YAMUNA — A RIVER, A CITY, A MEMORY, Delhi

About this place

The Yamuna has been many things to Delhi — a river, a boundary, a source of life, a sacred presence, and a witness to the making and remaking of the city. On this walk at the Vasudev Ghat near Kashmere Gate we follow the river through the story of Delhi itself. We look at the floodplains that once allowed the Yamuna to breathe, and trace the changing relationship between the river and a rapidly expanding city. We explore the many drains that now carry the city’s waste into the river, the challenges of treating that waste, and the difficult question of what happens when a city slowly turns its back on the river that sustains it. But the Yamuna is more than an environmental story. She is Yamuna Mata — a goddess, a mother, and a deeply loved presence in Hindu mythology. We explore the stories, beliefs and rituals that have shaped the sacred imagination around this river for centuries. And as the evening gathers, we end where the river meets ritual. The walk culminates in the Yamuna Aarti at Vasudev Ghat, held every Sunday evening — an evocative coming together of river, light, music, prayer and memory. As lamps are lit and the aarti unfolds beside the darkening river, the Yamuna becomes, for a brief while, not just the river that flows through Delhi, but the river that lives within its imagination. (walk is curated by Darwesh heritage walks & being done in collaboration with Sabhyata foundation)