Video Discription |
Do you know about the truth of Gyanvapi Mandir? Is it a mosque or a mandir? What's the history behind it? Let's find out through this video.
Because that light, which is the unspeakable Shiva, shines here, let its other name be Kashi' - Kashi Khanda It is said that at the beginning, before man walked the Earth, before the animals and plants covered the land, before the Ganga was present on Earth, even before there was any water on the planet, Bhagwan Shiv picked a very specific spot of land. He used his trishul and dug the ground - what emerged was water, the very first pure water on Earth. This water is considered the liquid form of enlightened wisdom or gyan. The well that houses it is thus called Gyan Vapi, the Wisdom Well. It can be found to this day, in Kashi. The original mandir of Vishveshvara was a magnificent one that hosted the Vishveshvara Linga, tHence, the temple was of utmost importance to the Hindus which is why it was especially targeted for destruction by Islamic invaders. Muhammad Ghouri's captain, Qutb-ud-din Aibak in 1194 sacked and destroyed the mandir. According to the Chronicle of Hasan Nizami, the invading troops plundered the state treasury at Asni and then: "proceeded towards Benares, which is the centre of the country of Hind, and here they destroyed nearly one thousand temples, and raised mosques on their foundations. It took 1400 camels to haul away the plunder" Soon after this destruction, a mosque was constructed on the spot by the ruling princess of the Delhi Sultanate, Razia during her reign from 1236-1240. Called Razia's mosque, it still stands to this day. A glorious mandir, stamped out and replaced with a mosque. Eventually, the great scholar and dharmic leader Narayana Bhatta led the undertaking to build another mandir in 1585, the Avimukta Temple next to the Gyanavapi Well. It was a grand structure, comprised of a central sanctum, the garbha griha, and surrounded by 8 mandapas. The Avimukta Linga in this temple is the first and the original Linga on earth. The linga was svayambhu or self manifesting. The Kashi Khanda states that upon revealing this supreme linga to Brahma and Vishnu, Shiva said, 'this light you see blazing before you is known as Vishveshvara, the very embodiment of Being, Consciousness and Bliss'. One who sees Vishveshvara is said to have made all the pilgrimages.The Vishveshwara linga from the destroyed temple was brought to the new temple and people started worshipping it. It got so popular that the Avimukta temple also was referred to as the Vishveshwara temple The glory of this Mandir lasted less than 100 years, as Aurangzeb gave a firman in August 1669 to have it destroyed. The lingas were saved from the temple before it was desecrated by the armies of Aurangzeb. “A glorious mandir, stamped out and replaced with a mosque, incredibly called the Gyanvapi Mosque.” No price for guessing what happened next. Another replacement Mandir was built in 1780 by Ahalya bai Holkar. That’s the iconic Kashi Vishwanath Mandir that curently stands next to the Gyanvapi Mosque today. The story of Kashi is the story of Sanatan Dharma itself. It is the story of determination and faith of countless devotees, of heroic sacrifices lost in the dust of time, and of unspeakable atrocities committed in the name of jihad. It is also the story of resilience, the story of a land that has sustained dharma against all odds, and the story of a people and culture who's blood have watered the tree of dharma. And perhaps, in the days to come, the story of Kashi will be the story of Hindu resurgence. Ghouri's assault of Kashi wasn't the first Islamic invasion of Bharat but it marked the definitive start of a centuries long jihad. The Hindu awakening has started, highlighted by the regaining of Ayodhya, and now the demands of Gyanvapi to be surveyed. I hope this becomes another public movement and helps us regain access to the sacred well and explore the Hindu Glory that is buried under the walls of imperialism. |