Going Back to the Roots

 

Varanasi or Banaras, the most ancient city…… there are numerous vlogs/posts all over the social media. Information-wise, there is nothing new that I would add but the visit was an experience in itself.

Earlier this year, around February, I mentioned to my husband that I would like to visit Varanasi. I hadn’t been there since 1983. He outright said no since he doesn’t like crowded places. I decided to do a solo trip then, at the onset of the winter.  As days passed, the will seemed to intensify. Perhaps it was a pull of the roots.  They say, that as you grow older, you want to return to your beginning.

In March, while returning home after a semi marathon, I mentioned my plan to 2 of my friends and they both wanted to join me on this trip. And that’s it !!! It was decided that we are definitely doing this.  Now we need to select and finalise the dates and book the tickets, hotels once bookings are open.  There was still a long time 😊.  I was kind of relieved to have them as travel companions since this would have been my first solo trip and there was that wee bit of apprehension at the back of the mind, though these two darlings were dependent on me and had no idea of the works.  Eventually, we had an additional member on the trip, so we were a gang of four over enthusiastic ladies.

This year was an emotional rollercoaster for me with an ailing father, and daughter moving to another city and every time I just hoped and prayed that this trip would culminate successfully.  After all, when you plan to visit a holy city like Varanasi, Lord Shiva’s blessings are necessary. 

A few days before the journey, we heard about Dev Dipawali, a festival celebrated in Varanasi on the day of Kartick Purnima.  I am thoroughly ashamed to confess that I had no idea about this and I was told that we would be missing witnessing the grandeur of the celebration. Finally, the day came and we boarded the train and guess what…… we learned that the day we are supposed to reach was Kartick Purnima and we would be able to watch the spectacle.  Wasn’t the big boss from above planning things for us!! 😎😎

We reached, albeit 4 hours late, but just in time to avoid the total suspension of transportation within the city.  We checked in in our BnB, freshened up, grabbed a quick lunch and we were off to our first stop, the Kaal Bhairav temple.  Being a devotee of Kaal Bhairav and having a fruitful darshan, I was happy to the core.  Now came the part where we were supposed to walk.  We could already see hoards and hoards of people walking towards one particular direction and no prize for guessing ….. the Dashaswamedh ghat.  We followed suit.  Since we were new to the place and had no idea whatsoever about the directions and destinations, we just went wherever people were going.  On the way, I spotted the famous malaiyo (a sweet only available in the winters since dew drops play a vital role in its making).  It was like eating clouds. 

After devouring the cloudy, fluffy sweetness, we continued our march through the ancient and narrow lanes and by-lanes of the city and eventually reached the ghat. AND Oh my GOD!!!! Never in my wildest dream did I imagine that it would be so crowded.  All we could see were human heads.  Both sides of the river banks were beautifully decorated with fairy lights and numerous diyas.  It looked so surreal, I doubt any photo or video footage can do justice to the real beauty.  We managed to bag a place where we could stand secured without being knocked over by the rush of people and watch the ganga aarti.  The next one hour was an experience one needs to feel.  It is beyond my vocabulary to even explain.  After the aarti, was the spectacular display of fireworks.  We left the place early to avoid the mad rush back on completion of the spectacle.   On our way back, we gorged on the various chats the city had to offer, and walked the roads around Godhulia without in particular agenda, just to get the feel of the place.  Tiredness started creeping in by then and we came back to our nest for our nightcap since we had to wake up and get ready by 3.00 am for Kashi Vishwanath darshan the next day.

 

 As per the plan, we woke up in the middle of the night and by 3.30 a.m we were off to the temple in our pre-booked toto.  The queue was already long enough but was moving fast.  After standing in the queue for about 2 hours, we were blessed with a glimpse of Bhole baba, made our offerings, spent some time inside the premises, feeling the energy of the place.  Things were totally different from whatever little I remembered from my childhood visit.  The approach is no doubt very systematic, without any ruckus but the process has become too commercialized.  In my opinion, every devotee should be treated equally at the abode of the Supreme without special treatment for people who can afford VIP passes.  Does God really care about the depth of the pockets of his devotees!! I doubt.

Our next stop was the Batuk Bhairav temple which was absolutely uncrowded and we had a peaceful darshan there, to our heart’s content.  

On our way back to the BnB, it was time for the famous kachori, samosas of Banaras. Breakfast sorted, we came back for a quick stretch and was back on the streets on our way to Sarnath.  Sarnath was a different world altogether.  Quiet and peaceful, contrary to the busy city of Varanasi.  It was as if Varanasi was the seat of action (karma) and Sarnath the seat of oblivion (nirvana).  We took our time exploring the ruins and relics of the place, soaking in the serenity.  

We also visited one of the workshops where the banarasi saree is woven and got a small tutorial on how this age-old traditional yard of finery is made.

By now, the Bong in me was craving for some comfort food, so I asked our autowala to take us to a place where we could get simple dal, chawal and fish.  The driver obliged and we were at a small eating house serving all those.  We had a simple lunch of dal, chawal, potato fries and fried fish.  The food was average but the Bong in me was satiated and did a quick foot-tapping dance in satisfaction🕺.  The autowala dropped us at our BnB for an afternoon siesta.

Evening plans were cut short since one of our friends wasn’t feeling well.  Since we were in the city of temples, we visited the other famous temples of Sankatmochan and Durga Mandir.  We decided to skip the boat ride and kept it for the next time because we will be coming back soon.  The day came to an end after a visit to the famous Pizzeria Vatika Café at Assi Ghat.

                      

The last day was a blur of activities that was no way touristy.  The four of us parted ways and had different ways to go.  Trains were either delayed or diverted so we all went our ways but the trip was absolutely satisfying and fulfilling though I did try and look for that old house that was etched in my memory and failed because it does not exist anymore.  I guess somethings are more pleasant in memory than reality. We all came back with a happy heart 💖.