Waiting to die
Munna Kuvar, 105, lies on a bed receiving comfort from her relatives as she waits to die in Varanasi, widely considered Hinduism's holiest city.
Hindus believe that dying here and having their ashes scattered in the Ganges allows their soul to escape a cycle of death and rebirth, attaining "moksha" or salvation. For this reason, many journey to the city to spend their final days there.
Relatives of patrons listen to priests as they chant during evening prayers at Mukti Bhavan.
Kishore Pandey, 82, lies on a bed at the hostel as his daughter Usha Tiwari feeds him.
Pandey’s daughter, 38-year-old Neelam Tiwari, peels lychees for her father.
Bhairav Nath Shukla (left), the manager of Mukti Bhavan, sits during morning prayers as a priest walks past his office.
Hindu priests rest in their room.
Savitri, an 80-year-old widow, poses for a photograph inside her room at Mumukshu Bhavan (Home of the Ailing).
Relatives of Munna Kuvar, 105, sit inside her room at Mukti Bhavan.
Children of hostel employees play cricket inside the premises.
Hostel manager Bhairav Nath Shukla scans through records inside his office.
A book of records lies open on the desk.
A priest at the hostel lights a lamp as another blows a conch shell during evening prayers.
A priest rings a bell as he prays.
A man plays the harmonium as others chant during prayers.
A priest rests on the ground.
The relative of a patron walks out of Mukti Bhavan.
A family member sits next to 88-year-old Champa Devi’s body, minutes after her death.
A body is carried to the banks of the River Ganges.
Relatives immerse a body in the Ganges prior to cremation.
A body is left to dry before being cremated.
A man places wood on a relative’s funeral pyre.
Pyres burn on the banks of the Ganges.
