Inside Varanasi, India's holy 'City of Death,' where people hoping to break the Hindu cycle of rebirth go to die

James PasleyJun 2, 2023, 23:46 IST

Relatives of deceased men wait on the staircase of Manikarnika Ghat to dip the bodies in Ganges River for a final purification act before the cremation on January 28, 2018 in Varanasi, India.Kaveh Kazemi/Getty Images

Every year, about 20,000 people pilgrimage to Varanasi, India's holiest city, to die.
Some Hindus believe they can break out of the cycle of rebirth if they die and are cremated in the city.

Every day, the dying arrive in Varanasi, India's holiest city.

These people — primarily Hindus — come to Varanasi, dubbed the "City of Death," hoping that by dying and being cremated there, they can break out of the Hindu rebirth cycle and attain salvation.

About 100 people are cremated across the city every day.

But often these people don't die as quickly as they expected. They are forced to take temporary lodging and wait until their time is up. Some people don't last long, while others live on for decades waiting for the end to come.

Varanasi, in northeast India, is the country's most religious city and one of the world's oldest cities.

Hindu priests perform "Morning Aarti" prayers at Assi Ghat during the Ganga Aarti, a traditional and old Hindu ritual honoring the Ganges River.Avishek Das/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

The city sprawls out along the banks of the Ganges River. According to one travel guide, while the Ganges usually flows east and west, it flows north and south so that it can "touch" Varanasi.

A view of the River Ganges running alongside Varanasi in 2015.Altaf Qadri/AP

The city sprawls out along the banks of the Ganges River. According to one travel guide, while the Ganges usually flows east and west, it flows north and south so that it can "touch" Varanasi.

Despite Varanasi's nickname of "The City of Death," more than 1 million people live there.

Hindu devotees gather to take a holy dip at the Ganges River, on the auspicious bathing day of "Mauni Amavasya" during the annual religious "Magh Mela" festival.Avishek Das/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Oil lamps burn across the city, and the sounds of temple life, of prayer and bells, reverberate from the temples.

A Hindu priest offers morning prayers in Varanasi in 2006.Prakash Singh/AFP/Getty Images

The city is dotted with ancient temples. There are an estimated 3,600 in total.

Tourists at a temple in Varanasi in 2012.Exotica.Im/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

Hindu holy men are also a common sight.

A man chanting at a ghat in Varanasi in 2012.Exotica.im/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Despite all of this, the city's main draw is its death rituals.

A cremation at Manikarnika Ghat, after a man died at Salvation House, known as a "death hotel" for dying pilgrims, in Varanasi.Anand Singh/AFP via Getty Images

Hindu people journey to Varanasi when they're dying in the hope of finding salvation. They believe they can break out of the cycle of rebirth and be cleansed of their sins if they die here and are then cremated. It's known as attaining "Moksha."

Men wait for a dead body to be cremated in Varanasi in 2018.Chandan Khanna/AFP/Getty Images

Hindu people journey to Varanasi when they're dying in the hope of finding salvation. They believe they can break out of the cycle of rebirth and be cleansed of their sins if they die here and are then cremated. It's known as attaining "Moksha."

Every year, about 20,000 people — some on crutches or stretchers, or in old cars — make the pilgrimage. Often these people have come from thousands of miles away.

A man walks through Varanasi in 2001.Frederic Soltan/Corbis/Getty Images

Every year, about 20,000 people — some on crutches or stretchers, or in old cars — make the pilgrimage. Often these people have come from thousands of miles away.

They arrive believing death is imminent, but often they end up living on. If they don't immediately die, they move into temporary accommodation, which is funded by businesses and charities.

An elderly Hindu woman sits in solitude inside an ashram meant for those who come to die in Varanasi, in 2019.Altaf Qadri/AP

They arrive believing death is imminent, but often they end up living on. If they don't immediately die, they move into temporary accommodation, which is funded by businesses and charities.

There are about 200 of these temporary "hotels" across the city.

A husband and wife sleep in accommodation reserved for the city’s dying pilgrims in 2019.Anand Sing/AFP/Getty Images

When someone does die in Varanasi, their body is wrapped — usually in white — and adorned with marigolds. Here the person has been wrapped in gold.

Relatives carry a deceased family member down the stairs of a ghat in 2018.Kaveh Kazemi/ Getty Images

Then they are brought down to the city's "ghats," which are wide stone landings separated by steps that lead down to the Ganges.

People visit the newly constructed Namo Ghat on the banks of river Ganges in Varanasi.Sanjay Kanojia/AFP/Getty Images

Fires burn constantly on the ghats to cremate the dead. Although estimates vary, around 100 people are cremated every day across the whole city.

Funeral pyres burn on the banks of river Ganges, in Varanasi, India.Altaf Qadri/AP

Manikarnika Ghat, one of the city's oldest cremation ghats, is responsible for burning 32,000 bodies each year, according to a CNN report from 2014.

A view of Manikarnika Ghat.Amit Pasricha/ INDIAPICTURE/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Death here is normalized. Locals nearby wash laundry while kids play close by without concern. Relatives of the dead wait for the pyres to burn down so they can spread the ashes in the Ganges river.

A young boy recycles clothes used to wrap dead bodies for the final rites as onlookers see a funeral pyre burning at Manikarnika Ghat cremation ground in Varanasi.Sanjay Kanojia/AFP via Getty Images

Death here is normalized. Locals nearby wash laundry while kids play close by without concern. Relatives of the dead wait for the pyres to burn down so they can spread the ashes in the Ganges river.

Tourists flock to the river to watch the cremations. Locals have noted an increase in recent history, but it's not a new attraction. In 1913, tourists were photographed sitting on woven chairs with a prime view of cremation.

Tourists take a boat ride on a foggy winter morning by the Ganges River at Pandaye Ghat on December 17, 2018, in Varanasi, India.Rajesh Kumar/Hindustan Times via Getty Images

Tourists flock to the river to watch the cremations. Locals have noted an increase in recent history, but it's not a new attraction. In 1913, tourists were photographed sitting on woven chairs with a prime view of cremation.

Even Queen Elizabeth visited in 1961, taking an elephant ride through the city.

Queen Elizabeth II perches in a howdah on the back of an elephant at Varanasi, then known as Benares, during her tour of India in 1961.Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Some locals make a living out of the process. They work as guides or sell souvenirs.

A man sells souvenirs from his boat beside Varanasi in 2012.EyesWideOpen/Getty Images

The Doms, a group belonging to a Hindu caste, earn their living by running the cremation pyres and maintaining the source fire that is used to light all of the pyres.

A member of the Dom community tends to a funeral pyre in 2018.Chandan Khanna/AFP/Getty Images

But some locals believe the city's reputation as a destination for death tourism has become too much.

Tourists take photos of Varanasi in 2001.Deshakalyan Chwodhury/AFP/Getty Images

Sumitra Gupta, formerly the head of history at Banaras Hindu University, told Tribune India that she had noticed an increase in focus on the city's "death tourism."

Tourists watch funeral pyres burn at Varanasi in 2011.Tim Graham/Getty Images

A local priest named Vibhuti Diwedi told Tribune India, "There is so much history, literature, and spirituality in the city we want to show to people. We would wish to see that being promoted rather people coming here to die."

Morning in Varanasi beside the Ganges in 2001.Frederic Soltan/Corbis/Getty Images

A local priest named Vibhuti Diwedi told Tribune India, "There is so much history, literature, and spirituality in the city we want to show to people. We would wish to see that being promoted rather people coming here to die."

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Inside Varanasi, India's holy 'City of Death,' where people hoping to break the Hindu cycle of rebirth go to die

Varanasi, in northeast India, is the country's most religious city and one of the world's oldest cities.

The city sprawls out along the banks of the Ganges River. According to one travel guide, while the Ganges usually flows east and west, it flows north and south so that it can "touch" Varanasi.

Despite Varanasi's nickname of "The City of Death," more than 1 million people live there.

Oil lamps burn across the city, and the sounds of temple life, of prayer and bells, reverberate from the temples.

The city is dotted with ancient temples. There are an estimated 3,600 in total.

Hindu holy men are also a common sight.

Despite all of this, the city's main draw is its death rituals.

Hindu people journey to Varanasi when they're dying in the hope of finding salvation. They believe they can break out of the cycle of rebirth and be cleansed of their sins if they die here and are then cremated. It's known as attaining "Moksha."

Every year, about 20,000 people — some on crutches or stretchers, or in old cars — make the pilgrimage. Often these people have come from thousands of miles away.

They arrive believing death is imminent, but often they end up living on. If they don't immediately die, they move into temporary accommodation, which is funded by businesses and charities.

There are about 200 of these temporary "hotels" across the city.

When someone does die in Varanasi, their body is wrapped — usually in white — and adorned with marigolds. Here the person has been wrapped in gold.

Then they are brought down to the city's "ghats," which are wide stone landings separated by steps that lead down to the Ganges.

Fires burn constantly on the ghats to cremate the dead. Although estimates vary, around 100 people are cremated every day across the whole city.

Manikarnika Ghat, one of the city's oldest cremation ghats, is responsible for burning 32,000 bodies each year, according to a CNN report from 2014.

Death here is normalized. Locals nearby wash laundry while kids play close by without concern. Relatives of the dead wait for the pyres to burn down so they can spread the ashes in the Ganges river.

Tourists flock to the river to watch the cremations. Locals have noted an increase in recent history, but it's not a new attraction. In 1913, tourists were photographed sitting on woven chairs with a prime view of cremation.

Even Queen Elizabeth visited in 1961, taking an elephant ride through the city.

Some locals make a living out of the process. They work as guides or sell souvenirs.

The Doms, a group belonging to a Hindu caste, earn their living by running the cremation pyres and maintaining the source fire that is used to light all of the pyres.

But some locals believe the city's reputation as a destination for death tourism has become too much.

Sumitra Gupta, formerly the head of history at Banaras Hindu University, told Tribune India that she had noticed an increase in focus on the city's "death tourism."

A local priest named Vibhuti Diwedi told Tribune India, "There is so much history, literature, and spirituality in the city we want to show to people. We would wish to see that being promoted rather people coming here to die."