Decorations is probably not the right word. All the small and large, bright and cheerful, old and new decorative items placed near doorways in Varanasi are, I believe, religious in nature. It’s not like having pink flamingos in the yard. It’s more like having a statue of the virgin Mary in the yard.

But still, that said, these are wonderful to behold, even for a non-Indian non-Hindu like me who doesn’t know a tenth of the symbolism.

Take this one, for example. Probably the Hindi script explains it. Probably any person on the street could have explained it. I don’t know what it is–but I love the colors and the composition.

The next one I do understand a bit of.

That is, I’m not sure about the statue at the top, though he’s almost certainly a god. Likewise the person at the bottom left. The blue person at the bottom right, though, is, I believe, Krishna playing his flute. So since Krishna is an incarnation of Vishnu, perhaps this is a shrine to Vishnu.

Here’s an elaborate one. (I’m not going to guess.)

I believe the next two are representations of the monkey king Hanuman. The second one surely is (can you see the monkey-like features of the nose and jaw?); and they are both in similar poses, carrying two little people on their shoulders.

Here’s a more elaborate rendition of Hanuman. Hanuman is believed to be an incarnation of the god Shiva, founder of the city of Varanasi. Hanuman symbolizes strength and perseverance in the face of obstacles.

This next one is sweet–a representation of Ganesha, the elephant-headed god of good luck and good beginnings, the remover of obstacles. He appears at the entryway to many of the houses. He is popular everywhere, but particularly in Varanasi because he is the son of Shiva, founder of the city.

Here’s a bell, a simple enough object yet beautifully integrated into the fabric of the street. And it too has a scene in bas relief below it.

The next doorway is, I believe, the entrance to a local temple.

Finally, we come to the winged lions. I don’t know what to make of them. Two of these flank either side of an elaborately decorated doorway. They are not a common symbol in Hinduism but neither are they unheard-of. Why here? And is the building they guard a temple? To whom? People’s comings and goings give no clue.