Why Varanasi is Called a Living City, Not Just Ancient

Some ancient places survive mainly as archaeological ruins. Visitors walk among the remains of streets and buildings, read about the people who once lived there and try to imagine a vanished civilisation.

Varanasi is different.

Its historic areas are not silent remains of an abandoned city. People continue to live, worship, trade, study and work in them. The ghats remain active religious and social spaces. Temples continue to receive devotees. Traditional crafts still support livelihoods, while music, festivals and sacred learning are passed from one generation to another.

This is why Varanasi is often described as a “living city.” It is ancient, but it has never become merely a monument to its own past.

What Does “Living City” Mean?

Known variously as Kashi, Banaras and Varanasi, the city is considered one of the oldest continuously inhabited urban settlements in the world. Archaeological evidence and historical records establish its great antiquity, while Hindu scriptures and traditions place its sacred origins even further into the past.

However, age alone does not make a city “living.”

A living city is one in which historic places continue to serve the communities around them. Its customs are not simply reconstructed for visitors, and its buildings are not all separated from daily life by barriers. People continue to use, repair, adapt and sometimes transform them.

In Varanasi, the past has not been placed behind museum glass. It remains part of the present.

The Ghats Are Still in Use

More than 80 ghats extend along the western bank of the Ganga in Varanasi. Although many of the stone structures visible today were constructed or rebuilt during medieval and later periods, the sacred importance of the riverfront reaches much further back.

These ghats are among the clearest examples of Varanasi’s living heritage.

Before sunrise, pilgrims descend the steps to bathe in the Ganga and offer water to the rising sun. Priests prepare for religious ceremonies, boatmen begin taking passengers across the river, and local residents gather for prayer, exercise and conversation.

Dhobis wash clothes at certain points along the riverfront, while traditional akharas preserve physical disciplines associated with wrestling and exercise. Shops and tea stalls open in the surrounding lanes as the city begins another working day.

The stone may be old, but the activity belongs to the present. The ghats are not simply preserved historic structures. They continue to function as places of worship, livelihood, movement and social interaction.

Life and Death Share the Same Streets

The relationship between life and death is especially visible in Varanasi.

In many modern cities, cremation grounds and cemeteries are located away from busy residential and commercial areas. In Varanasi, cremation ghats form part of the city’s sacred centre.

Manikarnika Ghat is the best-known cremation ground in Kashi, while cremations also take place at Harishchandra Ghat. According to Hindu belief, dying or being cremated in Kashi can help the soul attain moksha, or liberation from the cycle of birth and rebirth. Some people therefore come to the city hoping to spend their final days there.

Traditional belief holds that the sacred cremation fire at Manikarnika has burned continuously for centuries. While this should be understood as part of the ghat’s religious tradition rather than a historically verifiable measurement, it expresses the idea that death never pauses in Kashi.

Funeral processions pass through lanes filled with homes, temples, shops and tea stalls. At the same time, the city celebrates weddings, births and festivals. Varanasi does not separate death entirely from everyday existence. Instead, it presents death as part of life’s spiritual journey.

Rituals Without a Closing Date

Many rituals practised in Varanasi are not modern reconstructions created for tourism. They continue because they remain meaningful to the people performing them.

The evening Ganga Aarti at Dashashwamedh Ghat is one of the city’s most recognisable ceremonies. Priests offer large lamps to the Ganga as bells ring, conch shells sound and sacred chants fill the riverfront. Crowds watch from the steps and from boats on the river.

At Assi Ghat, Subah-e-Banaras brings together morning prayers, classical music and yog around sunrise. Temple worship, religious bathing, Vedic chanting and offerings to the Ganga also continue throughout the city.

The Ramnagar Ramlila provides another remarkable example. Rather than being performed on a single theatrical stage, it unfolds across different locations in Ramnagar over several weeks. The audience moves with the story as streets and open spaces become Ayodhya, Janakpur, Chitrakoot and Lanka.

Festivals such as Dev Deepawali and Mahashivratri reshape the rhythm of the entire city. Streets, ghats, temples, businesses and transportation all respond to the celebrations. Tradition in Varanasi is not confined to designated cultural venues. It moves through the city itself.

Ancient Skills Remain Part of the Economy

A living culture requires more than ceremonies. It also needs people who can earn livelihoods through inherited knowledge.

Banarasi silk weaving is among the city’s most famous traditions. The Banarasi sari, recognised through a Geographical Indication tag, is celebrated for its elaborate patterns, brocade and zari work. In several neighbourhoods, weaving remains a family occupation, with knowledge of looms, patterns and designs passed down through generations.

Varanasi is also known for wooden toys, metalwork, glass beads, jewellery, clay objects and other handicrafts. These trades have changed as artisans respond to new machinery, designs and markets, but their survival shows that the city’s heritage remains economically active.

Its food traditions are equally alive. Kachori-sabzi in the morning, winter malaiyo, thandai, lassi served in clay cups and Banarasi paan form part of the city’s everyday cultural identity.

The lanes are not curated heritage streets created solely for visitors. They are working neighbourhoods filled with homes, workshops, shrines, markets and businesses.

Music, Poetry and Learning Still Flourish

Varanasi has been a centre of religious and intellectual learning for centuries. Sanskrit, Vedic studies, philosophy and sacred texts continue to be taught through both traditional and modern institutions.

The city is closely connected with Sant Kabir, Sant Ravidas and Goswami Tulsidas. Their writings are not remembered only as historical literature. Their verses continue to be recited, sung and quoted in religious and everyday settings.

Varanasi has also made an extraordinary contribution to Indian classical music. The Banaras gharana developed distinctive traditions in vocal music, tabla and dance. Musicians such as Ustad Bismillah Khan and Girija Devi became deeply associated with the city, while Pandit Ravi Shankar also had important connections with Banaras.

In 2015, UNESCO included Varanasi in its Creative Cities Network as a City of Music. The recognition was not simply for musical achievements preserved in archives. It acknowledged a tradition that continues through teachers, performers, students, temples, festivals and local gatherings.

Modern education has added further layers. Banaras Hindu University, established in 1916, attracts students from across India and abroad. Traditional pathshalas, madrasas, schools, colleges and universities coexist within the same wider city.

A Living City Must Be Allowed to Change

Calling Varanasi a living city does not mean that it has remained unchanged for thousands of years. Its buildings have been damaged and rebuilt. Dynasties, communities and institutions have shaped it in different periods. Roads, universities, tourism, modern transportation and redevelopment continue to alter its appearance.

The city also faces serious urban pressures, including congestion, sanitation problems, pollution, overcrowding and the challenge of protecting old neighbourhoods while improving infrastructure.

These changes create difficult questions. Which buildings should be preserved? How can public facilities be improved without destroying the character of historic areas? How should the needs of residents, pilgrims and visitors be balanced?

Such debates are themselves evidence that Varanasi is alive. It is not a completed historical display. It is a functioning city whose residents must constantly decide how its next layer will be added.

More Than an Ancient City

Calling Varanasi ancient places emphasis on how long it has existed. Calling it a living city explains how it has endured.

Its ghats are still used. Its temples are still worshipped in. Its sacred stories are still performed, its music is still taught, its silk is still woven and its festivals still transform the rhythm of urban life.

At the same time, people commute to work, attend university, operate businesses, deal with traffic and raise families within this ancient landscape.

Varanasi’s past is not finished. It continues through the people who inhabit, practise, question and reshape it. That is what makes Kashi more than one of the world’s oldest cities. It is an ancient civilisation still being lived every day.