MOKSHA TOUR - VARANASI

Varanasi tour 2N/3D

Varanasi, the holy city of India is known by the name Benaras or Kashi, the city of Moksha for Hindus since centuries.
One of the seven holiest cities Varanasi is also one of the Shakti Peethas and one of the twelve Jyotir Linga sites in
India. It is believed in Hinduism that those who die and are cremated here get an instant gateway to liberation from
the cycle of births and re-births. This City is situated on the banks of the River Ganges in Indian State of Uttar
Pradesh, regarded as the holy by Hindus, Buddhists, and Janis. It is one of the world and probably the oldest of India.
Varanasi is a holy city in Hinduism, being one of the most sacred pilgrimage places for Hindus of all denominations.
More than 1,000,000 pilgrims visit the city each year. It has the holy shrine of Kashi Vishwanath (a manifestation
of Lord Shiva), and also one of the twelve revered Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva.

Varanasi has nearly 100 ghats. Many of the ghats were built when the city was under Maratha control. Marathas, Shindes (Scindias), Holkars, Bhonsles, and Peshwes (Peshwas) stand out as patrons of present-day Varanasi. Most of the ghats are bathing ghats, while others are used as cremation sites. Varanasi is the city of “LORD SHIVA”, “GHATS”of holy Ganges and a center for studying Astrology, Sanskrit, Yoga and Ayurveda.

Varanasi is one of the holiest places in Buddhism too, being one of the four pilgrimage sites said to have been designated by Gautama Buddha himself (the others being Kushinagar, Bodh Gaya, and Lumbini). In the residential neighborhood of Varanasi lies Sarnath, the site of the deer park where Gautama Buddha is said to have given his first sermon about the basic principles of Buddhism. The Dhamek Stupa is one of the few pre-Ashokan stupas still
standing, though only its foundation remains. Also remaining is the Chaukhandi Stupa commemorating the spot where Buddha met his first disciples (in the 5th century or earlier, BC). An octagonal tower was built later there. Varanasi is famous for Banarasi Saree, Handicrafts, Jari work and wooden items..

  

Day 01-
On arrival at Varanasi, transfer to hotel. Then proceed to Sarnath where Buddha had preached his first sermon Post enlightenment. Also, visit Chaukhandi Stupa, Dhamek Stupa, and Mulagandha Kuti Vihar. The Sarnath museum has a small but awe-inspiring collection of Buddhist, the single most famous exhibit of this museum is the Lion Capital of Asokaartifacts. The main attraction of the Sarnath Archaeological Museum is the superb Ashokan Pillar. It has four back-to-back lions, which has been adopted as the National symbol of India.
Below, there are representations of a lion, an elephant, horse and the bull.(Museum Timing 10.00 hrs to 17.00 hrs. Friday Closed).

Visit Bharat Mata Temple:
The Bharat Mata temple was built by Babu Shiv Prasad Gupt and inaugurated
by Mahatma Gandhi in 1936. The statute of Bharat Mata is built in marble and is a model of undivided India,
depicting the mountains, plains and oceans. The most peculiar thing about the Bharat Mata Temple is that instead of
the customary gods and goddesses, it houses a relief map of India, carved out of marble and this shrine is dedicated to
Mother India. Evening view "Aarti" ceremony on the bank of Ganga, Ghat Dashashwamedha. Overnight stay at hotel in Varanasi.(B,D)

Day 02
Morning boat ride
Early morning drive to Daswamedh Ghat and take a boat ride on the sacred river Ganges to see the cremation Ghats HARISCHANDRA TO MANIKNIKA GHAT. [It is strongly believed by the devotees (Hindus) that Ganges River in Varanasi city has the ability to take away the wrongdoing of humankind.

Visit Kashi Vishwanath Temple:
Also, called Golden Temple, which in its present shape was built in 1780 by Maharani Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore, is located on the outskirts of the Ganga. This temple makes Varanasi a place of great religious importance to the Hindus, as Vishweshwara or Vishwanatha, the aforementioned Jyotirlinga of the Lord Shiva is enshrined here. It is said that a single view
of Vishwanatha Jyotirlinga is considered to merit more than that of other jyotirlingas. A Naubatkhana was built up in front of the Temple by the collector Mohammed Ibrahim Khan at the instance of Governor General Warren Hastings in 1785. In 1839, Punjab Kesari, the Sikh Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the ruler of Punjab donated gold to cover the two domes of the temple. The temple was once destroyed by the Muslim Emperor Aurangzeb who converted most parts of the temple into a Mosque. It was later resurrected at a location near the mosque. Back to hotel, take a breakfast.



Ramnagar Fort:-
The Ramnagar fort lies about 14 km. from Varanasi and is situated on the opposite bank of river Ganga. It is the ancestral home of the Maharaja of Banaras. Maharaja Balwant Singh built this fort-palace in the eighteenth century. The fort is built in red sandstone. The Ramnagar fort has a temple within the grounds and the temple is dedicated to Ved Vyasa, who wrote Mahabharata, the great Indian epic. Legends have it that Ved Vyasa stayed here for a brief period.

The Ramnagar fort houses a museum displaying the Royal collection, which includes vintage Cars, Royal palkies, an armory of swords and old guns, ivory work and antique clocks. The Durga Temple and Chhinnamastika Temple are also located at Ramnagar. A temple of Dakshin Mukhi Hanuman is there. Inside the giant walls of the Ramnagar fort-palace, there is a big clock. This clock not only displays year, month, week and day but also astronomical facts about the sun, moon and constellation of stars. An interesting array of ornate palanquins, gold-plated howdahs and weapons are some of the artifacts on display in the Ramnagar fort-palace museum.

Banaras Hindu University:
It was founded in 1916 by special efforts of Nationalist Madan Mohan Malaviya with the cooperation of Annie Besant. Its 1350-acre (5.5 km˛) campus was built on land donated by the Kashi Naresh. The University includes Institute of Technology and Institute of Medical Sciences and is among the top three largest residential universities in the world, having more than 128 independent teaching departments. Today it has grown into one of the biggest university of India and Asia.





 

Sankat Mochan Temple:
 This temple is dedicated to Lord Hanuman and is very popular with the local citizens. It is a place for many yearly religious as well as cultural festivals. while the Aarti, in which numerous worshippers and wedding attendees participated, was in progress.

Tulsi Manas Temple:
Constructed by family of Varanasi, this modern temple is dedicated to Lord Rama. It
is situated at the place where Tulisdas, the great medieval seer, lived and wrote the epic "Shri Ramcharitmanas", which narrates the life of Lord Rama, the hero of the Ramayana. Verses from Tulidas’s epic are inscribed on the walls. It is just nearby to Durga Temple.

Durga Temple:
Also, nicknamed "Monkey temple," was built at some point of time in 18th century. The temple got the name 'Monkey temple' because of the presence of large number of monkeys in the temple. According to legends, the present statue of Goddess Durga was not made by man but appeared on its own in the temple. Thousands of Hindu devotees visit the Durga temple during Navratri and other auspicious occasions. Non- Hindus can enter the courtyard of the Durga temple but not the inner sanctum.
The architecture is of Nagara Style, which is typical of North India. The temple is accompanied by a rectangular tank of
water called Durga Kund. ("Kund" meaning a pond or pool.) The temple has multi-tiered spires and is stained red with
ochre, signifying the red colour of Durga. The Kund was earlier connected to the river itself thus refreshing the water.
Every year on Nag Panchami, the act of depicting Lord Vishnu reclining on the coiled-up mystical snake or "Shesha" is
repeated in the Kund.(B,D)

Day 3:-
Your Moksha tour (Varanasi) end.

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