• Facebook
  • Twitter
x

Ami Vitale

  • Archive
  • Website
  • About
  • Contact
Show Navigation
Cart Lightbox Client Area

Search Results

Refine Search
Match all words
Match any word
Prints
Personal Use
Royalty-Free
Rights-Managed
(leave unchecked to
search all images)
{ 62 images found }
twitterlinkedinfacebook

Loading ()...

  • A Kashmiri woman prays inside Dastigeer Sahib Shrine at the summer capital  of Srinagar in the Indian held state of Kashmir,  September 20, 2002. After the Friday afternoon prayers, protesters took to the streets to voice their feelings about the elections in Kashmir and Jammu and Kashmir police responded with tear gas and one arrest.
    055.jpg
  • An Indian prays in the holy Ganges river December 11, 2001 in Varanasi, India.  The late George Harrison, a longtime devotee of Hinduism, reportedly left over a million dollars to build a temple in the holy city of Varanasi  according to Hare Krishna devotees.
    06.jpg
  • Kashmiri Muslims looks up at what is believed to be a relic of Prophet Mohammed's hair at the Hazratbal Shrine in Srinagar, the summer capital of the Indian held state of Jammu and Kashmir May 25, 2002. Today was the birthday of the Prophet and thousands of Kashmiris descended on the shrine to pray.
    054a.jpg
  • Elephants roam inside the Kaziranga National Park in Assam, eastern India where thousands of tourists visit each year. India and its sacred elephants are threatened by deforestation and encroachment of the reserved land and natural forests.  As a result, wild elephants are rampaging through villages, killing people and destroying their homes and crops. They are often atttracted by the rice farms and in one night can destroy an entire villages' crop. (Ami Vitale)
    Elephants021.jpg
  • Aliysha Winters, 31, prays in church in  River Rouge, Detroit, Michigan August 12, 2012.
    TAN_5647.jpg
  • Aliysha Winters, 31, prays in church in  River Rouge, Detroit, Michigan August 12, 2012.
    TAN_5615.jpg
  • Ganges-Prayer-An Indian prays in the holy Ganges river December 11, 2001 in Varanasi, India.  The late George Harrison, a longtime devotee of Hinduism, reportedly left over a million dollars to build a temple in the holy city of Varanasi  according to Hare Krishna devotees.
    15.jpg
  • KANDAHAR,AFGHANISTAN - SEPT.6 : An Afghan man prays near a cemetery where Taliban are buried September 6, 2002 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The city remains tense afterKandahar Governor Gul Agha Sherzai was shot during an apparent assassination attempt on President Hamid Karzai yesterday evening. .(Photo by Ami Vitale/Getty Images)
    kan103C.jpg
  • An Indian prays in the holy Ganges river December 9, 2001 in Varanasi, India.  The late George Harrison, a longtime devotee of Hinduism, reportedly left over a million dollars to build a temple in Varanasi  according to Hare Krishna devotees. The news came as hundreds of Harrison fans still waited expectantly by the banks of the River Ganges for his ashes to arrive, amid confusion on how they were to be scattered. (Ami Vitale/Getty Images)
    var103.jpg
  • A Kashmiri woman prays inside Jamia Masjid mosque during afternoon prayers in Srinagar, the summer captial of the Indian held state of Jammu and Kashmir on May 24. Many Kashmiris are mourning the death of Abdul Ghani Lone, a leader of the All Parties Hurriyat (Freedom) Conference, Kashmir's main separatist alliance who was shot dead at a public meeting on Tuesday. (Ami Vitale)
    016b.jpg
  • An Indian prays in the holy Ganges river December 9, 2001 in Varanasi, India.  The late George Harrison, a longtime devotee of Hinduism, reportedly left over a million dollars to build a temple in Varanasi  according to Hare Krishna devotees. The news came as hundreds of Harrison fans still waited expectantly by the banks of the River Ganges for his ashes to arrive, amid confusion on how they were to be scattered. (Ami Vitale/Getty Images)
    var102.jpg
  • An Indian prays in the holy Ganges river December 11, 2001 in Varanasi, India.  The late George Harrison, a longtime devotee of Hinduism, reportedly left over a million dollars to build a temple in the holy city of Varanasi  according to Hare Krishna devotees.   (Ami Vitale/Getty Images)
    var102.jpg
  • An Indian prays in the holy Ganges river December 9, 2001 in Varanasi, India.  The late George Harrison, a longtime devotee of Hinduism, reportedly left over a million dollars to build a temple in the city of Varanasi  according to Hare Krishna devotees. The news came as hundreds of Harrison fans still waited expectantly by the banks of the River Ganges for his ashes to arrive, amid confusion on how they were to be scattered. (Ami Vitale/Getty Images)
    var104.jpg
  • Coptic christians pray outside St. Mary's church in the village of Fithi which means "justice" on the outskirts of  Barentu, Eritrea August 27, 2006. During this ceremony, Tiblits neighbor Zaid Tesheme, 31 had her baby baptized with the name Mihreteab. The donkey that Tiblets received from the womens union "Hamade", helped them prepare for the celebration afterwards.   (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0032b.jpg
  • Kashmiri men pray inside the Jamia Masjid mosque during Ramadan in Srinagar, the summer capital of the state of Kashmir in India.  The United Nations called Kashmir the most dangerous place in the world for many years and the Guiness Book of World records named it the most militarized place in the world in 2009...
    Ami_Vitale_017.JPG
  • Coptic christians bath in what they believe is holy water in a river in Barentu, Eritrea August 29, 2006. They believe that the water cured a blind boy over 40 years ago and so they come here to make offererings, bath and pray.     (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0053tt.jpg
  • Coptic christians pray outside St. Mary's church in the village of Fithi which means "justice" on the outskirts of  Barentu, Eritrea August 27, 2006. During this ceremony, Tiblits neighbor Zaid Tesheme, 31 had her baby baptized with the name Mihreteab. The donkey that Tiblets received from the womens union "Hamade", helped them prepare for the celebration afterwards.   (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0044b.jpg
  • Coptic christians pray outside St. Mary's church in the village of Fithi which means "justice" on the outskirts of  Barentu, Eritrea August 27, 2006. During this ceremony, Tiblits neighbor Zaid Tesheme, 31 had her baby baptized with the name Mihreteab. The donkey that Tiblets received from the womens union "Hamade", helped them prepare for the celebration afterwards.   (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0023.jpg
  • Coptic christians bath in what they believe is holy water in the river Abune in Barentu, Eritrea August 29, 2006. They believe that the water cured a blind girl and her brother who was paralyzed  over 30 years ago. Hundreds of pilgrims came to the site  to make  offerings of goat, drink the holy water, bath and pray.     (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0019.jpg
  • Coptic christians pray outside St. Mary's church in the village of Fithi which means "justice" on the outskirts of  Barentu, Eritrea August 27, 2006. During this ceremony, Tiblits neighbor Zaid Tesheme, 31 had her baby baptized with the name Mihreteab. The donkey that Tiblets received from the womens union "Hamade", helped them prepare for the celebration afterwards.   (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0007A.jpg
  • Coptic christians pray outside St. Mary's church in the village of Fithi which means "justice" on the outskirts of  Barentu, Eritrea August 27, 2006. During this ceremony, Tiblits neighbor Zaid Tesheme, 31 had her baby baptized with the name Mihreteab. The donkey that Tiblets received from the womens union "Hamade", helped them prepare for the celebration afterwards.   (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0003.jpg
  • Women pray at the Sufi mausoleum Nizamuddin Dargah in New Delhi, India. This is the  mausoleum of one of the world's most famous Sufi saints, Nizamuddin Auliya. It is visited by thousands of Muslims every week, and sees a fair share of Hindus, Christians and people from other religions.
    DSC_5316.TIF
  • Orphans from the tsunami pray in a residential home in Nagapattinam district in Tamil Nadu, India August  31,2005.   Even though billions of dollars have been put towards the devastation, the recovery process is slow and the situation still grim for many of the world's poorest.  (Ami Vitale)
    0018.JPG
  • Coptic christians pray outside St. Mary's church in the village of Fithi which means "justice" on the outskirts of  Barentu, Eritrea August 27, 2006. During this ceremony, Tiblits neighbor Zaid Tesheme, 31 had her baby baptized with the name Mihreteab. The donkey that Tiblets received from the womens union "Hamade", helped them prepare for the celebration afterwards.   (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0060b.jpg
  • Coptic christians bath in what they believe is holy water in a river in Barentu, Eritrea August 29, 2006. They believe that the water cured a blind boy over 40 years ago and so they come here to make offererings, bath and pray.     (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_00595.jpg
  • Coptic christians bath in what they believe is holy water in the river Abune in Barentu, Eritrea August 29, 2006. They believe that the water cured a blind girl and her brother who was paralyzed  over 30 years ago. Hundreds of pilgrims came to the site  to make  offerings of goat, drink the holy water, bath and pray.     (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0047.jpg
  • Coptic christians bath in what they believe is holy water in the river Abune in Barentu, Eritrea August 29, 2006. They believe that the water cured a blind girl and her brother who was paralyzed  over 30 years ago. Hundreds of pilgrims came to the site  to make  offerings of goat, drink the holy water, bath and pray.     (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0014t.jpg
  • Coptic christians pray outside St. Mary's church in the village of Fithi which means "justice" on the outskirts of  Barentu, Eritrea August 27, 2006. During this ceremony, Tiblits neighbor Zaid Tesheme, 31 had her baby baptized with the name Mihreteab. The donkey that Tiblets received from the womens union "Hamade", helped them prepare for the celebration afterwards.   (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    DSC_0001b.jpg
  • Hindu holy men perform a "puja" which is a ceremony to their gods, along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.<br />
Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7443.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0176.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0072.jpg
  • Jama Masjid-Muslims come to the largest mosque in India, the Jami Masjid ,to pray for the first day of Ramadan  Saturday, November 17, 2001 in Old Delhi, India.  (Ami Vitale/Getty Images)
    14a.jpg
  • Hindu holy men perform a ceremony to their gods, along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.<br />
Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7472.jpg
  • Hindu holy men perform a "puja" which is a ceremony to their gods, along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.<br />
Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7423.jpg
  • Hindu holy men perform a "puja" which is a ceremony to their gods, along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.<br />
Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7416.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0066.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0033.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0131.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0006.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7268.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0121.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7303.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7289.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7280.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0095.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0093.jpg
  • Hindu holy men perform a "puja" which is a ceremony to their gods, along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.<br />
Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7432.jpg
  • Hindu holy men perform a "puja" which is a ceremony to their gods, along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.<br />
Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7408.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7276.jpg
  • Kashmiri men pray inside the Jama Masjid mosque during Ramadan in Srinagar, the summer capital of the state of Kashmir in India, November 20.  Kashmir has seen over 900 civilians killed this year and 1,765 wounded in a brutal conflict that the United Nations once called the most dangerous place in the world.
    016c.jpg
  • Hindu holy men perform a "puja" which is a ceremony to their gods, along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.<br />
Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7453.jpg
  • Hindu holy men perform a "puja" which is a ceremony to their gods, along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.<br />
Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7428.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0157.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0054.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0040.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0015.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7326.jpg
  • Hindu holy men perform a "puja" which is a ceremony to their gods, along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.<br />
Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7404.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    0121.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    DSC_0022.jpg
  • Hindus gather and wash along India's Ganges River in their holiest city, Varanasi (formerly Banaras). Varanasi is principally known to travelers for its ghats (stone steps leading directly into the water). Most ghats are used for ritual bathing. Hindu pilgrims, while standing waist high in the water, pray to cleanse their souls as they face the rising sun.Varanasi also has cremation ghats because Hindus believe that those who die and are cremated in Varanasi go directly to heaven, bypassing the lengthy reincarnation process. First the dead are burned on riverside pyres, then their ashes are scattered on the sacred Ganges River.
    _DSC7271.jpg
  • Jama Masjid-Muslims come to the largest mosque in India, the Jami Masjid ,to pray for the first day of Ramadan  Saturday, November 17, 2001 in Old Delhi, India.  (Ami Vitale/Getty Images)
    14a.jpg