Traditions of Varanasi
A city on the Ganges where bathing, cremation and evening prayer have gone on in public for centuries.
Varanasi, also called Kashi or Banaras, sits on the western bank of the Ganges. For Hindus it is among the holiest places to live, to bathe and to die. The old city is a maze of lanes running down to long stone steps, the ghats, where each day begins and ends with water, flame and song.
The river and the ghats
People come at dawn to bathe, make offerings and face the rising sun. Priests sit under big umbrellas, boatmen wait at the steps, and at Manikarnika and Harishchandra ghats funeral fires burn through the day and night. Families bring the dead here in the belief that the city offers release. In the evening the Ganga aarti, a ceremony of lamps, conch and bells, draws crowds to Dashashwamedh Ghat.
At the table
Breakfast is often kachori and sabzi followed by hot jalebi, with lassi in a clay cup. The city is known for chaat, malaiyo, a winter froth of milk and saffron, and the Banarasi paan wrapped in a leaf. Much of the temple food is vegetarian, and many shops close their kitchens during major fasts.
The year here
Dev Deepawali, on the full moon after Diwali, lights every ghat with thousands of oil lamps. Maha Shivaratri fills the Kashi Vishwanath area with devotees, and Holi, played here with powder and with ash at Masan Holi, has its own local character. The Ramlila of Ramnagar runs for weeks in autumn.
Signature traditions of Varanasi
Also part of it, and being written: Aarti (The nightly lamp ceremony at the ghats.), Dev Deepawali (The festival of lamps for the river, on the full moon of Kartika.), Kashi Vishwanath Temple (The city's chief Shiva shrine and its daily worship.), Banarasi sari (The brocade silk woven in the lanes of the old city.).
A trail idea for Varanasi
- Assi Ghat at dawn Join the early bathers and the morning Subah-e-Banaras music.
- Dashashwamedh Ghat in the evening Watch the aarti from a boat or from the steps.
- Kashi Vishwanath area Wait in the lane queues and notice the flower sellers.
- Sarnath A short ride away, where the Buddha gave his first teaching.
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Opening hours, markets and festival dates change; check locally before travelling. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Makar Sankranti: Saloni Desai, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Ramlila: Ankit Gupta, CC BY-SA 3.0, source