Amidst the stretch of ghats running along the holy river Ganges is Boondi Parkota Ghat. This Ghat was constructed by the king Suraj Bhan Singh Hada of Boondi. Above this ghat near Brahma ghat is this museum known as Kashi Dham. This is a unique museum. It imparts knowledge about various aspects of Indian culture, our civilization and Sanatan Dharma through paintings, murals, idols and a variety of artefacts. The museum is very beautifully and exhaustively planned. The ideas are executed very creatively.
After ascending the steps from ghat we took the right turn and hardly ten steps ahead was the gate of Kashi Dham museum. An ornate and beautifully carved door welcomed us. We stepped into the corridor. One the left side was the shrine of Laleshwar Mahadev and on right in the verandah was a reception desk. The temple of Laleshwar Mahadev is said to be almost four hundred years old. Black wooden pillers narrate stories of the times bygone. I think it must have been a residential property in olden times. In varanasi midst the maze of lanes we find many accommodations housing temples inside them. In its present Avatara the wall around circumambulatory path displays images of the twelve Jyotirlingas.
For going beyond this area and entering the halls of museum one had to take ticket at the rate of Rs. 25 per person. Come with me, I would give a short tour of the museum.
The temple , shrine of Laleshwar Mahadev.
Pushing the glass door as we stepped into the first hall, we found this magnificent Natraj idol. Don’t forget to pay attention to the dancing poses around it.
On another wall is this map of Bharat Kshetra. The ancient map with the names of the kingdoms. The boundaries of our land stretched far and wide.
A glimpse of Dances and festivals of India.
The Saptarishis, Devis, Saints.
solah sansakara, rites, rituals , phases of life as per Sanatan Dharma.
!2 jyotirlinga temples, the great spiritual personalities, devotees.
Some mythological anecdotes.
As you can see the Sun God and the lunar phases.
Mytho;ogical weapons, animals and representation of Grahas, nakshtras.
This view is of upper floor. The window gives an excellent view of river Ganga. On this floor certain rooms are available where people could stay but presently no arrangement of food was there.
Om namah Shivay. A closer look of Shivalinga.
I have tried to give you an overview. There are many more informative facts such as names of scriptures, Purans, Upnishads etc., details regarding evolution of our national flag and much more.
The wall art of varanasi could be seen on Ghats as well as the narrow lanes snaking around various neighbourhoods of the city. The images on the walls not only add colour and vibrancy to the old walls and structure but also spell out the essence of the city older than history itself. Though during our this visit we found most of the walls of ghats painted in pink, [ perhaps a cleanliness drive in the wake of visits of G-20 dignitaries from across the world.] yet we could capture few along the ghats and others in the street, What I post here is just a miniscule of what the entire city has to offer. These wall arts are the cultural repository of not only a city steeped in various art forms like dance, music but displays themes representing the diverse richness of our entire country. scenes from history, mythology to few conveying social messages all kinds of themes are the subject of these wall art.
These all-ladies band on the wall of Mehta ghat showcase some of the musical instruments which are not commonly seen now a days. I thoroughly enjoyed their company and submerged myself in the music of the waves lapping on the stone steps.
And my most favourite moment on the ghats. The sheer co-incidence made my heart dance with joy. I mean, I don’t live in the city so while going on the trip I carried this saree and then wore it while I visited this particular ghat. When my eyes suddenly fell on this Kathakali dancer, I could almost feel the mirth in his eyes too. A slice of Kerala on the wall as well as my saree.
The divine form of Ardhnareeshwar depicts that Shiva and Shakti, Lord Shiva and goddess Parvati both are equal and inseparable. This form represents the masculine and femenine energy of cosmos to be equal and depending upon each other to complete oneself. The perfect balance of universe is indicated here. The Ardhnareeshwara strotam composed by Adishankaracharya is a very beautiful and significant hymn describing the beauty and harmony of this form.
This view of Ghats is painted on wall in the corridor area. Certain old buildings and walls are intact midst the newly constructed area and the efforts to recreate the old charm have been made. After all Shiva watches everything.
This frame is from Dashashwamesh Ghat. It being Shravan month groups of pilgrims, kanwariyas travelling barefoot flooded the city. As this particular group of ladies sat down to take rest, Ganesha in the background showered His grace.
Now let us walk through few of the lanes of Varanasi.
From ancient times to this day this is what varanasi is, the bliss of surrendering to the that power beyond. Look at the expression of the yogi. He appears to have made the connection with Him.
Shiva and Sadhu. It is said and believed that Kashi stands on the trident of Shiva. I loved the idea of painter to merge the Tilak, the trident and the Shivalinga. Krishna with His ever-sweet expression looks beautiful. And look at the flowing beard of the Sadhu, one can listen to the waves of Ganges there.
Here we can see Nav Grah, nine planets painted on the wall. on another side of the door is depicted the mythological anecdote of Markandey , Yama and Shiva. The story goes like this. Sage Mrikandu and his Marudavati were blessed by a son after praying Shiva for a very long time. Lord Shiva gave the sage an option– 100 foolish sons or one very intelligent son with a life span of only 16 years. Sage chose the later but as the son grew up the sage became sadder thinking of the approaching death of his son. However whe the son Markanday came to know about it he decided to pray lord Shiva himself. Markandeya created his own Shivalinga and started worshipping him, offering prayers to Him. As the appointed day of the death came Lord Yama Himself came to take the boy. Markandey clung to Shivalinga. Yama threw His noose around Markandeya but Shivalinga too got caught in it as Markandey clung to it very tightly. Suddenly Lord Shiva appeared from Shivalinga and Yama had to spare Markandeya’s life. Then Markendeya created the famous maha Mritunjaya Mantra. The young boy grew up to become famous sage Markandeya.
Lord Vishnu on the wall, the peacock on the side wall but the best part of this frame is that tree on the wall. How beautifully the thin strip of the space has been utilised and leaves and branch over the door give a nice effect.
A scene from ghats and a slice of history in one frame. Most probably she is our Jhansi ki Rani Laxmi Bai. She has got a strong connection with this city. She was born in this city. Manikarnika of Kashi later on became Laxmi Bai of Jhansi.
Shiva absorbing and containing The Halahal[poison] churned during Sagar Manthan. Neel Kanth Mahadeva, a power beyond words, endless, limitless.
Mata Annapoorna giving alms to Lord Shiva. Mata Annapoorna is very prominently revered at Varanasi. Besides Kashi Annapoorna temple there are other big and small temples of Devi Annapoorna at Varanasi. This legend establishes the importance of feminine power, the caring and mothering forces for the sustenance of the world, so much so that even lord had to bow down and accept it.
Here are Ganesha and Maruti Nandan.
Om Mahadev.
Goddess Laxami
And here is one example of contemporary art, a landscape.
It’s not just paintings on the walls but while walking through these narrow lanes of varied width, buzzing with daily life activities one could easily locate few of the live paintings too– A aged gentleman with a child sleeping on lap, manning a small shop, a man sleeping on platform oblivious to the daily chaos around him, carved doors and a lone figure inside a house. The maze of the narrow lanes with continuous play of light, shade and darkness opens an altogether different world before you. This is where we experience mundane with spiritual.
This time our Varanasi visit happened after a gap of almost 6 years. When in varanasi what we like most is walking on ghats, sitting on the steps sometimes near water on others somewhere on higher steps and every time we return with different experiences and stories. The best part of spending time on ghats is that they let you be with yourself midst all the bustling crowd and multitude of activities. hordes of people, variety of sounds and all kinds of activities, nothing distracts you if you really want to sit and just be. Quietly flowing holy river as if enters inside and peace trickles inside drop by drop. The white sand on the other side, the rows of green trees running along the stretch of sand, the blue sky over kneeling down to come closer, and the noise in the background fades away. Whenever I feel lost, I would come here to find myself.
Behind me the steps rose high and at the top was a small temple, a Hanuman idol in orange shone on the wall, bhajans floated down to me and I looked upward with a belief, a firm one that heaven is there somewhere. Someone is watching us and those birds soaring high are messengers of peace and hope.
And then listening to the stories of these ever-travelling people, who go with flow of life, not deciding about the next day. These people fascinate me and on every visit to Kashi I meet someone or other of this type. It’s not that they don’t have got a place of their own rather they belong to every place they go. This all-embracing capability is so liberating.
Shravan month and Kashi, abode of lord Shive, Baba Vishwanath, early morning fresh air, shlokas and Bhajans, joy just sprouts on its own.
This one is newly renovated ghat. Majestic it looks and this stretches up to the high raised gate leading to the new corridor around Vishwanath temple. Next picture gives a glimpse of the gate.
crowd definitely is there but most of the people are within themselves and that’s what I call Kashi effect.
Morning at Assi ghat. we could not make there for morning Ganga Aarti but then the quiet ghat with cool breeze welcomed us. Boats lined up, flags fluttering and the big green tree, the red temple, it all felt so serene and calm.
This one is at Rajendra prasad ghat adjacent to Dashashwamegh ghat.
From this end to that end, from banks to beyond the boats row and the journey continues. Each of us cover the distance in our own way, own way or as is designed for us but reach the same destination. It’s the journey that matters and how we traverse.
And the affectionate touch of Ma Ganga. Since time immemorial it goes on flowing quietly, embracing you when you come to Her.
Every ghat, every step, every shrine, of Varanasi has its own charisma. his time we were lucky to be there during Shravan month. The city was abuzz with orange clad Kavariyans, bhajans and devotional sentiments.
bits and pieces 