Focusing on hands in India ….

Hi everyone - are you having a good week?

While in India earlier this year, I found myself taking lots of photos of people & then found myself fascinated by their beautiful hands which were often painted with henna patterns.  Hands are so powerful & I then made a conscious effort to photograph more of them.

These hands were a doctors were met in Kalka - she had been to a wedding …

Photographed at the Jama Masjid Moque in Delhi - beautiful hands with stunning jewellery

Hands at a textile / carpet factory in Jaipur …

 Carpet weavers knotting as many as 1000 knots per square inch in Jaipur …

Knotting for carpets

Palmistry is very popular in India - Ms M measuring up in Jaipur

Silver & gold leaf sheets on the market in Jaipur

Street food in Jaipur …

 Ms M choosing bangles in the market in Jaipur

Bangles handmade from the orange disc of plastic / resin in Jaipur 

Shades of preciousness - rubies at the handcutters, jewellery quarter, Jaipur

 Working hands - Calcutta

Our Calcutta Walk guide enjoying fresh coconut water on the streets of Calcutta

Hands offering food to taste on the street in Calcutta

Tasting sugar in Calcutta …

My favourite hands in India belonged to a family sat in the boat next to us during the evening ceremony on the Ganges at Varanasi - the spiritual capital of India.  

Varanasi has been a cultural centre of North India for several thousand years, and is closely associated with the Ganges. Hindus believe that death in the city will bring salvation, making it a major centre for pilgrimage. The city is known worldwide for its many ghats, embankments made in steps of stone slabs along the river bank where pilgrims perform ritual ablutions. Of particular note are the Dashashwamedh Ghat, the Manikarnika Ghat, the Panchganga Ghat, and the Harishchandra Ghat, where Hindus cremate their dead. 

They were clearly pilgrims & followed the ceremony close, with observances & prayers in a quiet, dignified manner & at the end, they all lit a traditional light & very gently with the hands joined - placed it in the Ganges …. 

…. and then it drifted down the Ganges between our boats …

“Behold the hands, how they promise, conjure, appeal, menace, pray, supplicate, refuse, beckon, interrogate, admire, confess, cringe, instruct, command, mock and what not besides, with a variation and multiplication of variation which makes the tongue envious.” 
― Michel de Montaigne

Hands tell us so much! I hope you have enjoyed these images as much as I enjoyed taking them. Thank you for your company, I always love your comments.

Dee ~♥~