What Varanasi cremation ghats taught me

Manikarnika ghat, Varanasi

Note: Some of the contents of the post below may be unsettling for some people. Reader discretion is advised.

When I was studying engineering in IIT Varanasi, I would sometimes go to Manikarnika ghat or Harishchandra ghat (Hindu cremation ghats) and spend some time there. I would sit in a corner and watch corpses burn, how the ‘doms’ (burning assistants) managed the process, the near and dear ones of the deceased, the Ganga river flowing by, fully present to the moment yet not attached to anything.

Normally one would associate deep sadness and fear with a place of cremation. But that was totally not what I experienced there. I could feel deep peace and presence while sitting there. I could feel sublime beauty, tenderness and aliveness there.

I could feel LIFE in the setting of death!

The experience was real, unmistakable and effortless.

In this post I explore what could be the reason(s) behind this queer phenomenon.

*) In the Sanskrit texts one of the description of Varanasi is: “Anandavane Mahasmashaane” which translates to ‘The forest of bliss, the greatest of crematoriums.’ This is poetry, irony and wisdom at its best.

*) Shiva, the Hindu God of dissolution and awakening is shown meditating in a crematorium. That’s because in a crematorium meditation happens effortlessly. Shiva is smart enough to choose a setting which is conducive for the activity he wishes to perform.

*) Peace, Presence and Bliss are:
— NOT short-lived or temporary even-though we experience them temporarily (if ever). Peace, Presence and Bliss are ever present.
— NOT externally induced even-though it appears that external things give us that experience. Peace, Presence and Bliss exist at our core.

If I already have it and always have it, then why don’t I experience it already and always?

Because they are concealed by the curtain of our mind. When we are engrossed in the fabric (thoughts) of the curtain (mind) and its properties (emotions), we don’t see what the curtain is hiding from our view.

Every single time you have experienced deep peace, presence and bliss in your life, the curtain was moved aside and you came face to face with what already and always existed.

With this much foundation, we can go on to explain the crematorium phenomenon.

When the gross body of the deceased is burnt, the subtle body also burns to ashes. The subtle body is nothing but the mind(curtain). If you are wondering how can mind burn, let me remind you that physics has proven that everything (including light) has dual nature. Everything is matter and energy and inter-convertible.

Mind is also matter but a very subtle one. When mind drops down by burning, it has the effect of temporarily suspending the mind of those in the vicinity. May not happen in all cases but in Varanasi ghats this happens.

This is transference at play. Have you noticed when you enter a silent place, you automatically become silent. When you enter a joyful place, you automatically become joyous. When you enter a place where mind is dissolved, your mind dissolves temporarily. Then you start seeing all the beautiful things it was concealing from view.

In the Bhagvad Gita, Krishna says that “Mind is the reason (access) for humans for both bondage and liberation.”

Presently most of us are unwittingly using it for bondage. My hope, prayer and blessing is that more and more of us use it for liberation.

PS. Originally published on March 17, 2018 on Medium.