AUDIO GUIDE OF BANARAS GHATS by HopOn India- Product code 152570P5

AUDIO GUIDE OF BANARAS GHATS by HopOn India- Product code 152570P5

It is believed that the Ganges changes its course to flow South to North to pass through the holy city of Banaras. Our walk , through the HopOn India App Audio guide, takes you from Assi Ghat to Dashashwamedh Ghat, along the Holy Ganges. It is a do-it-yourself app

The most special features of this experience are : 1. The App opens up new places and new stories for you in the same old cities 2. Each walk is crafted like a masterpiece to offer an immersive experience to the traveller with the correct mix of history, culture, myth, food , through professional narration, with background scores of music, qawalli or sound affects, here and there 3. There is no need for you to depend on a guide - the traveller can take the walk anytime as per will, at his/ her own pace 4. The content is developed by domain experts 5.You pay once for three months and need not pay the guide repeatedly.

A must-do walk for all travelling to Banaras.

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Assi Ghat, Sdkfjl, Varanasi 221005 India

Assi is

eighty in Hindi, but this ghat was named Assi because of an

ancient river which once flowed here. Now At present the river is

but a drain. The official name Varanasi was also formed by

combining the names of two rivers -- Varuna and Asi – between

which this ancient city was located. Assi Ghat used to be the first ghat on the southern end of Kashi,

that is, Banaras.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Ganga Mahal Ghat, Near Assi Ghat, Assi, Shivala, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005, India

Banaras has two Gangamahal ghats. The other one is beyond

Manikarnika ghat to the north. This ghat is named after the

palatial building to your left, which was constructed by Prabhu

Narayan Singh, the former king of Kashi.

This palace was constructed in the early twentieth century. The

architectural style is a beautiful blend of local architecture design

and that of the Rajput style of Rajasthan in the sixteenth century.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Bhadaini Ghat, Bhadaini Road, Varanasi 221010 India

Bhadaini Ghat is also called Jalakal Ghat. 'Jalakal' means water works, and this name comes from a huge

pumping station that is set up on this ghat by the Banaras Water

Corporation. This pumping station supplies water to the city of

Banaras Varanasi. The name Bhadaini Ghat comes from the

Bhadaini Mohalla or locality located right above the ghat.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Jain Ghat, Ganga River, Varanasi India

People, mostly of the Jain community mostly use this ghat for

bathing in the Ganga,

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Chet Singh Ghat, in front of Chet Singh fort, Ghats of varanasi, Shivala, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001, India

This ghat is of considerable historical importance. The huge fort that you can see on the ghat to your left is the fort

of the royal family of Benares, or the Kashiraj family, as it is

fondly called. It was here in 1781 that

the then Kashi Naresh or King of Banaras, Chet Singh fought

Warren Hastings, the first British Governor General of India. It

was probably one of the first attempts at Independence by an

Indian ruler. It is believed that Chet Singh even received support

from the city’s mobsters of the time, but he still lost the battle and

had to run away from the fort.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Shivala Ghat, Near Huge Mansion, Varanasi India

It is here at Shivala Ghat that the

famous and unique culture of Banaras took shape, which is an

amalgamation of Hindu and Muslim cultures. There is a saying in

Banaras, &;There is no art whose masters were not in Shivala, and

there is no skill that was not present in Shivala.”

Shivala had a profound influence on the music, literature and art

of Banaras. It changed everything: the dresses, the culture, the

society. The newly discovered colors of Persian civilization

enveloped the culture of Banaras.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Hanuman Ghat, Juna Akhara, Varanasi India

It goes without saying that this ghat is named after Lord

Hanuman, the monkey God.

The famous Juna Akhada of the Naga sadhus is located here. The

Akhada has a statue of Lord Hanuman, which gives this ghat its

name. It is said that this Hanuman temple was established by

none other than Goswami Tulsidas! Hanuman Ghat has been the center of religious and cultural

activities since ancient times. This ghat is particularly important

for the Vaishnava sect of Hinduism because the founder of the

Vaishnava sect, Vallabhacharya, lived on this very ghat in the

16th century and is said to have died here too.

As further evidence of Banaras being a mini India, you will find

this place full of Tamilians, who are natives of the southern state

of Tamil Nadu. You can get a glimpse of their culture if you go up

the stairs to the Mohalla above.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Harishchandra Ghat, Bangali Tola Road Near Manasarovar Ghat, Varanasi 221001 India

This ghat is named after the legendary King Harishchandra. There are two major cremation grounds in Kashi: Manikarnika

Ghat and Harishchandra Ghat.Harishchandra Ghat is also a

prominent place for performing last rites. this ghat was named to

honour King Harishchandra and his faith in truth.

The main cremation ground of Kashi, however, is not here but at

Manikarnika Ghat.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Tulsi Ghat, On The Banks Of Ganges River, Varanasi India

The famous Tulsidas after whom

this ghat is named. He was a great sage and poet, and a great

devotee of Lord Rama. He authored the Ramcharitmanas, an

adaptation of the epic Ramayana, in the Awadhi dialect and made

the story of Lord Rama accessible to the common people.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Lali Ghat, Harishchandra Ghat, Varanasi 221001 India

Before you strain your brain over the name, let me tell you that it

is named so because it was the residence of a sadhu named Laali

Baba. Laali Baba was a native of Champaran of Bihar. He was an

enlightened man and was greatly respected by people of this

area.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Vijaynagram Ghat, Near Kedar Ghat, Sonarpura, Bangali Tola, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221002, India

Vijayanagaram is an important town in Andhra Pradesh, and

Maharaja Pashupati Anand Gajapati Raju of Vijayanagaram was

very fond of Banaras. In the second half of the nineteenth

century, he purchased this ghat and constructed the ghat and also

a huge palace next to it where he and his family could stay while

visiting Benares.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Kedar Ghat, Varanasi India

Located in the Himalayas, Kedarnath is a famous pilgrimage site

for Hindus. Lord Shiva resides there in his Kedareshwar

Mahadev form. The 'shivaling' in Kedarnath is one of the twelve

major Jyotirlingas of the country. Jyotirlingas are very important

in Hindu mythology as they represent the devotional form of

Shiva. Banaras is home to one of such Jyotirlinga - Kashi

Vishwanath. Kashi Vishwanath is very close to where we will

shall end our walk. In addition to having its own Jyotirlinga,

Banaras has replicas of the other Eleven Jyotirlingas so that

people in Kashi can reap the benefits of visiting the twelve

Jyotirlingas without leaving the city. One of these twelve replicas

is the temple of Kedareshwar Shiva, located on this ghat, and

hence the name Kedar Ghat.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: CHAUKI GHAT, Chowki Ghat Road, Chowki Ghat, Rajendra Prasad Ghat, Near Gagan Rajendra Prasad Ghat, Bangali Tola, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221010, India

Even the origin of its

name is not very clear. Chauki is a derivation of the Hindi word

Chauk, which means a 4-point crossing. Probably the presence of

a prominent crossing at the locality above prompted the name.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Narad Ghat Road, Mansarover Ghat, Bangali Tola, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001, India

Ancient texts tell us that Narad Ghat was earlier called the Kuwai

Ghat. The new name was given to it sometime in the middle of

the nineteenth century, when the Naradeshvar Shiva Temple was

constructed on this ghat.

Duration: 1 minute

Stop At: Raja Ghat, Bangali Tola Road Near Digpatiya Ghat, Varanasi 221001 India

Peshwa Amrit Rao of Pune is credited with building Raja Ghat. He

also built the palace and a Hindu monastery on the ghat, around

early 1800s.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Rana Mahal Ghat, Ghats of varanasi, Bangali Tola, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221010, India

Rana Jagat Singh of Udaipur constructed this ghat and the palace

above the ghat in the latter part of the seventeenth century.

Because it was built by a Rana, the title for Rajput rulers from

Rajasthan, the ghat was named Ranamahal Ghat.

Duration: 1 minute

Stop At: Darbhanga Ghat, Near Dashaswamedh Ghat Near Rana Mahal Ghat, Varanasi 221001 India

Darbhanga Ghat was earlier part of Munshi Ghat, which is next on

our itinerary.

Around 1920, the king of Bihar's Darbhanga State purchased this

part of Munshi Ghat, and since then it has been called Darbhanga

Ghat.

Duration: 1 minute

Stop At: Munshi Ghat, Dashashwamedh Ghat Rd, Ghats of varanasi, Bangali Tola, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001, India

Munshi Ghat got its name from Shridhar Munshi, a Minister to the

King of Nagpur. In 1812 the ghat and the palace were both built.

Duration: 1 minute

Stop At: AhilyaBai Ghat, Dashashwamedh Ghat Rd, Ghats of varanasi, Bangali Tola, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001, India

When the king of all the princely states of India were coming to

Banaras and contributing to the construction of ghats, how could

Indore state be left behind? That too when the then queen of

Indore, Ahilyabai Holkar, was known for her religious piety and

fondness for preserving Indian culture.

The result of this interest was this magnificently constructed ghat

and the palace above it, built in 1785.

No ghat in Banaras is considered complete until it has a Shiva

temple. This ghat, too, has two temples dedicated to Lord Shiva.

Duration: 1 minute

Stop At: Sheetla Ghat, Beside Ganga River, near Bundi Parkota Ghat, Ghats of varanasi, Ghasi Tola, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001, India

The ghat was constructed by Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore. It is dedicated to Goddess Shitla, the Shitla temple may not look architecturally grand

or artistic, but it is a significant place of worship.

Duration: 1 minute

Stop At: Dashashwamedh Ghat, Dasaswamedh Godowlia, Bharuch 392001 India

Dashashwamedh means ten Aswamedha Yagyas. In ancient India,

an ambitious king would dispatch a horse accompanied by his

warriors, and allow the horse to wander anywhere it liked. The

King would then proclaim sovereign right over all territory that

the horse covered. In case a local king wanted to challenge the

sovereignty of the invading king, he was expected to fight a battle

against the King's army which followed the horse. If the horse

then returned unconquered, it would be sacrificed in a

celebration called a yagya as the King claimed his right over all

the territory the horse had covered. Thus, the ghat must have

gotten this name because ten such yagyas were performed here.. The crowd swells in the evening as they gather to witness the

world famous Ganga Aarti.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Dr. Rajendra Prasad Ghat, Dashashwamedh Ghat Rd, Ghats of varanasi, Bangali Tola, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001, India

Along with Dashashwamedh Ghat, Rajendra Prasad Ghat is called

the Chowpatty of Benares. Chowpatty is now a generic name for a

popular waterside public place after the famous beach of the

same name in Mumbai.

Until the nineteenth century it, too, was a part of

Dashashwamedh Ghat, and before 1984, it was known as Ghoda

or Horse Ghat because - when the Bharashivas performed their

ten Ashvamedha Yagyas on Dashashwamedh Ghat, a stone horse

was made here as a symbol of the yagya.

In 1984, the Uttar Pradesh government constructed a permanent

ghat here and named it after Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the first

President of India.

Duration: 1 minute