Vishwanath Temple

Location: Vishwanath Gali, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 
Built by: Maharani Ahilya Bai Holkar
Built in: 1780
Dedicated to: Lord Vishwanath (Shiva)

Kashi Vishwanath temple is one of the highly revered shrines of Lord Shiva. Located in the holy city of Varanasi, Vishwanath Temple rests on the western banks of Ganges. Varanasi is a small city in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh in India. With 3500 years of documented history, this holy city is acclaimed to be the oldest living city in the world. Earlier, Varanasi used to be known as Kashi, perhaps this is the reason the shrine is popular as Kashi Vishwanath.

Vishwanath Mandir is known for comprising one of the twelve Jyotirlingas (Linga of light) of Lord Shiva. The presiding deity is known as Vishwanath or Vishweshwara, suggesting the "ruler of the world". In the sanctum sanctorum, the holy 'jyotirlingam' is placed in a silver alter. This sacred 'Lingam' of Lord Shiva captures the main devotional focus of Varanasi. Thousands of devotees and pilgrims come of offer their obeisance to Lord Shiva.

Vishwanath Temple has been mentioned in the holy scriptures for numerous times. In the Hindu religion, the temple is regarded as one of the most important places of worship. As per the Hindu folklore, the temple must be visited once in the entire lifetime. A holy dip in Ganga River along with the 'darshan' of Lord Vishwanath is regarded as the leading way to 'Moksha' (salvation). Due to the reason, people seek to visit the place at least once in their life span.

In the complex, there are several shrines dedicated to Mahakala, Dhandapani, Avimukteshwara, Vishnu, Vinayaka, Sanishwara, Virupaksha and Virupaksh Gauri. Hindu mythology states Vishwanath Mandir since the earliest times. In the Shaiva philosophy, the temple had been a central part of worship. Kashi Vishwanath Mandir has received many eminent Hindu saints like Adi Sankaracharya, Ramakrishna Paramhansa, Swami Vivekananda, Goswami Tulsidas, Swami Dayananda Saraswati and Gurunanak.