Benaras´ Backyard
Benaras, also known as Varanasi is one of the most sacred cities in India. The city, located in North East India, is well known for being the home to the so-called burning Ghats, where Hindus come to be burned and then dropped into the Ganges River in order to get closer to Nirvana, the Hindu paradise. In other words: Varanasi is both culturally and economically a Hindu stronghold.
Despite this, almost one third of the approximately one and a half million inhabitants in Varanasi are Muslims who have built their own communities where they live and work with great respect toward their own rituals and religion.
For most of his life, Abdur Rahmann, has lived with the Hindu faith. But Abdur has since converted to the Islamic faith.
"I just didn’t find the answers. I was not in touch with my God. That is different now. I hear and feel Allah. He is everything. All I breathe and everywhere. He is present all the time”.
By Vishnu Ghats, Muslims meets every afternoon and enter the water from what they describe as their "swimming ghat". The Hindus reluctantly accept that the Muslims bathe in the water which has sacred significance in the Hindu faith.
Out-Di lives in one of the poorest Muslim areas in Varanasi, Allaipur.
90% of Muslims in this area make their living by making Sahees, the most used clothing among Hindu women.
"The biggest problem we have is the frequent power cuts throughout the day. So we are on standby 24 hours a day. When there is power, the machines must run, even if it is at night. That is why we have chosen to place them in our living room. I don’t know if this is something the government is doing on purpose, but there are far more power cuts in this area, than for example in the center of Varanasi.
Hafiju Rahman works in the biggest mosque in Varanasi, Alamgir. It was built in the seventeenth century and is located high up in the city with views over the Ganges.
"I took the job five years ago, and have been here ever since. I did it primarily to get closer to Allah. In this way, I'm as close as I can be every day.”
Terror has shown its evil face in modern times in Varanasi. In 2006, 15 people were killed when a series of bomb attacks hit the city. A bomb exploded in the Hanuman Temple, one of the most sacred Hindu temples. In 2010 another blast hit the city, this time near the Ganges River. Both Indian and foreign tourists were wounded. Both sides blamed each other for the attack, but since then, Hindus and Muslims have lived peacefully side-by-side.
Published by Politiken