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The festival is a major tourist attraction, and the sight of a million lamps (both floating and fixed) lighting the ghats and river in vivid colors have often been described by visitors and tourists as a breathtaking sight. On the night of the festival, thousands of devotees from the holy city of
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Ganga
Mahotsav is a tourist-centric festival in Varanasi, which is celebrated over five days every year, starting from Prabodhani Ekadashi to Kartik Poornima during the months of October and November. It showcases the rich cultural heritage of Varanasi. With its message of faith and culture, the
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During Dev
Deepawali, houses are decorated with oil lamps and coloured designs on their front doors. Firecrackers are burnt at night, processions of decorated deities are taken out into the streets of Varanasi, and oil lamps are set afloat on the river.
257:. Besides a religious role, the festival is also the occasion when the martyrs are remembered at the ghats by worshipping Ganga and lighting lamps watching the aarti. This is organized by Ganga Seva Nidhi when wreaths are placed at Amar Jawan Jyoti at
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Varanasi, surrounding villages, and across the country gather in the evening on the ghats of the Ganges to watch the aarti. The local government makes several intensive security arrangements to ensure order during the festival.
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Apart from the aarti at the
Dashameshwar Ghat, all buildings and houses are lit with earthen lamps. Nearly 100,000 pilgrims visit the riverfront to watch the river aglitter with lamps. The aarti is performed by 21 young
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195:. The tradition of lighting the lamps on the Dev Deepawali festival day was first started at the Dashashwamedh Ghat by Pandit Kishori Raman Dubey (Babu Maharaj) in 1991.
329:), which coincides with the traditional Dev Deepawali (light festival of the Gods), the ghats on the Ganga River glitter with more than a million lit-up earthen lamps.
191:, the Ganges, and its presiding goddess. Mythologically, the gods are believed to descend to Earth to bathe in the Ganges on this day. The festival is also observed as
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Boat rides (in boats of all sizes) along the riverfront in the evening are popular among tourists, when all the ghats are lit with lamps and aarti is being performed.
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priests and 24 young women. The rituals involve chanting hymns, rhythmic drum beating, conch shell blowing, and brazier burning.
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Collective Action and
Community: Public Arenas and the Emergence of Communalism in North India
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festival features popular cultural programs, classical music, a country boat race, a daily
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325:(arts and crafts fair), sculpture displays, and martial arts. On the final day (
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at the southern end to
Rajghat, are lit with more than a million earthen lamps (
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and also at the adjoining
Rajendra Prasad Ghat by police officials of the
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battalion, 4 Air Force
Selection Board and 7 UP battalion of
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231:(offering of oil lighted lamps) to Ganga in the evening. The
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167:(November - December) and takes place fifteen days after
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223:The main rituals performed by devotees consist of
211:Crowds gather to watch the riverside festivities.
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635:. Official website of UP Tourism. Archived from
424:"Varanasi gearing up to celebrate Dev Deepawali"
83:Gods descent to the Ganga ghats at Varanasi and
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219:A ghat on the Ganges lit on the festival, 2011
662:Dev Deepawali - When Gods Descend to Varanasi
498:. Diamond Pocket Books (P) Ltd. p. 171.
368:. National Informatics Center. Archived from
253:(11th lunar day of Kartika) and concludes on
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529:India: People, Place, Culture, History
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391:Freitag, Sandria B. (1 January 1989).
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564:"Events finalised for Dev Deepawali"
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159:. It falls on the full moon of the
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469:. 21 November 2010. Archived from
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397:. University of California Press.
238:is also performed in the evening.
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667:Dev Deepawali - The Divine India
495:Religious Basis of Hindu Beliefs
265:, 39 Gorkha Training Centre, 95
42:is offered every evening at the
461:"Ghats dazzle on Dev Deepawali"
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249:The 5 day festivals starts on
72:Tripura Purnima or worship of
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492:Dwivedi, Dr. Bhojraj (2006).
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175:on the riverfront of the
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598:Bruyn, Pippa de (2010).
532:. Penguin. p. 114.
295:Bhagirath Shourya Samman
275:Benares Hindu University
526:Publishing, DK (2008).
171:. The steps of all the
297:awards are presented.
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134:the Diwali of the Gods
366:"Fairs and festivals"
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98:Full Moon day of the
702:November observances
692:Religion in Varanasi
633:"Fair and Festivals"
193:Tripura Purnima Snan
697:October observances
682:Culture of Varanasi
436:on 7 September 2011
372:on 13 November 2012
349:. 26 November 2023.
251:Prabodhini Ekadashi
576:on 3 November 2013
569:The Times of India
473:on 19 October 2013
466:The Times of India
429:The Times of India
259:Dashashwamedh Ghat
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44:Dashashwamedh Ghat
404:978-0-520-06439-3
347:"Dev Diwali 2023"
293:are sung and the
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641:. Retrieved
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181:Ravidas Ghat
179:River, from
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113:26 November
100:Kartik month
80:Celebrations
69:Significance
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643:12 November
580:12 November
225:kartik snan
161:Hindu month
89:Ganga River
676:Categories
617:7 November
545:7 November
511:7 November
477:7 November
440:7 November
376:2 November
333:References
323:shilp mela
287:Air force
273:(naval),
327:Poornima
145:Varanasi
87:for the
64:Varanasi
35:Evening
307:Brahmin
291:bhajans
245:Deepdan
229:deepdan
203:Rituals
165:Kartika
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102:in the
687:Diwali
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233:Ganga
177:Ganges
169:Diwali
55:Hindus
235:aarti
189:Ganga
185:diyas
173:ghats
157:India
85:aarti
74:Shiva
40:Aarti
37:Ganga
645:2012
619:2012
606:ISBN
582:2012
547:2012
534:ISBN
513:2012
500:ISBN
479:2012
442:2012
399:ISBN
378:2012
285:and
283:Navy
279:Army
267:CRPF
125:lit.
119:The
95:Date
61:Type
271:NCC
163:of
151:of
147:in
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
