Varanasi Sightseeing : Places to visit in destination Varanasi

Places to visit in the city Varanasi

RIVER FRONT - Varanasi

The long string of ghats the chain of stone steps along the western bank of the Ganges forms the major attraction of Varanasi. There are about hundred ghats in the city and each of them is marked by a lingam and occupies its own special place in the religious geography of the city. The ghats, though some of them have crumbled over the years, continue to thrive with early-morning bathers, Brahmin priests offering puja and people practicing meditation and yoga. Though most of the ghats are used for bathing, there are two ’burning ghats’ Manikarnika Ghat & Harishchandra Ghat were bodies are cremated. The pilgrims here are supposed to bathe at five special ghats in a sequence during a ritual called the Panchatirthi Yatra. For the casual visitor however the easiest way to see the ghats is to follow a south-north sequence either by boat or on foot.

ALAMGIR MOSQUE - Varanasi

Also known as Beni Madhav Ka Darera, the Alamgir Mosque is a blend of the Hindu and Mughal styles of the architecture. The mosque, built by Aurangzeb on the site of the Vishnu Temple, overlooks the Panchganga Ghat.

DURGA TEMPLE - Varanasi

Located 2 kilometres south of the old city, this eighteenth century Durga Temple is also known as the Monkey Temple due to many aggressive monkeys that reside here. The temple was built in a common north Indian style with an ornate shikhara, consisting of five segments symbolizing the elements and supported by finely carved columns. Here Durga is represented as the embodiment of shakti or female power, clad in red and riding a tiger and fully armed with Shiva’s trident, Vishnu’s discus and a sword. A forked stake in the courtyard was used during festivals in the earlier times to behead sacrificial goats. The ritual of sacrifice has now been replaced by a symbolic mark in vermilion. Non-Hindus are admitted to the courtyard but not the inner sanctum.

VISHWANATH TEMPLE - Varanasi

The temple is located in the premises of the Banaras Hindu University and is about thirty minutes walk from the gates of the university. The temple, built by the Birlas, was planned by Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya. Unlike many other temples in Varanasi, this temple is open to all irrespective of caste or creed.

BHARAT MATA MANDIR - Varanasi

This temple of Bharat Mata (Mother India), inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi, lies about 3 kilometres west of Godaulia, outside the old city. Here, instead of gods and goddesses, one finds a huge relief map in marble of the whole of Indian subcontinent and Tibetan plateau. The map is said to be perfectly to scale both vertically and horizontally with mountains, rivers and the holy tirthas (pilgrimage centers) all clearly visible.

TULSI MANAS TEMPLE - Varanasi

Built in 1964, the Tulsi Manas Temple stands about 150 m south of Durga Temple. The temple, dedicated to Lord Rama is situated at the place where Tulsidas, the great medieval seer, is believed to have lived and written the great epic ” Shri Ramcharitmanas”. The two tier walls of the temple are engraved with the verses and scenes from this great epic.

BANARAS HINDU UNIVERSITY - Varanasi

One of the oldest educational centres in India, the Banaras Hindu University was built in 1917. The university was founded by Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya as a centre for the study of Indian art, culture, music and Sanskrit. The university campus is spread over five square kilometres and houses the Bharat Kala Bhavan. The Bhavan has a fine collection of miniature paintings, sculptures from first to fifteenth centuries, old photographs of Varanasi and brocade textiles. The campus also houses the New Vishwanatha Temple.

MUSEUM - Varanasi

Located in Sarnath at about 10 km from Varanasi, the Archaeological Museum houses the capital from the Ashokan pillar, the symbol of which has been adopted as the state emblem of the modern India. The museum also has the figures and the sculptures from the Mauryan, Kushana and Gupta periods discovered during the excavations at Sarnath. You can have a look at the earliest Buddha image found at Sarnath and many images of Hindu Gods dating from the 9th to 12th centuries.