IANS/Varanasi

One of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Varanasi is also among the most sacred sites for both Hindus and Jains and has played a major role in developing Buddhism. It will now be Bharatiya Janata Party prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s electoral battleground.
Also known as Kashi or Benaras, Varanasi is located on the banks of the Ganges in eastern Uttar Pradesh and occupies a significant place in Hindu mythology and history.
Varanasi is overwhelmingly Hindu (around 80%) but Muslims constitute an estimated 12% of the population.
Steeped in tradition, Varanasi is said to be the ‘original ground’ created by Shiva and Parvati.
English author and Indophile Mark Twain described Varanasi thus: “Benaras is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend and looks twice as old as all of them put together.”
Home to at least 84 ghats that dot the banks of the Ganges, Kashi - as Hindu devouts still call it - is where Tulsidas wrote Ramcharitra Manas, a spiritual classic.
Varanasi is also where spiritual giant Lahiri Mahasaya prached Kriya Yoga. It is also where Trialang Swami lived, reportedly, for hundreds of years, having mastered the yogic secret of walking on water.
Varanasi is home to innumerable temples, the most prominent of which is the Kashi Vishwanath temple.
As invaders plundered many Hindu shrines in the 12th century, most temples that still exist there date to the 18th century.
But Varanasi is not just about religion.
Kashi has always been renowned for its rich tapestry of music, arts, crafts and education. It is home to silk weaving, and produces the elegant Banarsi Silk Saree.
This is also the hub of the Benaras Gharana of the Hindustani classical music. And Varanasi is where the Banaras Hindu University stands.
The name Varanasi originates from the names of the two rivers Varuna, which still flows through Varanasi, and Asi, a small stream near the Assi Ghat.
The BJP meanwhile was in a jubilant mood yesterday, saying Modi’s candidature in Varanasi will help it win a majority on its own in the election.
Party leaders said the decision could also net it as many as 50 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the sprawling state, India’s most populous.
“The morale is very, very good now,” spokesman Prakash Javadekar said.
“We are confident that our 272 model will be met,” he added, referring to the half-way mark in the Lok Sabha.
Another BJP leader, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, spoke on similar lines.
“Modi-ji is an icon and the face of development across communities and regions,” Naqvi said.
However, Rashtriya Janata DAl chief Lalu Prasad Yadav predicted that Modi will be defeated in Varanasi.
“Varanasi is a secular place and its people will defeat the communal Modi,” he said.