— Brihadaranyaka Upanishads
It is said that by dying in Varanasi one attains moksha—freedom from the cycle of birth and death. The belief might have stemmed from a quote in the Matsya Purana where Shiva says: “Kashi is always my most secret place, the cause of liberation for all creatures. All sins which one may have accumulated in thousands of previous lives disappears as soon as one enters Avimukta.”
As I meditated on what Shiva said about Kashi (ancient name of Varanasi), a thought came to my mind—was he talking about Kashi as a physical place or Kashi meaning light or being enlightened? I guess we’ll never know until we become enlightened ourselves. 🙂 Until then, we have the words of the Upanishads to inspire us.
The photo below is of Manikarnika Ghat—the very ghat where people who get cremated attain moksha. There was something about this scene that stopped me on my tracks. Dharma (the dog) follows you till death, thereafter your body is cremated, and finally your soul (the bird) attains moksha or transitions into a new life—the story was impossible to miss.
