Ghats in Varanasi

Ghats in Varanasi are riverfront steps leading to the banks of the Ganges river.

The patrons of current ghats are Maharajas of Benares, Marathas, Shindes (Scindias), Holkars, Bhonsles and Peshwes (Peshwas).

[2] This ghat that used to lie at the confluence of the Ganges with the dry river Asi marks the traditional southern boundary of the city.

Assi Ghat is described, in some of the Puranas, as the place where the goddess Durga defeated two asuras, Shumba and Nishumba.

[5] Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a water ATM here on 17 September 2015 on the occasion of the PM's birthday.

[5] Every evening an aarti is performed at this ghat in dedication to Shiva, the goddess Ganga, Surya, Agni, as well as the whole universe.

In this legend, whenever a body gets cremated at the Manikarnika Ghat, Shiva asks the soul whether it has seen the earrings.

Above the ghat, several of Kashi's most influential shrines are located within the tight maze of alleys of Siddha Kshetra (Field of Fulfillment).

It is here at the Assi Ghat that Swami Pranabananda, the founder of Bharat Sevasharam Sangh, attained 'Siddhi' (fulfilment/success) in his 'Tapasya' (endeavour) for Lord Shiva, under the auspices of Guru Gambhirananda of Gorakhpur.

In the Hindu tradition, cremation is one of the rites of passage,[9] and the Ghats of Varanasi are considered one of the auspicious locations for this ritual.

Annually, less than 2 in 1000 people who die in India, or 25,000 to 30,000 bodies are cremated on various Varanasi Ghats; about an average of 80 per day.

The practice of cremation in Varanasi has become controversial for the environmental pollution it causes to the River Ganges.

[10] In the 1980s, the Government of India funded a Clean Ganges initiative in order to address cremation and other sources of water pollution along the Ghats of Varanasi.

City municipal waste and untreated sewage is the largest source of pollution of the River Ganges nearby the Ghats of Varanasi.