Benares Seen from Within

by Richard Lannoy

"A rare combination of creative photography and cultural history put together by one man, this book both visually and textually is the most massive presentation of this extraordinary city ever attempted. It is the fruit of a lifelong interest in Benares from 1953 until the present day."--BOOK JACKET. "Lannoy's Benares is no tourist's idyll, nor yet is it an exercise in peddling a 'Third World' mythology of exotica garnished with grunge. Unflinching in his observations, yet enormously sensitive to his subject, Lannoy records the everyday life of Hinduism's most sacred city. And it is not through the formal acts of ritual, but through the most ordinary gestures of river-side and marketplace that the charged, heightened drama of life in Benares unfolds."--BOOK JACKET.

Hardcover

First published October 1, 1999

Reviews

[David Haberlah · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the mesmerising compendium that is “Benares Seen from Within,” Richard Lannoy serves as both a cartographer and a bard, mapping not just the physical, but also the ephemeral topography of the spiritual heart of India, Varanasi. As someone who lived for many years on the subcontinent, I concur with Stephen Spender, who proclaims that “Lannoy's photographs are the real India”. The book showcases an India that is a constant spectacle, a living theatre where every extreme coexists. Lannoy’s Varanasi is at once opulent and desolate, enchanting and stark, living and dying; a symphony of dichotomies that encapsulates our human experience.

An especially evocative facet is the portrayal of the people of Varanasi. They are not mere subjects; they are co-authors, an intrinsic part of the narrative. Lannoy's lens captures their daily dramas with a vivacity that lends them a sort of immortality. They are the sinew and soul of the city, and through them, Varanasi bares its very spirit.

Lannoy stands somewhat alone among Western commentators on India. Where others have packaged India’s mysteries into digestible, often reductive tropes, Lannoy dives headlong into the labyrinth in an ever-curious and respectful exploration of the Indian soul. “Benares Seen from Within” aspires to, and succeeds in, portraying the historical tapestry of the city of cities. The book is a transformative journey and a document of the analogue times.

Richard Lannoy’s magnum opus captures Varanasi with an honesty and a grace that is almost a spiritual experience in itself. Through resplendent photography and the well-researched accompanying text, it invites you to lose and find yourself in the winding alleys and along the timeless ghats of this sacred city. This is not just a book; it is an atlas of the human spirit.

[Brian Sullivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just beautiful ... and India I love