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It is only after he performs his religious functions that others
are allowed to enter.
Introduction
Standing on the western bank of India's holiest river Ganges, Varanasi
is one of the oldest surviving city of the world and
the cultural capital of India. Inside Kashi Vishwanath Temple is
Jyotirlinga of Shiva, Vishweshwara or Vishwanath. Vishweshwara
Jyotirlinga has a very special and unique significance in the spiritual
history of India. Tradition has it that the merits earned by the darshan
of other jyotirlinga scattered in various parts of India accrue to
devotee by a single visit to Kashi Vishwanath Temple. Deeply and
intimately implanted in the Hindu mind, the Kashi Vishwanath Temple has
been a living embodiment of India's timeless cultural traditions and
highest spiritual values. The Kashi Vishwanath Temple attracts visitors
not only from India but abroad as well.
Legend
As per Shiva Purana, once Brahma (the Hindu God of creation) and Vishnu
(the Hindu God of Harmony) had an argument in terms of supremacy of
creation. To test them, Shiva pierced the three worlds as a huge endless
pillar of light, the jyotirlinga. Vishnu and Brahma split their ways to
downwards and upwards respectively to find the end of the light in
either directions. Brahma lied that he found out the end, while Vishnu
conceded his defeat. Shiva appeared as a second pillar of light and
cursed Brahma that he would have no place in ceremonies while Vishnu
would be worshipped till the end of eternity.
The jyotirlinga is the supreme part less reality, out of which Shiva
partly appears. The jyothirlinga shrines, thus are places where Shiva
appeared as a fiery column of light. Originally there were believed to
be 64 jyothirlingas while 12 of them are considered to be very
auspicious and holy. Each of the twelve jyothirlinga sites take the name
of the presiding deity - each considered different manifestation of
Shiva. At all these sites, the primary image is lingam representing the
beginningless and endless Stambha pillar, symbolizing the infinite
nature of Shiva. The twelve jyothirlinga are Somnath in Gujarat,
Mallikarjuna at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh, Mahakaleswar at Ujjain in
Madhya Pradesh, Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh, Kedarnath in Himalayas,
Bhimashankar in Maharashtra, Viswanath at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh,
Triambakeshwar in Maharashtra, Vaidyanath Jyotirlinga, Deogarh in
Deoghar, Jharkhand, Nageswar at Dwarka in Gujarat, Rameshwar at
Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu and Grishneshwar at Aurangabad in Maharashtra.
The Manikarnika Ghat on the banks of Ganges near to the Kashi Vishwanath
Temple is considered as a Shakti Peetha, a revered place of worship for
the Shaktism sect. The mythology of Daksha Yaga, a Shaivite literature
is considered as an important literature which is the stoty about the
origin of Shakti Peethas. It is said that Shiva came to the Kashi
Vishwanath Shrine through Manikarnika after the death of Sati Devi.
The Temple Structure
The temple complex consists of a series of smaller shrines, located in a
small lane called the Vishwanatha Galli, near the river. The linga of
the main deity at the shrine is 60 cm tall and 90 cm in circumference
housed in a silver altar. The main temple is quadrangle and is
surrounded by shrines of other gods. There are small temples for
Kaalbhairav, Dhandapani, Avimukteshwara, Vishnu, Vinayaka, Sanishwara,
Virupaksha and Virupaksh Gauri in the complex. There is a small well in
the temple called the Jnana Vapi also spelled as Gyaan vapi (the wisdom
well). The Jnana Vapi well sites to the north of the main temple and it
is believed that the Jytorlinga was hidden in the well to protect it at
the time of invasion. It is said that the main priest of the temple
jumped in the well with the Shiv Ling in order to protect the
Jyotirlinga from invaders.
According to the structure of the temple, there is a sabha gurh or
congregation hall leading to the inner garbha, gurh or sanctum. The
venerable linga is made up of black colored stone, and is enshrined in
the sanctum, placed on a silver platform. Structure of the temple is
composed of three parts. The first compromises a spire on the temple of
Lord Vishwanath or Mahadeva. The second is gold dome and the third is
the gold spire atop the Vishwanath carrying a flag and a trident.
The Kashi Vishwanath temple receives around 3000 visitors every day. On
certain occasions the numbers reach 1,000,000 and more. Noteworthy about
the temple is 15.5 metre high gold spire and gold dome. There are three
domes each made up of pure gold. Thus, this Hindu temple is also called
The Golden Temple, because of little bit being identical to the Golden
Temple.
Importance of the Temple
The temple is widely recognized as one of the most important places of
worship in Hindu religion and most of the leading Hindu saints,
including Adi Sankaracharya, Ramakrishna Paramhansa, Swami Vivekananda,
Goswami Tulsidas, Swami Dayananda Saraswati and Gurunanak have visited
the site. A visit to the temple and a bath in the river Ganges is one of
many methods believed to lead one on a path to Moksha (liberation).
Thus, people from all over the nation try to visit the place at least
once in their lifetime.
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There is also a tradition that one should give
up at least one desire after a pilgrimage the temple, and the pilgrimage
would also include a visit to the temple at Rameswaram in South India,
where people take water samples of the Ganges to perform prayer at the
temple and bring back sand from near that temple. Due to the immense
popularity and holiness of Kashi Vishwanath temple, hundreds of temples
across the nation have been built in the same architectural style.
Many legends record that the true devotee achieves freedom from death
and sasara by the worship of Shiva, Shiva's devotees on death being
directly taken to his abode on Mount Kailash by his messengers and not
to Yama. |
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The superiority of Shiva and his victory over his own
nature—Shiva is himself identified with death—is also stated. There is a
popular belief that Shiva himself blows the mantra of salvation into the
ears of people who choose to end their lives at the Vishwanath temple.
Vishwanath Gali
Vishwanath Gali in Varanasi is the way to Kashi Vishwanath Temple. Kashi
Vishwanath Temple is located in middle of Gali and it leads to the main
temple. Vishwanath Gali is very popular gali of Varanasi and famous for
shopping. Devotees can make an affordable shopping in the Vishwanath
Gali after completing the Darshan of Lord Shiva in the Kashi Vishwanath
Temple.
History
A Shiva temple has been mentioned in the Puranas including the Kashi
Khanda (section) of Skanda Purana. The first temple was demolished by
invading armies of Qutub Din Aibak in 1194. In that raid almost 1000
temples of Varanasi were destroyed and the city fell into ruin. After
that temples were demolished on at least five more occasions. Last
demolition were in the reign of Aurangzeb which included the Kashi
Vishwanath temple. Aurangzeb ordered its demolition in 1669 and
constructed Gyanvapi Mosque, which still exists alongside the temple.
Traces of the old temple can be seen behind the mosque. It is said that
the chief priest of the temple jumped into the well with the Shiva Linga
and the original Shiv-linga now resides there. The current temple was
built by Ahilya Bai Holkar, the queen of Malwa kingdom. Maharaja Ranjit
Singh donated Gold for the Temple. Later on during 1833-1840 AD The
Rajmata constructed the Boundary of Gyanvapi Well and the other
structures like Ghats, Temples etc., were also reconstructed. Many noble
families from various ancestral kingdoms of India and their prior
establishments make generous contributions for the operations of the
temple.
Shakti Peetha
Lord Brahma performed a yajna (Vedic ritual of fire sacrifice) to please
Shakti and Shiva. Goddess Shakti emerged, separating from Shiva and
helped Brahma in the creation of the universe. Brahma decided to give
Shakti back to Shiva. Therefore his son Daksha performed several yajnas
to obtain Shakti as his daughter in the form of Goddess Sati. It was
then decided that Goddess Sati was brought into this world with the
motive of getting married to Shiva .However, due to Lord Shiva's curse
to Brahma that he would not be worshiped and also his fifth head was cut
off due to his lie in front of Shiva, Daksha started hating Lord Shiva
and decided not to let Lord Shiva and Goddess Sati get married. However,
Goddess Sati got attracted to Shiva as she was Goddess Shakti herself
and finally one day Shiva and Sati got married.
This marriage only increased Daksha's hatred towards Lord Shiva. Daksha
performed a yajna with a desire to take revenge on Lord Shiva. Daksha
invited all the deities to the yajna except Lord Shiva and Goddess Sati.
The fact that she was not invited did not deter Sati from attending the
yajna. She expressed her desire to attend the yajna to Shiva, who tried
his best to dissuade her from going. Shiva eventually relented and Sati
went to the yajna. Sati, being an uninvited guest, was not given any
respect at the yajna.
Furthermore, Daksha insulted Shiva. Goddess Sati was unable to bear her
father's insults toward her husband, so she immolated herself with her
own powers. Enraged at the insult and the injury, Shiva destroyed
Daksha's yajna, cut off Daksha's head, and later replaced it with that
of a male goat as he restored him to life. Still immersed in grief,
Shiva picked up the corpse of Sati's body, and performed the Tandava,
the celestial dance of destruction, across all creation. The other Gods
requested Vishnu to intervene to stop this destruction, towards which
Vishnu used the Sudarshana Chakra, which cut through the Sati's corpse.
The various parts of the body fell at several spots all through the
Indian subcontinent and formed sites which are known as Shakti Peethas
today.
At all the Shakti Peethas, the Goddess Shakti is accompanied by her
consort, Lord Bhairava (a manifestation of Lord Shiva).Shakti is an
aspect of the Supreme Being Adi parashakti, the mother of the trimurti,
the holy trinity or Tridevi in Hindu mythology. So, here in Varanasi,
Goddess Sati resides as Goddess Vishalakshi accompanied by Lord Kal
Bhairava (a manifestation of Lord Shiva).
Temple of Goddess Vishalakshi is located near to Kashi Vishwanath Temple
and Kal Bhairava Temple.
Pooja Details
There are 5 aartis of Shree Kashi Vishwanath: 1. Mangala Aarti :- 3.00 -
4.00 (Morning). 2. Bhog Aarti :- 11.15 to 12.20 (Day). 3. Sandhya Aarti
:- 7.00 to 8.15 (Evening). 4. Shringar Aarti :- 9.00 to 10.15 (night).
5. Shayan Aarti :- 10.30-11.00 (night). Security arrangements do not
allow any cell phones, camera, belts with metal buckle, cigerrette,
lighters etc. inside the temple.
Transportation
Varanasi is easily accessible from all parts of the country.
By Air
Air India flies to Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport which is 22
km. from Varanasi and 30 km. from Sarnath. There is a direct, daily
flight connection between Varanasi and New Delhi. It also connects major
cities of India to the Holy place. Some of the cites that are connected
through Airways are Lucknow, Kanpur, New Delhi, Agra, Khajuraho,
Calcutta, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Bhuvaneshwar, Bangalore, Bhopal, Indore,
Chennai. For travel reservations contact Air India.
By Rail
Varanasi Railway Station is an important and major rail junction. The
city is served by trains from all metros and major cities across the
country. New Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Chennai, Gwalior, Meerut, Indore,
Guwahati, Allahabad, Lucknow, Dehradun, Bangalore, Mysore, Kanpur,
Ahmedabad and other Indian Cities have direct rail connections.
By Road
Varanasi, on (National Highway) NH2 from Calcutta to Delhi, NH7 to Kanya
Kumari and NH29 to GoraKhpur is connected by good motorable, all –
weather roads. Some important road distances are: Agra 565 km, Allahabad
128 km, Bhopal 791 km, Bodhgaya 240 km, Kanpur 330 km, Khajuraho 405 km,
Lucknow 286 km, Patna 246 km, Sarnath 10 km, Lumbini Nepal 386 km,
KushiNagar 250 km. (via Gorkhpur), UPSRTC Bus Stand, Sher Shah Suri Marg,
Golgadda Bus Stand.
Local Transport
Private taxis are available. Auto rickshaws, cycle rickshaws and Tempos
are also available. Left luggage facility is available at Varanasi and
Mughalsarai railway stations (24 Hours).
New Kashi Vishwanath Temple
The New Sri Vishwanath Temple is located in the campus of BHU (Banaras
Hindu University), Varanasi and also known as the Birla Temple (as it is
built by the Birla Group of Industries). The temple was founded by the
Raja Birla of the Birla family of great industrialists.
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It was planned
by the Pt. Madan Mohan Malaviya (the founder of the Banaras Hindu
University) as part of the BHU campus. Temple is open for the people of
any castes and religions. There are nine temples in the BHU campus of
Shiva/Vishwanath, Lord Nataraj, Goddess Parvati, Ganesh, Panchmukhi
Mahadev, Hanuman, Goddess Saraswati and Nandi.
New Vishwanath Temple is made up of the marble and its construction was
completed in 1965. The tower of the temple is the tallest temple tower.
It is taller than the Qutub Minar in the New Delhi. It is one of the
most visited places in Varanasi. The temple is visited in every season
by the devotees.
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The temple gets decorated beautifully and attracts huge
crowd on many special occasions such as Shivratri, Navratri, Janmashtami,
Shravan Mahotasva, Annakut, Diwali and temple’s establishment day. one
can reach to the temple through the auto, taxi or rickshaw from any
corner of the city.
New Vishwanath Temple is dedicated to the Lord Shiva and it is the exact
copy of the original Kashi Vishwanath temple. The center of the temple
has a Shiva lingam and the walls of the temple have stanzas of the Hindu
scriptures written on it.
Location
New Vishwanath Temple is located in the BHU premises about 7 km from
Cantt. (Varanasi Railway Station).
Aarti Time
New Vishwanath Temple opens all days a week at 4 am to 12 pm and 1 pm to
9 pm. Aarti timings are 4 am, 4.45 am, 10.30 am, 11.45 am, 12 pm, 1 pm,
6.45 pm, 7.30 pm, 8 pm and 8.45 pm. On special occasions such as
Shivratri, temple opens from 4 am to 12 pm midnight. Monday is a special
day when devotees perform worship of the Lord Shiva in order to fulfill
their wishes.
Rudrabhishek is performed on every Monday from 7.00 am to 8.00 am.
Sources: Wikipedia
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