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Top 15 places to visit in Varanasi
Varanasi, Benares or Kashi, you can call the holy city on the banks of River Ganga by any name but the spiritual experience you get here is nothing short of magical. Varansi is the holiest city in the Hindu faith, as it is believed to have been built by the three primary Gods of Hindu faith, Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu. Recent excavations have found artefacts dating back to 1800 BC, giving proof to the fact that it is one of the oldest cities in the world. Since then it has been one of the biggest religious and cultural hubs of South-East Asia. It is believed that Gautama Buddha gave his first teaching in this city, thereby starting the practice of Buddhism. During the reign of Akbar, he built two of the largest temples in the city dedicated to the Lords Shiva and Vishnu. The modern day Varansi was built in the late 18th century with more temples coming along over the years. Varanasi now has more than 2000 temples spread across the intricate streets and the majestic Ghats. In this article, we are guiding you through the top 15 places to visit in Varanasi, which will help you understand the immensely rich culture still deep-rooted in the city and people equally.
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Kashi Vishwanth Temple
Kashi Vishwanath Temple is one of the most important temples in India and considered the holiest of all the 12 Jyotirlingas (holiest temples of Shiva) in the country. Millions of people visit this temple as part of different pilgrimages. The invading rulers have demolished the temple several times but the Indian rulers built the temple back to its form, from time to time. A Maratha ruler, Ahilya Bal Holkar built the current structure in 1780. The great structure of the temple is believed to be divine and therefore has been used as a reference design for building various other temples in the northern parts of India. Pilgrims who visit the temple also take a holy dip in the river Ganga to atone for their deeds in all their lives and attain ‘moksha’.
Kanthwala Temple
Kanthwala temple or locally known as Nepali Mandir is one of the most popular temples in the city. The King of Nepal built this Shiva temple completely out of terracotta, stone and wood. He built it as a tribute to the Pashupathinath temple, located in Kathmandu. The temple is a fine example of Nepali style of architecture, consisting of a Pagoda and natural raw materials. The temple is located at the LalitaGhat, just a hundred metres away from the ManikarnikaGhat. The temple took more than three decades to build due to problems related to the monarchy of Nepal. This temple houses some structures like in Khajuraho and hence is often called ‘Mini-Khajuraho’.
Tulsi Manas Temple
Tulsi Manas temple is one of the top 15 places to in Varanasi in everybody’s books, as it holds a lot of cultural and religious significance in the Hindu faith. Goswami Thulsidas, the renowned Hindu-poet and philosopher, wrote the ‘Ramacharitramanas’ in this temple. The epic, considered one of the best works of Hindi literature, tells the stories one of the most important Hindu Gods, Lord Rama. This epic, written in Awadhi, was an adaptation of the original ‘Ramayana’, which was written in Sanskrit and hence could not be understood by the common people. The temple is built with white marbles and beautiful landscaping to enhance the mysticism of the place.
Monkey Temple
The Monkey Temple is a name given to the Dura Kund temple in the holy city of Varanasi, due to the presence of hundreds of monkeys. A Bengali Queen built the temple in the 18th century. Like all other temples in the city, this temple too has an incredible story associated with it. The popular belief is that the idol of the Goddess Durga appeared on its own and was not sculpted by anyone, due to which a temple was built in the place. There is a big kund or a pond near the temple called Durga Kund, where pilgrims can take a dip before entering the temple.
Bharat Mata Temple
Amongst all the temples dedicated to the revered Gods and Goddesses of Hindu religion, Bharat Mata temple is a one of a kind temple, which stands for the unified India. Located at the Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidhyapith Campus, the temple houses a big map of India without the boundaries of states, symbolising India as one. The map is carved out of white marble and shows the different beliefs of the country as well. This temple also houses a statue of Bharat Mata, a symbol of undivided India. Babu Shiv Prasad Gupta, a freedom fighter, was behind the construction of such a unique temple, which Mahatma Gandhi inaugurated in 1936.
New Vishwanath Temple
The new Vishwanath Temple or the Birla Vishwanath temple is kind of a replica of the original Kashi Vishwanath Temple. As the original temple had been demolished many a times by different rulers, a local, Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya wanted to build a replica of the original temple that stood more than a thousand years ago. The renowned Birla family took over the project and built it in the 1930s. The temple has the highest Hindu tower in the world and is now a major tourist attraction in the city of Varanasi. The temple complex houses 9 temples and is open to people from any religious belief.
Dasaswamedh Ghat
Dasaswamedh Ghat is undoubtedly one of the most spectacular Ghats of the city of Varanasi. Located on the banks of the holy river Ganga, the ‘Aartis’ that take place here are a visual treat to everyone. You can take some stunning pictures of several priests performing the rituals with a huge ‘deepam’. The rituals last for around 45 minutes and you may visit the Ghat half an hour before the event starts to get the best view. The ‘Aartis’ usually starts after sunset every day and hundreds of people visit the Ghat to witness the event.
Banaras Hindu University
Banaras Hindu University (BHU), more than a hundred-years-old, is one of the oldest universities in the world. The university, commissioned by Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya in 1911, houses more than 30,000 students making it the biggest residential university in Asia. A lot of credit is given to Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya for his extraordinary efforts to build an educational hub for the children in the country at a time when British rule was at its peak. You can witness some temples, parks and other great structures, built in that era. The huge campus is a great place to spend some time away from the bustling streets of city.
Assi Ghat
Assi Ghat is one of the most popular Ghats in the city, where you can see heavy footfall during the major festivals. The southernmost Ghat has the maximum footfall from the students staying at BHU or foreigners. Here, you can go for a boat ride or experience the bird’s eye view of Assi Ghat and the city of Varanasi with a hot-air balloon ride. The talent hunt shows that take place daily is another activity that you can enjoy at this Ghat. The Ghat is also famous for the Aarti that takes place here every day. It can house more than 20,000 people during the festival of ‘Shivaratri’.
Manikarnika Ghat
The Manikarnika Ghat is another popular Ghat on the banks of river Ganga. It is most popular for being the Ghat where people get salvation when cremated there. Due to this, thousands of elderly people come and reside here to spend their last days near the holy river and the Ghat to make their death less painful and get closer to the divine. The Ghat is also famous for keeping the Hindu records of Genealogy. The people of Hindu faith revere the Ghat for being one where Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati arrived to grant a wish to Lord Vishnu, making the Ghat a holy place.
Manmandir Ghat
Manmandir Ghat is a Ghat built in 1600 by the then ruler of Amber, named Raja Man Singh. It is located just north of the Dasashwamedh temple and is one of the most stunning Ghats in the city of Varanasi. Another king Raja Sawai Jai Singh-II built a Hindu observatory that could explain the movements of celestial bodies. It was one of the five observatories he built during his lifetime, in order to get correct measurements to help him reform the calendar to be more accurate. The observatory is now under the protection of the Archaeological Survey of India and the Ghat under the Municipal Corporation of the area.
Shivala Ghat
Shivala Ghat was one of the most important Ghats of the medieval times. It houses some of the major structures of the city of Varanasi, like the Shiva temple, a 19th century mansion of Nepal’s King Sanjay Vikram Shah and a fort of the Maharajas of that era. The Ghat is a place where you can experience peace and is one of the best places to take some stunning pictures with beautiful backdrops. You can explore the streets and shop at the different local boutiques.
Gyan Vapi Well
The Gyan Vapi Well has seen a lot of controversy circling it due to the conflict between the Hindus and Muslims over the rights of the property. It is believed that the Mughal Emperor Aurangazeb demolished the temple and built a mosque at the same complex, angered by the escape of the Maratha warrior, Shivaji. The Gyan Vapi well, ‘The Well of Knowledge’ is a well located at the centre of the complex and Hindus believe that the ‘lingam’ is present underneath the well. The remains of the temple can be seen at the rear end of the mosque, different columns and in the foundation itself. The property disputes have made the place a popular tourist place.
Ramnagar Fort
The Ramnagar Fort is a fort built on the eastern bank of rive Ganga and has been the house of the Kashi Naresh, the King of Varanasi. The sandstone structure was built using the Mughal style of architecture with some influences from the Indian style of architecture as well, in 1750 by then ruler Raja Balwant Singh. The Durbar Hall is now used as a museum named Saraswati Bhawan. The Museum houses some unique things like vintage American cars, ivory works, costumes made of Kimhwa silk, old guns from different parts of the world and much more. The fort gives you an experience that is different from the ones usually associated with the holy city of Varanasi.
Sarnath
Sarnath is one of the most important places in the religion of Buddhism. The Deer park at the Sarnath is the spot were Gautama Buddha gave his first teachings on ‘Dharma’ and where the Buddhist Sangha came into existence. The city is referred to as Isipatana in the Buddhist texts, the place where Buddha taught the four truths of life for the first time ever. The remains of centuries-old monasteries, remains of the original Ashoka Chakra, multiple temples, stupas and statues, dating back hundreds of years. The place is important in the religion of Jainism as well, as four of the five important events of the life of Shri Shreyansanatha Bhagwan took place here. Dhamek Stupa, Chaukandi Stupa, Dharmarajika Stupa and the Sarnath Archeological Musueum are few of the top places to visit in the area.
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