Kashi Vishwanath Temple At The Heart Of Kashi Yatra

Kashi Vishwanath Temple is at the heart of many pilgrimages. It is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas in India and is considered the most important one. Located in the lanes of Varanasi, it is surrounded by so many temples that you can literally get lost in them. The temple has seen many ups and downs just like its devotees and has changed places in the last thousand years. Come with me for a virtual pilgrimage to Kashi Vishwanath.

Kashi Vishwanath Story

Baba Vishwanath, Vishveshwara, and Kashi Vishwanath are different names of the deity who is the lord of the universe. He is also the presiding deity of Kashi Puri as well as Kashi Kshetra.

Kashi is the city of Shiva. It is said that the city stands on the Trishul or the trident of Shiva. The three Shiva temples in the city mark the three arrows of the Shiva. Vishwanath temple stands on the central arrow and the other two temples are Kedareshwar and Omkareshwar – both of which can be seen in the city.

Skanda Purana

Kashi Khand of Skanda Purana mentions Divodasa as the righteous king of Kashi who ruled the city flawlessly. He took a boon from Brahma that no devatas would set foot in his city. Brahma agreed to this under the condition that everyone in his kingdom should be happy. Meanwhile, Shiva wanted to return to his city, but could not because of this condition. He sent different Devatas like 64 Yoginis, 12 Adityas, his ganas, and Ganesha to turn the situation in his favor. Finally, Vishnu was able to convince Divodasa to let the Shiva come back and preside over the city.

Gyanvapi Well

Gyanvapi well located in the temple predates Ganga in Kashi. It was excavated by Shiva using his Trishul for the Abhishek of Avimukteshwara Linga.

Almost every saint and rishi has visited Kashi and Vishwanath. Many have performed Tapasya here and sung the glories for Vishwanath. Remember the M S Subbulakshmi’s Kashi Vishwanath Suprabhatam. Travelogues of Asi Shankaracharya, Tulsidas, Guru Nanak, and Vivekanand mention both the city and its lord.

Do read: Ganga Arti at Dashashwamedh Ghat in Varanasi

History of Kashi Vishwanath temple

Kashi Vishwanath temple is mentioned in the Kashi Khand of Skanda Purana which talks about all the Tirthas in the city of Kashi or Varanasi.

In known history, almost every traveler to the city of Kashi mentions the temple along with the fact that it is the city…