indians like their food very spicy. If your preference is for milder food, be sure to tell them that you don’t want spicy. As Evan decided along the way, “Indian Food is great, but its primary purpose is to clear out our sinuses.”
Surviving on the streets in India: Cars and trucks, bicycles and motorbikes, rickshaws and tuk-tuks, and pedestrians. It’s chaos. Crosswalks are just a decoration in the road. Happily, since it’s so crowded that no–one can move too quickly, so most do survive.
The People of India: Despite the persistent hawkers, and the chaotic pushiness on the crowded roadways, the people of India were generally warm, welcoming and friendly. Sara and I really appreciated how the OAT program gave us such wonderful opportunities to meet people: for dinners in their homes, for a visit to their village, and for wonderful meals at great restaurants. In all of these settings, we loved the people of India.
