L1002767.jpg. The Burning Ghat, Varanasi, India

In Varanasi, the tradition of lighting the funeral pyre is a significant Hindu ritual. Families bring the deceased to the ghats along the Ganges River, and the body is cremated on a pyre. The belief is that cremation in Varanasi helps achieve moksha, liberation from the cycle of rebirth. The eldest son or a male relative usually lights the funeral pyre as a sacred duty.

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