The Ganga Arathi!

https://youtu.be/12mU3AO16FM

Watching the great Ganga Arathi was a dream since my school days ever since i studied about river Ganges. I would watch every show that was based in Either Varanasi or Rishikesh and Haridwar only to see the Ganga ghats and the Arathi. As i grew up the desire to watch the arathi also grew along and one fine day, i along with my friend decided to visit Rishikesh for two main things, first being the Ganga Arathi and the second being rafting in the Ganges. We decided to experience rafting first and then head to Rishikesh town to watch the Arathi.

We reached Rishikesh in the evening and checked into our guest house and walked around exploring different cafes in the temple town. Few famous cafes are The Freedom cafe, Little Buddha cafe, The Karma cafe, German Bakery, Pumpernickle cafe etc. We saw the famous Laxman Jhula and Ram Jhula, but could not click pictures as it was super crowded. We talked around and found out that the famous place to watch the Ganga arthi is The Triveni Ghat, which is 3 kms from Ram Jhula. One can easily find shared autos from Ram Jhula to Triveni Ghat. We reached the ghat by 6 Pm, bought the pooja essentials for Rs. 10/- and settled down on the steps on the banks of the ghat where the Arathi preparations had begun. There were close to 100 devotees gathered to watch the Arathi and i must say that the energy of the people gathered is very positive and exciting. There were about 15 pandits lined up to perform the Arathi. They were dressed in Maroon Kurtha, White Dhothi and a White band around their shoulder and waist. The Arathi began at 07:30 Pm and i could not believe that i finally was watching the Ganga Arathi Live after years of watching it on TV and internet. There was live orchestra going on during the Arathi and the crowd went into a frenzy. The pandits use two big lamps during the Arathi. The entire act was so exhilarating that we ended up talking about it the rest of the evening. After years of waiting my dream finally came true and my heart was happy and content.