Ashes, devotion and dance: Masan Holi celebrated at Harishchandra Ghat in Varanasi

Masan Holi was celebrated in Varanasi with devotees applying pyre ashes, dancing, and embracing the festival's unique spiritual significance.

Masan Holi was celebrated at the cremation ground of Harishchandra Ghat in Varanasi on Friday. During the celebration, people applied pyre ashes to one another. Many devotees, dressed as Gana, the loyal attendants and companions of Shiva, participated in the festivities, covering themselves from head to toe in ashes.

Devotees dance in front of a burning funeral pyre as they take part in the 'Masaan' or 'Bhasma' Holi, celebrated with ashes of the pyre, along the banks of the river Ganges at Harishchandra Ghat in Varanasi (AFP)

As the celebration progressed, devotees were seen dancing to popular Holi songs, filling the air with energy and fervour.

Masan Holi holds a special place in the spiritual and cultural fabric of Kashi. The tradition of celebrating Holi with pyre ashes makes the festival uniquely significant. Participants smeared each other with ashes symbolising the end of life and the promise of rebirth. Through this ritual, death is acknowledged and embraced as part of the eternal cycle, reflecting the distinctive ethos of Kashi.

This year, a large number of devotees took part in the celebration. Local residents as well as tourists from far and wide joined the festivities. Amid showers of ash and colour, people greeted one another and shared in the joy of the occasion.