| Varanasi | |
| [image] Location of Varanasi | |
| Location | 25.36° N 83.13° E |
| State | Uttar Pradesh |
| District | Varanasi |
| Mayor | ? |
| Altitude | ? metres |
| Area | 4039 kmē |
| Population ( 2001) | 37 lakhs (3.7 million) |
| Density | ?/kmē |
| Codes • Postal • Telephone • Vehicle | 211001 + 0542 Not Applicable |
| Time zone | IST (UTC +5:30) |
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Varanasi (वाराणसी) (also known as Benares, Banaras, Benaras, Kashi, and Kasi) is a Hindu holy city on the banks of the river Ganga (Ganges) in the modern north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Varanasi has a unique culture, quite different from other places in the region. This culture has developed through thousands of years during which it has been one of the major cultural centres of northern India. The whole Varanasi culture revolves around the river Ganga, which is the heart and soul of the city. Varanasi has its own 'Gharanas' (style of music) in classical Indian music. Varanasi has produced some of the most well-known musicians, philosophers, poets, writers in Indian history. To name a few, Kabir, Munshi Premchand, Pandit Ravi Shankar, Ustad Bismillah Khan were/are from Varanasi. It even has its own dialect, which is quite different from other dialects of the region. It has been a seat of knowledge from about 700 BC onwards. Its universities attracted students from all over the then-known world.
It is believed by many that bathing in the Ganga results in the remission of sins, and that dying in the holy city of Kasi (Varanasi) circumvents rebirth. This belief has encouraged the establishment of innumerable geriatric homes and hospices, as also the disposal of half-burnt corpses into the river Ganga. This latter practice continues to cause immense damage to the river's ecology. The ministry of water resources has finally taken up the restoration of the Ganga in a big way by banning cremation on the city's Ghats (ghats are the banks of a holy river, and often, as at Varanasi, steps are built to facilitate bathing).
In the neighborhood of the city lies Sarnath, the site of a deerpark where Gautam Buddha is said to have given his first sermon about the basic principles of Buddhism. It is a major Buddhist pilgrimage center and it also has a Stupa built by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka the great.
The modern name Varanasi is derived from one tributarie of Ganga called Varuna and water drain Asi on whose shores the city stands. Note that the city has its own airport at Babatpur, and is well-connected to all major cities in India by road and rail.
The old parts of the city near the Ganga which are dotted with sacred temples, are highly crowded with shops and very narrow winding lanes. But most of the Middle class and rich people in the city prefer to live in more spacious housing colonies which lie in the rest of the city.
Probably due to its unique Hindu culture (though influenced by Islamic culture too), Varanasi is a major tourist destination for many foreign tourists in India.