Masaan Holi, a two-day event on different ghats of Varanasi, draws devotees from the world to witness the celebration by applying ashes from funeral pyre andgulal(pink powder) upon each other. It is also believed to be a celebration of death, where the devotees in huge numbers take part in procession making their way to the ghat through dancing, singing, chanting ‘Har-Har Mahadev’ as the ashes of the pyres andgulalthicken the air.
Going green | Myriad hues for festival of colours in a non-toxic wayThe lanes leading to the ghats are too narrow to navigate even by two-wheelers, and almost no one follows traffic rules anywhere. In this age of social media, the number of people recording the procession or celebration was higher than those who were participating.
Varanasi, also known as the spiritual capital of India, is a city on the left bank of the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh. The holy land, with over 2,000 temples and ghats, witnesses elaborate rituals, including eveningaartiprayers that draws thousands of devotees. Many others come for taking sacred bath in the river, believed to cleanse them of sins and bestow divine blessings, while some come to meditate and take in the beauty of the surroundings.
