Celebrating the Diwali of the Gods in Varanasi

The Dev Deepavali ("the Diwali of the Gods" or "Festival of Lights of the Gods") is the festival of Kartik Poornima celebrated in Varanasi. (Photos: Apratim Pal)

Decorating the Faith: Women beautifully decorates an "Om" celebrating Dev Deepavali in Varanasi. Dev Deepavali falls on the full moon of the Hindu month of Kartika. (Photo: Apratim Pal)

Rituals of Dev Deepavali: There are different tupes pf rituals. These include, among others, chanting of various hymns and mantras to convey prayers to gods while lighting lamps area common occurence. (Photo: Apratim Pal)

Worshipping Lord Shiva: Another aspect of the Diwali of the Gods sees people lighting up lamps at the ghats and praying to the Lord Shiva for prosperity and long life. Mainly, the steps of all the ghats on the riverfront of the Ganges River, from Ravidas Ghat at the southern end to Rajghat, are lit with more than a million earthen lamps (diyas) in honour of Ganga, the Ganges, and its presiding goddess. (Photo: Apratim Pal)

Family celebrates dev Deepavali: A amll family beautifully decorates some portion of the ghat with candles.The festival is also observed as Tripura Purnima Snan. The tradition of lighting the lamps on the Dev Deepawali festival day was first started at the Panchganga Ghat in 1985. (Photo: Apratim Pal)

People create a motif of the diya using earther lamps to celebrate Dev Deepavali in Varanasi.The main rituals performed by devotees consist of kartik snan (taking a holy bath in the Ganges during Kartika) and deepdan (offering of oil lighted lamps) to Ganga in the evening. The Ganga aarti is also performed in the evening. (Photo: Apratim Pal)

The 5 day festivals starts on Prabodhini Ekadashi (11th lunar day of Kartika) and concludes on Kartik Poornima. Children too celebrate this festival by drawing their favourite cartoon characters like Chhota Bheem and others and then lighting up diyas around them, bringing to the festival a much more global aspect. (Photo: Apratim Pal)

Many pilgrims comes to Benaras for worship Lord Shiva during Dev Deepavali as well. 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. (Photo: Apratim Pal)

A group of people can be seen worshipping the likeliness of a Shiva Lingam that they have created using earthen lamps. On the night of the festival, thousands of devotees from the holy city of Varanasi, surrounding villages, and across the country gather in the evening on the ghats of the Ganges to watch the aarti. (Photo: Apratim Pal)

A group of people can be seen worshipping the likeliness of a Shiva Lingam that they have created using earthen lamps. On the night of the festival, thousands of devotees from the holy city of Varanasi, surrounding villages, and across the country gather in the evening on the ghats of the Ganges to watch the aarti. (Photo: Apratim Pal)

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 Brahmin priests and 24 young women. The rituals involve chanting hymns, rhythmic drum beating, conch shell blowing, and brazier burning. (Photo: Apratim Pal)