Witness the thousand-year-old Aarti Ceremony
Owning a great story of over one-thousand-year history, Aarti is a very common ritual performed every evening at river ghats of the Ganges River at the three holy cities of Haridwar, Rishikesh, and Varanasi in India. 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. Aarti can be simple to extravagant, but always includes flame or light. This traditional Hindu religious ritual of worship is a highly choreographed ceremony performed on a stage by a group of young pandits dressed in saffron robes who have puja plates spread out before them. The ceremony begins with the blowing of a conch shell and continues with the waving of incense sticks and the circling of large flaming lamps. The movement of these lamps is tightly synchronized to the rhythmic chants of hymns and clang of cymbals. While facing the river, the Hindu priests use lamps which are circled around in a clockwise manner, accompanied by chants or songs in praise of Mother Ganga. It is believed that after the ritual is complete, the Goddess showers her blessing onto each individual present there. The Aarti Ceremony is a powerful and uplifting spiritual ritual to. Here, witnessing the Aarti Ceremony, you can immerse yourself in the spiritual world of ancient ritual, the evocative chanting, the billowing flames, and even feel the holy water lapping at your feet if you're joining the ceremony. Making a visit then spending time beholding Aarti Ceremony close up is a must for every bucket list when you're on your way discovering the Ganges's highlights.
