Four floating blessings of flowers and oil lamps on a boat at sunrise, on the holy river Ganges, Varanasi, India

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The river Ganges which runs from high in the Himalayas through India to Bangladesh, is worshipped by Hindus as a goddess and the most sacred of rivers. Varanasi(also known as Benares or Kashi) is one of the oldest continually occupied cities in the world and the place most favoured to offer blessings to the goddess in the form of floating leaf bowls holding marigolds, roses, and an oil lamp that burns in the early morning light or at sunset.

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Size: 5320px × 3540px
Location: River Ganges, Varanasi, India
Photo credit: © Annie Owen / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: blessings, boat, candles, flowers, ganges, hindu, holy, india, lamps, marigolds, offering, oil, petals, puja, river, rose, sacred, varanasi