Varanasi Temples

Once Sage Vyas, who is credited with composition and recitation of eighteen Puranas including Mahabharata and Skanda Purana, entered into an argument with other Sages as to who is the Supreme Lord.  Sage Vyasa insisted that Lord Vishnu is the  supreme and none else. To prove his point he arrived at Kashi alongwith ten thousand disciples.

He took bath in Panchganga, offered worship at Bindu Madhav temple of Lord Vishnu and started singing praises of Lord Vishnu. Then alongwith his disciples he started reciting Vishnu Bhajans and reached Visweshwar temple. His recitations reached a crescendo and he started dancing around the temple, all the while singing praises of Lord Vishnu, with one hand raised.  Hearing this, Nandi immobilized the raised hand of Sage Vyas and made the latter speechless.  Soon Lord Vishnu arrived at the spot and told Sage Vyas that the latter had committed a crime.  It is Lord Shiva who is the ultimate God and the divine powers which Lord  Vishnu possesses have been given by the former.

Sage Vyas, through his gestures, expressed that his hand and tongue were immobilized and pleaded with Lord Vishnu for restoration of the movement of his limb and tongue.  Lord Vishnu gently patted the larynx of Sage Vyas and the latter started singing praises of Lord Shiva. Nandi observed this and cast a glance at the immobilized hand of Sage Vyas and soon mobility returned to the hand as well.

Sage Vyas installed a Shiv Ling in Kashi near Ghanta Karna Pushkarini and started worshipping Lord Shiva. Since then Sage Vyas has never left Kashi.  The Ling installed by Sage Vyas was called Vyaseshwar and a person who worships Vyaseshwar will attain ultimate knowledge in life and will reach heaven after demise.

Vyaseshwar

Kashi Khand has advised devotees to take bath in Ghanta Karna Pushkarini and worship Vyaseshwar.

LOCATION OF VYASESHWAR

Vyaseshwar is located at Karn Ghanta Pond and devotees can have darshan from a distance only.  Karn Ghanta is a famous locality near Bulanala.  During rainy season, the pond’s level rises and the Vyaseshwar Ling gets submerged.  According to old timers, due to special divine powers, the pond has never dried up despite water being drawn therefrom for several decades, whereas several other Teerths/ponds have dried up.  While Kashi Khand has attached importance to Ghanta Karna Pushkarini (Karna Ghanta Pond), people do not take bath at that place now. However, some ardent devotees take bath during Ashad poornima Day (Guru Poornima Day).