The Terrifying Face of the Ganges...! Astonishment at the Puja in the Holy City of Haridwar

(2) Experiencing the Prayer Ritual 'Puja' in Haridwar: Astonished by the Passion of Pilgrims and the Entertaining Ritual

6:30 PM. After taking a break to recharge, I left my accommodation to go see the evening Puja. Although I had fallen into a state of shock just by walking around the city during the day, the main event in Haridwar was just beginning. Here, the prayer ritual, or Puja, is held every night at the main ghat. I had been looking forward to watching this.

There were clearly more people than during the day. And because it had gotten dark, the atmosphere was even more intense. A unique kind of fervor, or perhaps a sense of exhilaration, was palpable from the people passing by.

The next video is a scene that captures the fervor before the Puja well. Everyone raises both hands and chants along with the calls flowing through the air. It begins even before the ritual itself starts.

And as I approached the main ghat, the level of congestion increased even further.

I followed behind my guide, moving forward little by little.

I reached an area quite far to the front. Nearby, a group was stationed, sitting on sheets with their shoes off. The colorful saris were dazzling to the eyes. Among them, a middle-aged man who appeared to be the leader was speaking passionately and collecting money. This passionate speech was incredible, and I was able to clearly feel the intensity of the Indian people. The eloquence of Indians is well-known, and this was truly a testament to that.

If you watch the video below, you can feel that eloquence and intensity. (This video was filmed on a different day, but from around 15 seconds in, the man in light blue begins speaking with tremendous energy.)

Then, around 7:00 PM, when the music signaling the start of the ritual began to play, everyone stood up at once and surged toward the front. I was swept up in that momentum and pushed toward the very front. I didn't know what was happening while I was being pushed, but wait, wasn't this on top of the sheets!?

"Wait? Is this okay? Being in a place like this! And wearing shoes, no less!?"

"It's fine. Don't worry about it. This is how it is. Look, everyone else is doing it, right?"

Indeed, the area was packed with people, and no one seemed to care about such things. But where do the shoes of the people who were sitting on these sheets go... I don't know. However, without worrying about such things, everyone pushed and shoved their way to the front. A chaotic disregard for rules. That's just how it is, Indians....

And finally, the Brahmins (priests) arrived and began to light fires right in front of us. They manipulated the burning ritual implements in time with the loud music. Their movements were slow, but the wild flames had an undeniable power. The heat of the fire and the smell of the smoke drifted toward us.

The gathered pilgrims were also serious. They, too, chanted and sang loudly along with the music. What a sense of unity! Even I, a foreigner, felt it. I imagine the fellow Indians felt a sense of unity far beyond that.

And this was where I was truly stunned. The moment the Puja music ended and the ritual was about to conclude, I felt something like a roar. And I immediately realized. The massive crowd here was swarming toward the fire that had been burning right in front of us, each trying to get ahead of the other!

As you can see, the fire was being lit right on the riverbank. This massive crowd began to stage an unbelievable scene of pushing and shoving toward that riverbank. One wrong step and you'd be headlong into the muddy torrent! I was taken aback by this.

It didn't matter if they were men or women. They would twist their bodies into even the slightest gap to get ahead. And those who reached the riverbank would hold their hands over the sacred fire to receive its heat, then carefully stroke it onto their heads as if to let it soak in.

In this way, the pilgrims purify their sins. They wash away their sins by bathing in the Ganges, and further purify their bodies with the sacred fire, praying for happy days and their next life. In Yoshie Hotta's book, Things I Thought About in India, he wrote about the "terrifying faces" of Indians, and indeed, the faces of the Indians in this chaotic scene were "terrifying" to me as well. I became afraid, wondering why they could be so serious. Is it because they are conscious of their sins, or is it an insatiable desire for happiness... I don't have the composure to judge that right now. I must get out of here quickly...!

Getting back through this massive crowd was also a difficult task. It was just like the way home from a fireworks festival. And to think, they say this is actually quite empty because it's the off-season during the rainy season. They say that during the peak of the dry season, you literally cannot move at all.

Still, if it were an event that happened a few times a year like a fireworks festival, that would be one thing, but to think this happens every single day is beyond words. And the fact that this is the off-season makes it even more so. It seems that the city of Haridwar is a place with a festive atmosphere all year round.

As I made my way back, moving slowly, I heard something that sounded like ritual music along the way.

However, I was more captivated by the woman in the back beating a drum with a look of complete disinterest than by the ritual itself. Is this the Indian way? India is a place where you can no longer tell if people are devout or just indifferent.

I somehow managed to make it back to my accommodation.

Even now, I cannot help but ask myself, 'What was that?' I am still reeling from the intensity of the Puja.

Strangely, the music from that Puja won't leave my head, even though it was the first time I had ever heard those melodies. It was that catchy and unforgettable.

I filmed this video the next day, and I think it gives a better overview. The music might also be easier to hear.

Listening to this, I think you might all feel the same: 'It's certainly Indian in a way, but it's surprisingly modern music.'

And that is exactly it. While this place has long been famous as a holy site for Hinduism, this music is clearly modern. Moreover, it is blasted at full volume through speakers. It's like a live concert venue. Before me is the holy Ganges. The buildings are religious facilities far removed from daily life, and the fire ritual has a very strong entertainment quality. A space for an extraordinary festival is staged to the fullest. As we all know, modern live concerts also stage this kind of extraordinary, festive atmosphere, and I felt that strongly here in Haridwar as well.

However, entertainment value is not the exclusive property of modern concerts, plays, or shows; humans have utilized and enjoyed it in various situations since ancient times. Not just royal audiences, parades, poetry readings, and plays, but religious rituals are also one of them. Religious rituals and festivals have served as a vessel for people's desire for such festivity. It is the fate of any religion without attractive rituals to decline sooner or later. The fact that Buddhism declined and Hinduism flourished here in India is likely not unrelated to this. Indian Buddhism tended not to place importance on such rituals.

In contrast, Buddhism that spread to Southeast Asia and the Chinese sphere fused with the local soil, creating characteristic rituals for each region and taking root there. The appeal of the teachings themselves is certainly the foundation of a religion. But that alone is not enough. That alone is decisively lacking.

I felt this acutely at the Puja here in Haridwar. I don't know why the music here sounded so modern. It is possible that this music was actually composed recently. (*In fact, during my stay in Varanasi in February, I learned the trick behind it. Regarding this, see the article “Is the Puja in Varanasi Classical? Surprised by the Differences from the Entertainment-Filled Puja in Haridwar””)

In any case, it is certain that the Puja here provides an intense experience for pilgrims. People who wish from the bottom of their hearts to come here at least once in their lives, even if it means traveling a long way and enduring hardship, gather here. And that energy is concentrated into that 'terrifying face'.

I was exhausted from being hit by the strange intensity of the Puja, but there is no doubt that this was an irreplaceable and stimulating experience. It was a night in Haridwar where I felt the importance of ritual with my whole body.

*Below is an article summarizing the reference books on India and Sri Lanka that I used for this travelogue. Please take a look.

〇“A List of Recommended Reference Books to Learn About Indian History, Religion, and Culture”
〇“A List of Recommended Books for Those Who Want to Know More About Indian Buddhism”
〇“A List of Recommended Books to Learn About the Buddhist Country of Sri Lanka”

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“India and Sri Lanka Travelogue”Click here for the article list summary

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