Page 59 - varanasi
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Ganga Aarti
Every evening, as dusk descends, it’s time for the Ganga Aarti to
be performed at the three holy cities of Haridwar, Rishikesh, and
Varanasi in India. It’s a very powerful and uplifting spiritual ritual.
An aarti is a devotional ritual that uses fire as an offering. It’s usually
made in the form of a lit lamp, and in the case of the Ganges River,
a small diya with a candle and flowers that’s floated down the river.
The offering is made to the Goddess Ganga, also affectionately re-
ferred to as Maa Ganga, goddess of the most holy river in India.
The aarti takes place facing the river. The lamps are lit and circled
around by the pandits (Hindu priests) in a clockwise manner, ac-
companied by chantings or songs in praise of Mother Ganga. The
idea is that the lamps acquire the power of the deity. After the ritual
is complete, devotees will cup their hands over the flame and raise
their palms to their forehead in order to get the Goddess’s purifica-
tion and blessing.
