• Jan 25 2016
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Manikarnika Ghat

 

Manikarnika Ghat, nestled along the holy Ganges in Varanasi, isn’t just a ghat; it’s a poignant window into life’s final journey. As one of Varanasi’s busiest and most significant ghats, it houses an eternal fire, believed to have blazed since ancient times, serving as an open crematorium steeped in sacred Hindu rituals.

I am Vishwanatha, the Lord.
Kashi is the Light of Liberation.
The waves of the River of Heaven are the wine of immortality.
 

The above lines are from Kashi Khanda, one of the parts of the ancient Skanda Purana which praises the Sangam of the three elements particularly, Ganga, Varanasi, and therefore the Vishwanatha Temple. This ancient text established the part of the essential belief that gives uniqueness to all three elements to such an amount that they stand large and religious among the beliefs of Hindus in India.

The city of Varanasi is understood the world over as the “sacred city” of India and it is recognized as the “most ancient continuously inhabited city of the world”.