Varanasi Funeral Pyres

Piles of corpses covered with colorful blankets, or with flowers and other ornaments waiting to be burned in the eternal fire. The Hindus believe that to attain Nirvana and leave the cycle of reincarnation, your body must be consumed by the fire of Shiva and the ashes thrown into the River Ganges. So people come from all parts of India and indeed the world to die here. You can feel the heat when you approach pyres and the smell of burning flesh. Nearby children play and bathe in the river unconcerned by the drama. Lepers cannot be incinerated because they are considered impure, so for this reason they tie a stone around their neck and send them to their rest in the depths of the river.