Sahitheeyaanam-eng: Varanasi in History

The sacred land of Kashi has long attracted spiritual luminaries. Figures like the Buddha, Mahavira, and Shankaracharya visited Kashi, imparting their teachings. Young scholars from across India flocked to Kashi to study Sanskrit. In his autobiography, Chellapilla Venkata Shastri recounts leaving home with determination to master Sanskrit in Kashi after scholars mocked flaws in his poetry. Enugu Veeraswami’s Kashiyatra Charitra is the first travelogue in Telugu. Immersing the ashes of the deceased in Kashi is considered a sacred act by Hindus. Those renouncing worldly life joined Kashi’s monasteries, and many elderly undertook pilgrimages to Kashi, hoping to attain liberation by merging with Shiva in their final days.

1. Various Names of Kashi

Kashi means “City of Light,” a name in use for at least 3,000 years. A Jataka tale mentions the Buddha delivering his first sermon near Kashi. Another describes Varanasi as the capital of the Kashi kingdom, surrounded by sixty miles of fortified walls. Varanasi derives from the confluence of the Varana and Asi rivers, which merge into the Ganges. Legend holds that Lord Shiva declared he would never abandon this land (A-vimukta), giving it the name Avimukta. During the Gupta period, Kashi housed two Shiva temples: Avimukteshwara and Visheshwara. Over time, the Avimukteshwara temple vanished, leaving only the Visheshwara temple. As Shiva eternally resides here, Kashi is also called Rudravas. Since cremations can occur anywhere in Kashi, it is known as Mahasmashana (Great Cremation Ground).

Kashi embodies the soul of India transformed into a city. Wandering its narrow lanes feels like traversing another world, time, and humanity. For a Hindu, Kashi is Shiva’s eternal abode, a beacon of light and the path to liberation. Despite its literary, epic, and mythological grandeur, Kashi’s political history is less easily traced.

2. Foreign Descriptions of Kashi

In 1584, Englishman Ralph Fitch described Kashi: “This place is full of Gentiles [non-Christians], idol-worshippers. There are many temples with idols of lions, monkeys, peacocks, and male-female figures, some with four hands.”

In 1668, French merchant Tavernier described an aarti at the Bindu Madhava temple (no longer extant): “The temple doors opened, a curtain was removed, and all prostrated thrice before the deity’s idol. Devotees offered flowers to the priest, who touched them to the idol and returned them. A nine-wick lamp was brought, and all paid obeisance.”

In 1824, Bishop Reginald Heber visited Kashi’s temples out of curiosity, during stable Company rule. He wrote: “As I entered the temple, they began placing large garlands around my neck. Removing them was deemed disrespectful, so I kept them on, though the heavy garlands were cumbersome.”

Count Hermann Keyserling extolled Kashi’s sanctity: “Kashi is holy. The spirituality and divine revelation on the Ganges’ surface surpassed anything I’ve seen in churches. Every aspiring Christian preacher should spend a year studying faith on these banks to understand true devotion.”

3. Antiquity of Kashi

Archaeological excavations at Raj Ghat, near the Varana river north of Kashi, reveal its antiquity. Finds include fort walls, pottery shards, and artifacts from the 9th century BCE. A 6th-century seal inscribed Avimukteshwara Bhattaraka, possibly belonging to the chief priest of the Avimukteshwara temple, bears symbols like the tripundra and crescent moon.

After attaining enlightenment under the Bodhi tree in Gaya, Siddhartha Gautama walked 200 miles to a village near Kashi, where he delivered his first sermon to five disciples. This site, now Sarnath, 10 km from Kashi, remained a major Buddhist center until the 12th century.

Jainism also has deep ties to Kashi. Jain texts record that the 7th Tirthankara, Suparshva, and the 23rd, Parshvanatha (8th century BCE), were born in Kashi. Mahavira, a contemporary of the Buddha, frequently visited Kashi to preach. A temple dedicated to Parshvanatha once stood here. Jain scholar Jina Prabhasuri praised Kashi: “Who wouldn’t cherish Kashi, birthplace of two Tirthankaras, radiant with the sacred Ganges?”

Buddhism and Jainism rejected the Vedas, but Vedic traditions developed philosophies like Sankhya, Yoga, Mimamsa, Vedanta, Nyaya, and Vaisheshika to provide meaning and paths to liberation. Scholars debated and refined their spiritual knowledge under these systems, with Kashi as the epicenter. Students and pandits from across India converged here for study and discourse.

Great figures like Sanskrit grammarian Patanjali, Adi Shankaracharya, Ramanujacharya, Tulsidas, and Kabir were associated with Kashi. Various Hindu sects—Madhva, Vallabha, Tantric Gorakhnath, Yogini, Aghora, Veerashaiva, and Kabir Panth—bear Kashi’s influence. Chinese traveler Faxian (405 CE) mentioned passing through Sarnath and Varanasi.

4. Kashi’s Temples: Destruction and Reconstruction

No definitive inscription confirms who first built the Kashi Vishwanath temple, but Raj Ghat’s archaeological evidence suggests a Shiva temple existed before the Common Era. Recent claims attribute its reconstruction in the 5th century to Vainyagupta, a Gupta king (507 CE), who patronized Shaivism, Vaishnavism, and Buddhism. However, BHU professor Rana P.B. Singh’s proposal lacks solid evidence.

In the 7th century, Chinese traveler Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang) described Varanasi (Polonisse): “The city spans three miles long and one mile wide, with the Ganges to the west. It is densely populated, with ghats lining the city like comb teeth. Most residents are wealthy, courteous, and educated, with valuable possessions. The climate favors agriculture, and lush trees abound. Over 30 Buddhist monasteries house 3,000 monks, and more than 100 Hindu temples host over 10,000 devotees, primarily worshipping Maheshwara. Some devotees shave their heads, others wear matted hair, some go naked, and a few smear ash on their bodies. The main Maheshwara temple has a 100-foot copper statue, exquisitely lifelike and majestic. Northeast of Varanasi, Ashoka built a 100-foot stupa, gleaming like a mirror with fine craftsmanship. A monastery in Deer Park [Sarnath], with multiple stories and splendid architecture, houses 1,500 students. A 200-foot vihara with a golden roof and 100 rows of rooms, each with a golden Buddha statue, stands here. At its center, a six-foot bronze Buddha radiates vitality.”

Archaeological finds from the 6th century reveal worship of diverse deities—Shiva, Vishnu, Krishna, Vasudeva, Balarama, Skanda, Surya, Shakti, Durga, Kali, Chamunda, Chandi, and Vinayaka. By the end of Gupta rule, major traditions like Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism, and Surya worship had taken shape.

Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Hye Cho (724–727 CE) noted: “I saw statues of the five disciples who heard the Buddha’s first sermon on a stupa. A massive pillar topped with four lion statues, wide enough for five people to stand abreast, stands nearby.” (This pillar, now India’s national emblem, is housed in the Sarnath Museum.)

In the 11th and 12th centuries, the Gahadavala dynasty, ruling from Kashi, left numerous inscriptions. They proclaimed themselves ardent Shiva devotees. Govindachandra (1114–1155) worshipped Vishnu, while his two queens patronized Buddhism, funding the final repairs to Sarnath’s stupa. An inscription records Gahadavala king Chandradeva installing an Adikeshava idol in Kashi and offering gifts.

5. Temple Destructions and Reconstructions

In 1194, Qutbuddin Aibak, a commander of Muhammad Ghori, conquered Kashi, beheaded Gahadavala king Jayachandra, and destroyed Buddhist and Hindu temples. The Gahadavala dynasty collapsed. While Kashi gradually recovered as a Hindu pilgrimage site, Sarnath, lacking royal patronage, faded into obscurity after Aibak’s devastation.

Post-destruction, a 1212 inscription records a Bengal king, Vishwarupa, erecting a victory pillar in Vishweshwara’s name at Kashi’s center. A 1353 inscription mentions devotee Padma Sadhu building a Padmeshwara (Vishnu) temple near the Vishwanath temple. Around this time, the Manikarnikeshwara temple was constructed at Manikarnika Ghat.

During Sikandar Lodi’s reign (1489–1517), Kashi’s temples faced another attack, followed by an 80-year hiatus in temple construction. Scholar Narayana Bhatta, witnessing the Vishwanath temple’s ruins, consoled Shiva devotees in his 1585 work Tristhala Setu: “Though the ancient self-manifested Vishweshwara idol is gone and humans have installed another, let us worship it in these difficult times. Since rulers are powerful, even without the original idol, let us visit this sacred site, circumambulate, and worship.”

In 1585, Raja Todar Mal built a new Vishwanath temple 100 meters from the original site. (This suggests the self-manifested Vishweshwara idol was removed before Aurangzeb’s time, replaced by another.)

Under Aurangzeb, temples like Krittivaseshwara, Omkara, Mahadeva, Madhyameshwara, Vishweshwara, Bindu Madhava, and Kala Bhairava were demolished, often replaced by mosques. In 1659, the Krittivaseshwara temple was razed, and the Alamgiri Mosque was built in its place. In the 19th century, Raja Patnimal of Benares built a small temple nearby, reinstalling the Krittivaseshwara idol. In 1669, Aurangzeb ordered the destruction of Todar Mal’s 1585 Vishwanath temple, replacing it with the Gyanvapi Mosque, though the temple’s northern wall was left intact. Devotees believe the Gyanvapi well (nuyyi) remains untouched, and some local kings preserved the temple’s original idol (likely Todar Mal’s 1585 installation).

Despite repeated destructions by Muslim rulers, Hindus consistently rebuilt their temples. In 1698, Bishan Singh of Amber attempted to reconstruct the Vishwanath temple but was hindered by disputes over the Gyanvapi Mosque’s boundaries. He cleverly purchased private properties, including Muslim-owned ones, around the mosque. In 1772, Maratha king Malhar Rao Holkar tried but failed to demolish the Gyanvapi Mosque and rebuild the temple.

Malhar Rao’s daughter-in-law, Ahilyabai Holkar, took over after the deaths of her father-in-law, husband, and son. She built temples, dharamshalas, wells, and ghats across India, from the Himalayas to the south, contributing to the restoration of sites like Kashi, Gaya, Somnath, Ayodhya, Mathura, Haridwar, Kanchi, Avantika, Dwarka, Badrinath, Rameshwaram, and Puri Jagannath. Her role in upholding Hindu prominence in the 18th century is historic. In 1781, she built a new Vishwanath temple south of the Gyanvapi Mosque, which became Kashi’s principal temple by the late 18th century and remains so today.

Impressed by Ahilyabai, Warren Hastings in 1781 ordered local official Ibrahim Khan to ensure proper access and a naubat khana (drum house) for the temple. The temple’s well, Gyanvapi, is believed to embody wisdom, dug by Shiva himself.

6. Mughal Rulers and Varanasi

The Mughals’ religious policies were complex. After unifying India under Delhi’s rule, emperors had to manage rebellious Hindu vassal kings, using religion as a tool for control. Varanasi, a Hindu spiritual hub, faced significant upheavals.

While Muslim rulers undeniably destroyed Hindu temples, Mughal tolerance during peaceful times is also documented. Iltutmish (1211–36) oversaw Vishwanath temple reconstruction, and Alauddin Khilji (1296–1316) saw Padmeshwara temple construction. Humayun donated 300 acres to Varanasi’s Jangambadi Math. Akbar, understanding India’s diverse cultures, showed remarkable harmony. In 1567, learning that governor Bayazid Bayat converted a dilapidated Kashi temple into a madrasa, Akbar sacked him and donated two villages for the temple’s upkeep. Under Akbar, Todar Mal rebuilt the Vishwanath temple, and Rajputs constructed ghats. Jahangir’s reign saw 70 temples built in Varanasi. A Central Asian traveler, Amir Ali Balki, noted 23 Muslim youths converting to Hinduism for love, reflecting religious freedom. Shah Jahan (1627–58), a traditional Muslim, spared ancient temples but demolished 76 newly built ones in Varanasi. His son Dara Shikoh lived in Varanasi, learned Sanskrit, and translated 52 Upanishads into Persian in 1656, titled Sirr-i Asrar, symbolizing Hindu-Muslim unity.

Aurangzeb’s role is controversial. Over his 49-year reign, he often showed Hindu tolerance. In 1659, he ordered that Hindu priests and temple affairs in Kashi not be disturbed. In 1680, he rebuked officials for harassing Hindu devotee Bhagwant Gosain. In 1687, he granted land to Ram Jivan Gosain for Brahmin and fakir housing near a mosque. In 1695, he supported Kashi’s Kumaraswami and Jangambadi Maths and aided Kedreshwara temple reconstruction. However, in 1669, suspecting Kashi Vishwanath temple custodians of aiding Shivaji’s escape and rebelling, Aurangzeb ordered its demolition, as noted by Audrey Truschke. Historian Madhuri Desai argues these destructions were politically motivated, not driven by religious fanaticism.

7. Revival

After Ahilyabai’s Vishwanath temple construction, devotees flocked to Kashi. In 1720, the Annapurna Devi temple’s priest, Patankar, secured Peshwa support for daily food distribution, spurring donations to Vishwanath and other temples. In 1841, the Bhonslas of Nagpur gifted silver items. Ranjit Singh of Lahore gilded the Vishwanath temple’s spire. In 1828, Baijabai Scindia of Gwalior built mandapas with enclosures. Remarkably, all visible structures in Kashi today postdate Akbar’s reign, reflecting centuries of destruction. A 1765 sketch shows Varanasi with grand, towering buildings, rising like a phoenix despite repeated devastation.

8. Riots and Religious Conflicts

In 1809, communal riots erupted over demands to expel Muslims from the Gyanvapi Mosque, resulting in 50 mosques being razed. Magistrate Watson recommended handing the mosque to Hindus, but the government rejected this on March 28, 1810, stating: “How the mosque was built is irrelevant; its current use matters. Maintaining the status quo is appropriate.” In 1936, the mosque committee’s request to declare the site Waqf property was denied. In 1942, the court officially recognized Gyanvapi as a mosque. In 1991, Hindus sought permission for worship in the mosque. A 1991 ordinance mandated that places of worship remain with their 1947 custodians. Bomb blasts in 2006 and 2010 scarred Kashi. In 2021, Delhi women petitioned to worship Shringara Gauri in the Gyanvapi Mosque, leading to a court-ordered video survey in April 2022, reopening contentious debates.

9. Conclusion

During my three-day stay in Kashi from May 25, 2022, I expected the Gyanvapi Mosque to be distant. Entering the Vishwanath temple, I was stunned to see the mosque’s walls, unmistakably part of a Hindu temple, evoking shock. Temple destructions in war were common, seen as symbols of victory, practiced by Hindu kings too. Post-war reconstruction was customary, as seen with Somnath’s repeated cycles. Mughals often built mosques on temple ruins as a war tactic, unlike complete demolitions like Bindu Madhava’s. Retaining temple walls and foundations, as in Gyanvapi, stirs emotions, affecting even secular Hindus. Both sides should resolve this harmoniously for the nation’s future, as I hope they will.

Bolloju Baba

June 4, 2022

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