Banares: Visions of a Living Ancient Tradition

DETAILS: 

• Author: by W. M. Callewaert and Robert Schilder
  
• Publisher: ‎ Hemkunt Press
  
• Publication date: ‎ 30 May 2009
  
• Language: ‎ English
  
• Print length: ‎ 136 pages
  
• ISBN-10: ‎ 8170103029
  
• ISBN-13: ‎ 978-8170103028
  
• Item Weight: ‎ 900  g

ABOUT THE BOOK

Banares: Visions of a Living Ancient Tradition, co-authored by the eminent Belgian indologist Dr. Winand M. Callewaert and the visual artist and researcher Robert Schilder, is a magnificent, multidisciplinary cultural study of Varanasi (Benares). Published by Hemkunt Press (and distributed internationally via specialized scholarly channels), this volume is an artistic and academic exploration of one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities on Earth. The core philosophy of this text centers on the concept of a "living antiquity"—proving that Varanasi is not a static museum of the past, but an active, breathing urban organism where ancient Vedic rituals, medieval architecture, and contemporary human existence seamlessly blend along the sacred ghats of the Ganges.

The volume is structurally organized into a thematic journey that balances scholarly ethnographic field research with evocative visual documentation. Rather than presenting a dry historical timeline or a superficial tourist guide, the authors deliver a vivid, multi-layered portrait of the city, detailing:

• The Sacred Topography (Kashi Mandala): Exploring the cosmological mapping of the city, where specific ghats, temples, and pilgrimage circuits (panchkroshi yatra) mirror celestial layouts.
• The Rituals of Life and Transition: Documenting the daily rhythm of the ghats—from the pre-dawn Subah-e-Banaras prayers and ritual purification dips to the mesmerizing evening Ganga Aarti and the sacred cremation rituals at Manikarnika and Harishchandra Ghats.
• The Living Traditions and Craftsmanship: Highlighting the human element of the city, including its legendary classical music lineages (Banaras Gharana), Sanskrit scholars, ascetics, and the intricate, generations-old art of Banarasi silk weaving.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Winand M. Callewaert (1943–2025) was an elite Professor of Indology and Sanskrit at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium. A world-renowned authority on North Indian Bhakti literature and classical mysticism, he spent decades conducting extensive fieldwork in India, translating medieval Hindi texts and documenting the subcontinent’s intangible cultural heritage.

Robert Schilder is an accomplished photographer, visual researcher, and ethnographer whose work focuses on capturing the architectural majesty, human geography, and spiritual atmospheres of ancient Asian cultural landscapes.

The collective authorial and visual style of this work is extraordinarily immersive, respectful, and academically grounded. Writing with the analytical precision of a European Indologist combined with the artistic sensitivity of a documentary photographer, the creators strip away exoticized caricatures to present the raw, authentic dignity of Varanasi's residents and sadhus. The text is beautifully balanced by rich, full-page photographic plates that capture the interplay of light, water, and ancient stone. By marrying deep historical context with striking visual narratives, their collaborative work remains an indispensable international gold standard for indologists, cultural anthropologists, and connoisseurs of fine art photography worldwide.