silviu pavel journal

My Scholarship entry - A 'place' I have visited

INDIA | Sunday, 13 January 2013 | Views [1480] | View Larger Image

The Ganges River is heavily polluted at Varanasi, priests and rituals are everywhere and bodies are cremated in public. At sunset, pilgrims and locals alike bathe in the Ganges as part of their daily hindu rituals.

Varanasi is also the religious capital of India. Hindus believe that death at Varanasi can bring salvation (moksha), but life seems also to be lived to the full. Every day, across the Ganges riverbank, a series of religious rituals involving chanting, praying, singing and incineration processes take place. This context is also the playground for the children of Varanasi who are playing in front of temples - ghats.

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Despite the fact that many times they are forced to do a grown man's work at a very early age (usually involving the relationship with the turists), the children of Varanasi still enjoy the simple games of childhood. Street Cricket is the main sport activity for children along the stone steps that descend into the Ganges.

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silviu pavel journal

My Scholarship entry - A 'place' I have visited

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