Vishalakshi Temple

Tucked near Mir Ghat on the Ganges, some 250 metres from the far larger Kashi Vishwanath Temple already documented elsewhere in this directory, Vishalakshi Temple honors Parvati under the name Vishalakshi — “the wide-eyed one.” Tradition holds that the gem from Sati’s right earring fell here when her body was cut apart, and the goddess is accordingly also known as Manikarni Devi in connection with that legend; the site is named in the Devi Bhagavata Purana as the first among 108 Shakti Pithas, and its sanctity is further attested in the Skanda Purana’s Kashi Khanda section as well as in tantric works such as the Rudrayamala and Kularnava Tantra.

The temple as it stands today was rebuilt and completed in 1893 through the patronage of the Nattukottai Nagarathars, a prominent Tamil Chettiar mercantile community from the Chettinad region of Tamil Nadu with a long history of temple philanthropy across India — a reminder of how far Varanasi’s pilgrimage economy has long drawn patrons from outside the immediate region. As at many Shakti Peethas, the goddess here is worshipped alongside a Bhairava (Kaal Bhairav, in this case), and the temple’s main annual observance is Kajali Teej, alongside the two Navratri periods of the Hindu calendar.