Assi Ghat

2021-08-24T18:40:47Z

2409:4064:221B:3C2A:0:0:943:60AD: /* Tourism at Assi Ghat */Added comments

{{Infobox Mandir
| name = Assi Ghat
| image = Assi Ghat Varanasi morning Aarti.jpg
| caption = Morning [[aarti]] at Assi Ghat
| coordinates = {{coord|25|17|19.132|N|83|0|24.342|E|type:landmark_region:IN|display=inline,title}}
| state = [[Uttar Pradesh]]
| country = [[India]]
}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2017}}
{{Use Indian English|date=April 2017}}
[[File:Assi ghat.jpg|thumb|Assi Ghat]]

'''Assi Ghat''' is the southernmost [[ghat]] in [[Varanasi]].<ref name="Ede2015">{{cite book|author=Piers Moore Ede|title=Kaleidoscope City: A Year in Varanasi|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XplEBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT6|date=26 February 2015|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|isbn=978-1-4088-3542-5|pages=6–}}</ref> To most visitors to Varanasi, it is known for being a place where long-term foreign students, researchers, and tourists live.<ref name=ex/>

==Tourism at Assi Ghat==

Assi Ghat is the southernmost ghat in Varanasi. It is one of the biggest ghats of Varanasi and most popular one. To most visitors to Varanasi, it is known for being a place where long-term foreign students, researchers, and tourists live. Assi Ghat is one of the ghats often visited for recreation and during festivals. On typical days about 300 people visit every hour in the mornings, and on festival days 2500 people arrive per hour. Most of the people visiting the ghat on usual days are students from the nearby [[Banaras Hindu University]]. The ghat accommodates about 22,500 people at once during festivals like [[Shivratri]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sasnet.lu.se/EASASpapers/46JohnMalville.pdf |title=Time and the Ganga River at Asi Ghat, Pilgrimage and Ritual Landscape|author=John McKim Malville and Rana P. B. Singh |access-date=20 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110124131559/http://www.sasnet.lu.se/EASASpapers/46JohnMalville.pdf |archive-date=24 January 2011 }}</ref>
During iconic Dev Deepawali festival, more than 500,000 tourists visit the ghat.
There are a lot of activities for tourists to engage in at the ghat. Visitors can go for boat rides, go up in a hot-air balloon for an aerial view of Assi ghat, enjoy the daily talent show in the evening or eat at one of the many restaurants and cafes in the area.
[[File:An evening at Assi Ghat.JPG|thumb|Old people in group chat in the evening at Assi Ghat]]
Hindus believe that it was at Assi Ghat that [[Tulsidas]] left for his heavenly abode.

After the [[2010 Varanasi bombing]] the city commissioned extra police to the Assi Ghat neighborhood in order to more quickly resolve problems which tourists might have.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-12-11/varanasi/28271739_1_ghats-spos-temples |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104065123/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-12-11/varanasi/28271739_1_ghats-spos-temples |url-status=dead |archive-date=4 November 2012 |title=New measures to perk up vigil in city
|date=11 Dec 2010 |work=[[The Times of India]] |publisher=[[The Times Group]] |access-date=20 December 2010}}</ref>

=== Subah-e-Banaras ===
Subah-e-Banaras, an early morning session before dawn (sunrise) started on 2014 by Minister of State, U.P. Govt. A committee has been constituted to glorify and propagate the celestial moments of Subah-e-Banaras for spiritual development. People from all walks of life joined hands together to perpetuate the early hour's effort to feel within existence of Almighty and grandeur of Nature.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Subah-e-Banaras|url=http://www.subahebanaras.net/|access-date=30 August 2020|website=SubaheBanaras}}</ref> It is daily session which last for 2 hours and is free of cost.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Subah-e-Banaras|work=Optima Travels|url=https://optimatravels.com/varanasi-uttar-pradesh/subah-e-banaras-varanasi-uttar-pradesh-india.aspx|access-date=30 August 2020}}</ref>

==== Activities ====
# Morning Vedic enchanting and Nature’s welcome (ethnic way).
# Vedic Yagya- To purify our inner self for realization and world peace.
# Tribute to five basic elements i.e. Land, Water, Sky, Fire and Air.
# Music – Morning Raga, Classical/Semi classical by expert artists.
# Yoga - To shape perfectly physically as well metaphysically.
<ref>{{Cite web|title=Daily Schedule of Subah-e-Baranas|url=http://www.subahebanaras.net/index.php?id=DailySchedule|access-date=30 August 2020|website=SuabaheBaranas}}</ref>

==In popular culture==

# [[Kashinath Singh]]'s Hindi novel ''[[Kashi Ka Assi]]'' is set in the [[mohalla]] near the ghat. The novel is being adapted as ''[[Mohalla Assi]]'', a 2018 [[Bollywood]] film starring [[Sunny Deol]] and directed by [[Chandra Prakash Dwivedi]], which is set in the ''[[mohalla]]'' (locality) around Assi Ghat.<ref name="ex">{{cite news|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/In-the-new-world/748064/|title=In the new world|date=11 February 2011|work=Indian Express}}</ref><ref name="nd">{{cite web|url=http://movies.ndtv.com/movie_story.aspx?section=Movies&Id=ENTEN20110169087&keyword=bollywood&subcatg=MOVIESINDIA&nid=84318 |title=Sunny Deol to play a pandit in Mohalla Assi |publisher=[[NDTV]] Movies |access-date=2011-02-11 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110212163510/http://movies.ndtv.com/movie_story.aspx?section=Movies&Id=ENTEN20110169087&keyword=bollywood&subcatg=MOVIESINDIA&nid=84318 |archive-date=12 February 2011 }}</ref>
# [[Raanjhanaa]], a 2013 film which is also a [[Varanasi]]-based story, also has scenes of the "Assi Ghat".
# [[Masaan]], a 2015 [[drama film]] directed by [[Neeraj Ghaywan]] has scenes of Vatika Cafe of the Assi Ghat.

==References==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Wikiversity-inline|The Varanasi Heritage Dossier/Asi Ghat Area|Assi Ghat}}
{{Varanasi}}
{{commonscat|Assi Ghat}}
[[Category:Ghats in Varanasi]]

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Assi Ghat