As they sing along to “Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram,” hundreds of people clap. However, there is a pervading calmness in the air. The beauty of the Ganga Aarti in Howrah’s Ramkrishnapur Ghat is that it manages to provide tranquility in the middle of a show, mirroring the grand celebrations at Varanasi and Haridwar.
Every evening after sunset, the ghat holds an aarti when Varanasi priests perform the rituals, but the one on Dev Deepawali (or Dev Diwali), which fell on November 8 this year, is something spectacular to see.
Entrance into a new world
Even before you enter the Ramkrishnapur Ghat, the atmosphere has the power to seize your attention. As you board a ferry, you can hear the first notes of the harmonium and see the lights from the opposite end of Babughat. Getting off the boat at the ghat on the night of Dev Deepawali is like entering another world, one free of the pressures of daily life and work. The aarti is the most significant item here. On the riverbank, people from many walks of life are seated next to one another, their expressions showing that they are engaged in some form of meditation.
The aarti itself also has a show component. Nine priests from Varanasi perform 11 distinct forms of aartis in perfect synchronization as a melodic orchestra plays religious music. The dancing light of more than 5,000 diyas, which form a carpet stretching out from the stage to the banks and the water of the river beyond, adds to the incredible picture. Hundreds of worshippers have bathed in the Hooghly and have offered the river diyas; they are still doing so as the aarti is performed. The water close to the bank looks like a dazzling canvas by the time you’re on the ferry heading back to Babughat, with small lights burning just as continuously as they did two hours before.
A festival with a purpose
On Ram Navami in 2009, Sammilit Sadbhavna held the inaugural Ganga Aarti at Ramkrishnapur Ghat.
A community gets together
Despite the celebrations and religious considerations, what makes Dev Deepawali at Ramkrishnapur Ghat even more unique is that every single diya adorning the ghat is lit by residents. The candles light brightly because the community joined together to decorate the ghat as they would their own home. The energy is not generated by the echoing bhajans or the nearly hypnotic claps that follow them. The closeness of seeing friends, relatives, and strangers come together, more than the ornate décor, is what gives the atmosphere a spiritual quality. The aarti may make you feel included and like it is something of your own, even in the midst of the vast crowds.
News Mania Desk
