Varanasi was at its traditional best for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe this evening.
A dais on the ghats of Ganga, Sanskrit chantings, the melody of bhajans, candles, flowers and incense - Varanasi was at its traditional best for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe this evening.
The Prime Minister and his guest had come to the ghats for the Gangaarti - the traditional puja of the sacred river, considered "older than history" as the foreign ministry tweeted. Dashashwamedh, the fabled ghat of the city where the Ganga puja is traditionally held, is said to have been created by Lord Brahma.
Garlands of roses in hand, the two dignitaries walked down to the water and made their offerings. Then as the chanting started, they stood with the rest and offered aarti.
As the evening deepened, the ghats lit up with thousands of coloured lights. Seated at the dais, PM Modi and his guest were seen joining palms to keep beat with the bhajans.
The nearly two-hour programme was seen as strengthening of cultural bonds between the two nations. The leaders sat apart on a dais, and were seen conducting a tete-a-tete from time to time.
The Prime Minister, in a first, had taken his Japanese counterpart to his Lok Sabha constituency, flying down with him on the same aircraft after a day of bilaterals and business meetings.
At the airport, Mr Abe had been welcomed by Governor Ram Naik and small cultural programme - complete with dholaks and Tibetan horns -- was held.
The oldest city of India -- sister city to Japan's Kyoto -- is not only the holiest city of Hindus, it also lies 15 km from the Buddhist shrine of Sarnath.
Nearly 7,000 security personnel were pressed into service for the high-profile visit, which lasted around four hours. Scuba divers of the National Disaster Response Force were deployed around the make-shift stage built on pontoons on the river bed.
Mr Abe, who is on a three-day day visit to India, met a select group of people, both Indians and of people of Japanese origin, residing in Varanasi.
Dinner was pure vegetarian Banarasi thali, accompanied by a unique cultural programme that included speed painting and a fusion of Indian and Japanese music.
Among those present were various dignitaries, including Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Governor Ram Naik.
The two leaders will fly back to Delhi after the banquet.