Varanasi

Varanasi, also called Kashi or Banaras, is among the oldest living cities in the world and the holiest of Shiva’s cities, set on the western bank of the Ganga. Its ghats descend to the river where pilgrims bathe at dawn and the evening Ganga aarti is offered with lamps and bells.

Tradition holds that to die in Kashi is to attain liberation. The city is sacred to Shiva as Vishwanatha, lord of the universe, whose jyotirlinga stands at its heart.