1008. Ganga Aarthi....

Ganga Aarti is performed at Dashashwamedha Ghat in Kashi on the banks of Ganges every evening. By performing the aarti ritual Agni, Ganga, Surya and Maharudradeva are all revered. This ritual is a magnificent event one must participate during the visit to Kashi. The involvement in this ritual will escalate the spiritual connection we have with that ever flowing sacred river. We witnessed a huge gathering participate in the aarthi evening. The entire ghat area was lit up with a beautiful golden glow from the lamps which was mesmerizing.

It was like a fair taking place at Dashashwamedha Ghat, the devotees were patiently waiting for the aarti to begin sitting at the ghat.

There were a lot of devotes waiting in the boats to view the ritual from the riverside. Vendors were busy selling flowers, tiny oil lamps and incense sticks as offerings for Maa Ganga as it happened to be her day of descend to this earth. There were lot of enthusiastic people with their professional camera equipments to capture this grand event.

A few groups were getting photographed with the Ganga as a backdrop. A few stunned-looking foreign nationals were hurriedly trying to figure out a vantage point so that they can have the glimpse of the rituals.

Amidst all this we observed five raised platforms with all the arrangements made for aarthi. There was idol of Maa Ganga, a eight-tiered lamp, flowers, incense sticks, a conch shell, a huge brass lamp with a snake hood and many other items to perform the aarti rituals. It was indeed a delightful sight to experience the synchrony of the young pandas (as those who perform the aarthi are called) wearing the same attire (Dhoti & Kurta) and the one end of the Angavastra tightly wound around the waist and the other long end running from front to back across the shoulder.

All the pandas were young and carried a beaming radiance on their face. They are all students of Gangotri Seva Samiti who learn Vedas and Upanishads under a head priest.

The whole spectacular event took around 45 minutes, the Veda mantras and the blowing of conch....all en-trilling.

One of the must see event......... experienced by the grace of
Gangadhareshwara, my eternal Guru.