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Rang

City of saffron and light

Varanasi

Saffron robes, marigold garlands and oil lamps colour the river steps of one of the oldest living cities.

Varanasi , India as seen from Ganga river .
Photo: Marcin Biaล‚ek, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Why Varanasi is saffron

Varanasi, also called Kashi and Banaras, stands on the Ganga and is among the holiest cities for Hindus. Its colour is saffron, the orange of fire and of renunciation. Sadhus, holy men who have given up worldly life, wear it on the ghats, the long flights of steps down to the river. Marigold garlands in the same warm range are sold at every temple. Each evening at Dashashwamedh Ghat priests perform the Ganga aarti, lifting many-tiered brass lamps towards the water. The city is also known for Banarasi silk, woven with gold and silver thread called zari and worn at weddings across India. At dawn the sandstone steps and palaces turn rose and gold.

Saffron#F4A32AMarigold#F2B705Vermilion#D8342BGanga grey-green#7C8B78Zari gold#C9A227

Values are fair approximations of what the eye sees there, not measurements.

Colours tied to Varanasi

SaffronA yellow-orange shade named after the colour of saffron crocus threadsVermilionA brilliant orange-red pigment, once made from toxic mercury ore
About this page

Written by the Rang desk with AI assistance. Background: "Varanasi" on Wikipedia. If you know Varanasi and we have it wrong, tell us.

More colour cities

All colour cities
๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ณ The Blue CityJodhpurOld-city houses washed in blue crowd the foot of Mehrangarh Fort, on the edge of the Thar Desert.๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ณ The Pink CityJaipurThe walled city wears a dusty terracotta pink, first painted on for a royal visit in 1876 and kept ever since.๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ณ The White CityUdaipurWhite palaces and whitewashed houses stand around lakes in the Aravalli hills of southern Rajasthan.๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ณ The Golden CityJaisalmerA fort and town built of yellow sandstone that glows like honey at sunset, deep in the Thar Desert.๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ณ Town of Holi coloursVrindavanFor Holi the temple town of Krishna's childhood fills with clouds of pink, yellow and green powder.๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ณ Birthplace of Krishna, home of HoliMathuraKrishna's birthplace celebrates Holi for more than a week, with processions, music and coloured powder.

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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