Varanasi

Varanasi has never bothered to record its history. it is one of the oldest living cities in the World. Its beginings are lost in the mists of time, no one cares to remember when this city began. Varanasi, Benares, Kashi, they have called this city by many names. It is the spiritual pilgrimage that is like a luminous beacon to Hindus and for them it has always been Kashi, the City of Light. They believe bathing in the river Ganga here washes away their sins. It is also Avimukta, the city that is never forsaken by Lord Shiva, its ruling deity. It is Shiva's favourite city, his Anandavana or garden of Bliss. And finally, it is also the Mahashmashana, the great cremation ground. To die here is to be freed from the cycle of life and death.