ABSTRACT
Jaipuris affectionately refer to the Walled City as ‘choti Kashi’ or little Kashi (also known as Varanasi or Benaras). Old Jaipur, in their eyes, has a holiness second only to Varanasi, a city that most Hindus consider to be at the pinnacle of Hindu religious and theological importance. With over a thousand temples within the small walled area of Jaipur, and several prominent mosques, the Old City is a site of numerous daily internal pilgrimages, annual processions in honour of various gods and prophets, and public celebrations of festivities. Almost every part of the Old City, including the main thoroughfares, the numerous side alleys and little laneways, the roundabouts and the crossings, assumes sacrality at various times of the year, and is holy land for many local residents of Jaipur, whether of the Old City or the newer city that has grown outside of the walled boundaries.
