In Hinduism, the Gange is an ever-changing and ever-flowing sacred river from ages. Gange is the Goddess of washing sin of the people from the era according to the Hindu mythology. People come to the Gange and take a holy bath to wash out their sin.
They pray to their gods by having Gange water in their hands, they put forward flowers and float diya filled with the oil or ghee and lit with wicks. People carry Holy Gange water to their home and save as a Ganga jal for making use of it in the variety of Hindu rituals in future.
The calm and clean atmosphere of this day fills the soul of the devotees with the religious thoughts. The classical music performed by the great maestros really adds an unforgettable flavor to the environment.
This, five days long Ganga Mahotsav is the message to all about the spiritual and religious beliefs and culture of the Varanasi city.
Ganga Mahotsav 2015 was celebrated by the people from 22nd of November (Sunday) to 24th of November (Tuesday). The event of Ganga Mahotsav is celebrated by the people in the holy city Varanasi for the five days.
Ganga Mahotsav 2014
Ganga Mahotsav 2014 was celebrated by the people from 3rd (Monday) to 5th (Wednesday) of November.
It is believed that Ganga nourishes the Varanasi civilization for long and it has been a great religious importance in the Hindu society. It provides the people a great sense of different identity and belonging. For the religious and cultural beliefs of the people to the River Ganges, a festival of Ganga Mahotsav is organized every year. People at Varanasi celebrate Ganga Mahotsav continuously for 5 days at the banks of the River Gange.
Importance of Ganga Mahotsav
The trend of celebrating the Ganga Mahotsav in the Holy city of India, Varanasi, tends to keep the importance of the Varanasi as a cultural, religious and traditional capital of the India. At this occasion, pilgrims celebrate the event by performing an Indian classical style music and dance. It provides an immense chance for tourists to see the real presentation of the Indian classical dance and music. Pilgrims or tourists whoever want to participate in the Ganga Mahotsav, have already registered hotels, restaurants, dharamshala, guest houses or they stay to their relatives home in the Benares.
Many of the great personalities of India have participated and performed their enchanting performances at the Ganga Mahotsav such as Ustad Bismillah Khan, Bal Murli Krishnan, Vilayat Khan, Pundit Chhanulal Misra, Birju Maharaj, Girija Devi, Sujat Khan, Bhimsen Joshi, Amjad Ali Khan, Zila Khan and Zakir Hussein. This festival attracts pilgrims and tourists from all the corners of the world.