INDIA

The selection of photographs in this series were taken during my travels in India, in 1998, and again in 2001. Visits that touched all of my senses. I had the opportunity of sharing many
magic moments with these people of an open and humble nature from different places I visited. Many of them showing a reverence for life, having been shaped by the rich diverse religious culture of their great country.

Busy and chaotic Delhi, with large sections of open colorful street markets and rickshaw mania.

Holy Varanasi, ancient city of light, where life, death, and magic meet by the banks of the sacred river Ganges. Where people bathe in and collect its holy waters, make daily offerings, as sacred chants float on the air. Many planetary configurations are marked by holy celebration in the streets. Here are the burning ghats where people incinerate their loved ones and send remains into the sacred water in hopes the soul reaches nirvana.

The Kumbh Mela, the largest religious festival in the world, taking place every 4 years, is scheduled according to unique astrological alignments. Several million people make a pilgrimage here from all corners of India, and the world, to take a holy dip in the sacred rivers, where mythological belief of an immortal nectar has blessed the land for ages. Here you find magic at its best.

Pushkar, meaning sacred blue lotus in Sanskrit, is a holy city with a sacred lake at its center. An oasis in Rajasthan; land of sand, roses, camels, vibrant colors, and gypsies, with traces of a western hippie presence throughout the city.

Ladakh. Little Tibet. High up in the Indian Himalayas where the air is thin and fresh, an ancient flavor of Buddhism surrounds you. The monks and the monasteries inspire reverence, as amazing landscapes elevate your feelings.