Eternal Echoes : Exploring The Mystique Of Benares (Kashi)

Has the thought of visiting a sacred destination of the Hindus ever struck in our imagination?  Seldom not unless the person is acutely interested in spiritualism and Indian culture. Yes, the city that is being referred to is Varanasi, (Kashi) sacrosanct to the Hindus since early civilization.

The earliest recorded History can be traced back to the 11 century BC, and the city is known as Varanasi or Kashi or Benares. They all mean the same city but called differently by different strata of society. 

The city is therefore the spiritual capital of India as can be seen from the below paragraph. It is situated in the modern day State of Uttar Pradesh and the sacred Ganges River entwines itself all across the city. Therefore, most of the holy cities revolve on either the banks of the river or very close to the river itself. 

A notable Hindu custom that is followed here is that a visit to the city is a must, as the holy last rights of the deceased are performed and in doing so, the departed soul derives moksha or salvation, so central to Hindu beliefs. You can take the Kashi Tour Package for your holy trip with a pocket friendly package.

Being a temple town there are numerous places of attraction and the major attractions are given below:

Kashi Viswanath Temple: 

This temple is situated in Vishwanath Gali and a Hindu shrine and is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple was destroyed by the Muhghals and was reconstructed by the Holkars. The shrine is famous as it happens to be one of the twelve jyotirlingas most sought after by Hindus.

New Viswanath Temple aka Birla Mandir:

Located in close proximity to the Banaras Hindu University, this temple too, like its predecessor was destroyed numerous times only to be re-built to preserve the tradition of Hindu culture. This temple is a major source of attraction to the student community and is popularly known as VT short form for Viswanath temple.

Bharat Mata Mandir:

This is a very unique temple in Varanasi. There are no statues of Gods and Goddesses in the temple.  Instead, a large map of India is depicted instead. Mahatma Gandhi inaugurated the temple in 1936 and was attended by Vallabhai Patel and Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan. This temple focused on nationalism rather than on religion.

Sankat Mochan Temple:

This temple is dedicated to Lord Hanuman. Located on the banks of the River Assi it was conceived by a famous philanthropist named Tulsi Das. This temple has the unique distinction of having Lord Hanuman facing his Lord, Rama, whom he worshiped with steadfast and selfless devotion.

Dashashwamedh Ghat: 

This is the main Ghat in the city of Varanasi, very close to the Kashi Vishwanath temple.There are two Hindu legends associated with the ghat according to one, Brahma created it to welcome Shiva, and in another, Brahma Performed 10 Ashwamegha Yajna, Or  Dasa-Ashwamedha yajna.The Ganga Aarthi is a holy event which a tourist can witness at dusk on the banks of River Ganga, and is really exquisite.

Scindia Ghat:

This ghat, is bestowed with a tilted Shiva temple, which can be found lying partially submerged in the Ganges River and therefore, it is argued that this ghat collapsed under its own excessive weight The ghat is named after the Scindias, who built it in 1830.

Ram Nagar fort: 

The sandstone structure was built in the Mughal style in 1750 by Kashi Naresh Maharaja Balwant Singh. The current king and the resident of the fort is Anant Narayan Singh, who is also known as the Maharaja of Benares, though of course, he no longer enjoys this title. The fort is marvelous for the scenic beauty it has to offer.

Jantar Mantar:

This is an astrological monument constructed by MahaRaja Jai Singh-II, because of his deep love for science and astronomy. This observatory helped people of the medieval times with calculation of local time, height of places, prediction on eclipses etc.

Tourist Infrastructure: Varanasi city boasts of an airport capable of handling larger aircrafts like the Airbus 320. Air connectivity is good and is well connected to major cities in India. There are 2 railway stations servicing the city viz. Varanasi and Mughal Sarai. (Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Junction). Good rail services are available all over India. 

How can Skyway tour Help?

The team in Skyway have knowledge of organizing and conducting tours on this circuit. That’s why they are known as the best tour company in India. They have associates in UP who are the Skyway’s partners in special conducted tours. 

They will plan every aspect of the tour keeping tourist interests in mind. Do get in touch with our executive mobile no. 9845199077  or 9845170525 for more details.