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Temples of Kashi - The Kardameshwar temple

The absence of ancient Hindu structures in Kashi is something I have always lamented about. The shrines are certainly ancient, and that is something that has always attracted me to the city. However, I miss the beauty of the ancient structures that we see at other sites. This feeling is intensified when I see marble and concrete and tiles in temples that once would have been beautifully adorned with evocative sculptures, and worn by the passage of time, touched by the hands of seekers who came before. This time , this desire to see some remnants of an ancient Hindu structure in Kashi came true when I managed to visit the Kardameshwar Temple. The Kardameshwar temple is not one of the main temples in the city. It is part of the temples on the Pancha Kroshi yatra, a pilgrimage which takes one on a circumambulatory tour of the whole city. The temple is located on the outskirts of the city, on the western bank of a tank called the Kardama Kund. The Kardameshwar temple is one of the...
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Ganesha on a Govardhan

Today is Ganesh Chaturthi, and with everyone writing about Ganesha in some way or the other, I thought I should do a post too, but related to something I saw on my recent visit to Jaisalmer. Are you now confused? And wondering what connection Ganesha has to Govardhan and that too, Jaisalmer? Well, then, first, let me show you what I am talking about….




And now that you have seen it, let me draw your attention to the ‘a’ in the title. I am not talking about ‘The Govardhan Mountain’ but ‘a Govardhan’, and therein lies the difference! This Govardhan is a stone, a sort of marker, identifying a spot – usually water, in the desert. These markers were extensively used by the Paliwal community in Jaisalmer, to identify special sites. It could be the presence of water, or mark a tunnel, or a site for a temple. These stones were usually aligned with the directions of the compass, and had the figures of deities inscribed on them, usually, Ganesha, Vishnu, Hanuman, and another figure, which could be Rama or Krishna.  Here are some other views of the same Govardhan I showed you before…

Its certainly Vishnu on the left. Am not sure of the one on the right


This pair looks like Rama and Hanuman. What do you think?



An interesting tidbit, wouldn’t you agree? Thanks to the folks at Suryagarh for pointing them out and telling me about them! 

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Location: Jaisalmer, Rajasthan 345001, India

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