Night at the Ganga River in Varanasi
What a wonderful place, Varanasi is!
And at night, it's even more exciting.
A shining Medieval city turns into a mysterious spectacle.
A dreamscape, indeed: stairs leading down to the water, dozens of staircases, several kilometers of stairs...
And - a foggy river, the hypnotizing sound of splashing water, slight, dimmed mumbling of the walking people, quaint buildings (ancient temples, fortresses, palaces), and, of course, bonfires.
They cremate the dead there. But it's rather a place of farewell than a grief...
Maybe, because there is no more calming experience than circling with other people around a fire?
Or it's because people believe cremation is the beginning of new life, or even liberation and uniting with God?
The light of a distant city also looks surreal, like, if you are in the fantasy world as Game of Thrones.
Is this glorious seaside city Pentos or Braavos?
Is it a pyramid of Yunkai or Astapor?
Like, fantasy fiction brought to life.
Though real life isn't less exciting: Varanasi is at least 3000 year old, great kings and great warriors walked here as well as prophets - Siddhartha Gautama was one of them.
A fantastic realm. Everyone is blessed who once reached this land.
And you are blessed twice if you can afford to be in Varanasi for a while, without a hurry.
There are many foreigners here who don't rush anywhere.
Strolling along the river, warming up by the cremation fires, attending Ganga Aarti, a daily performance worshiping the Ganga River, and watching unusual characters at the ghats.
Some of these characters are meditating, some are searching for a profit, some are high on weed and gazing into eternity. Boatmen, street vendors, playing kids, travelers, pilgrims, priests, eccentrics, and Hindu ascetics...
At last, you are returning to your hotel along the dark lanes, only to return to the wondrous dreamspace of the Ganga River the next night.
And this is not a figure of speech - I'm finishing the post and going for a walk along the ghats - want to watch the Ganga Aarti and observe the cremation ceremony, and most importantly, breathe in the atmosphere of a waking dream - once again.
Hope you liked the story and photographs; stay tuned to see more from this brilliant city! 🙂
The photos were taken with a Nikkor 50mm f/1.8G on a full-frame DSLR Nikon D750 on January 16 (and #2 from below on January 17), 2026, in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India.
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https://www.reddit.com/r/TheNightFeeling/comments/1qjunav/night_in_varanasi_india_2026_oc/
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The city of Lord Shiva, which is very sacred and a center of faith for Hindus like me.
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definitely more appealing in the night than in the day, it also seems to be pretty safe
Yes, quite safe. Fewer aggressive situations in India generally, fewer drunk people, so the atmosphere is nice.
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Beautiful! That guy is leaning way too much on that umbrella hut. Lol
Yes, a feeling of an upcoming fall, directly into the Ganga River 😀
Thank you! 🙂
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Fantastic, that candy floss looks very fluorescent
White pink death?.. :D
Thank you!
yup,
What a beautiful atmosphere these photos have. I love this kind of lighting in the company of fog.
Thank you! Fog is indeed a great creator of beautiful atmosphere.
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STOPhttps://x.com/i/status/2014570905331007984
#hive #posh
I love reading posts that are from around the world, especially from places I’ve never visited. But except for that, I have to be honest and say that photography brought me here at first place. I just love them. Great work! 🫶🏼
Thank you, @lensational!
I would love to visit this site...
Thank you for letting us in!
A must-visit, 100%. Hope you will!
I'm tormented by the question: how safe is it to walk there at night? I don't trust the faces of these men who were roasting people over a fire an hour ago. It's a creepy place for a tourist. Thanks for the photos from places I wouldn't dare go 🤣
Thank you! 🙂
😁
I personally consider burning the dead "a clean thing" - no rotting flesh hidden in a box in this scheme, and normally it looks quite neat.
I trust them. Because they have this business - cremation stuff. If you have a funeral home, you don't normally rob visitors of your neighborhood. Varanasi is a brand, Varanasi is a faith - people swim in the Ganga waters to get connected to the divine, and the richest people choose to be cremated here. Nobody will tolerate gansta people here.
Besides, if someone wants quick money in old Varanasi, there is an old good way of scamming people, why rob anybody at all? 😄
There's a saying: if a tourist isn't cheated, he's not a tourist )
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STOPThis author is incredible: [Literature] Charles Dickens: The Old Curiosity Shop 1/288