India - Calcutta - Dawn prayers in Calcutta's Hooghly River

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It is dawn in Calcutta, West Bengal, India and on the West bank of the Hooghly River the sun is rising from across the Howrah Bridge. A man has waded out into waist-deep water and stands in the polluted river saying his prayers and offering thanks to his Hindu Gods. He has found inner-peace, a tranquillity surrounded by the chaotic pace of Indian life in this city. The engineering of the bridge stretches across the water as the humanity cross to their businesses and markets. The bridge is one of three on the Hooghly River and is a famous symbol of Kolkata and West Bengal. Bearing the daily weight of approximately 150,000 vehicles and 4,000,000 pedestrians. It is one of the longest bridges of its type in the world. The Hooghly River is an approximately 260 km long distributary of the Ganges River.

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Filename: RB_058-18-11-1996.jpg
Copyright: Richard Baker
Image Size: 4096x2691 / 963.2KB; Richard Baker reportage photojournalism architecture people transportation transport traveler travel India Calcutta Kolkata Raj West Bengal colonial Hooghly River Howrah Bridge early morning dawn sunrise inner-peace restful relaxing perfect idyllic quiet still peaceful tranquil prayer undisturbed uncaring free-spirit care-free outdoor individual alone lifestyle solitary landscape leisure backlight freedom imagination inner-thought balance health water river tidal current ripples sanctuary spiritual religion Hindu landmark event daily habit routine personal wader waist-deep solitude constitutional bathers washing riverbank shore flowing environment hygienic sanitation purify engineering structure follower austerity religious discipline inner-heat mental strength hardship control attitude practice strength energy representation holy positive thought cleansing contentment purity
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It is dawn in Calcutta, West Bengal, India and on the West bank of the Hooghly River the sun is rising from across the Howrah Bridge. A man has waded out into waist-deep water and stands in the polluted river saying his prayers and offering thanks to his Hindu Gods. He has found inner-peace, a tranquillity surrounded by the chaotic pace of Indian life in this city. The engineering of the bridge stretches across the water as the humanity cross to their businesses and markets. The bridge is one of three on the Hooghly River and is a famous symbol of Kolkata and West Bengal. Bearing the daily weight of approximately 150,000 vehicles and 4,000,000 pedestrians. It is one of the longest bridges of its type in the world. The Hooghly River is an approximately 260 km long distributary of the Ganges River.