The Vishalakshi Temple or Vishalakshi Gauri Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the goddess Vishalakshi Maa (means wide eyed Devi) at Mir Ghat on the banks of the Ganges at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, India. It is generally regarded as a Shakti Pitha, the most sacred temples dedicated to the Hindu Divine Mother. The karna kundala (earring) of the goddess Sati are said to have fallen on this holy spot of Varanasi. Goddess worshiped here as Maa Vishalakshi & Lord Shiva as Kala or Kaal Bhairva. The Vishalakshi Temple have elaborate gopuram (ornamented tower) which rests above the main entrance. Upon closer inspection, one finds lions flanking a door above which is a lovely marble relief depicting the popular goddess, Lakshmi. Here she sits upon a lotus with elephants on opposite sides pouring water over her, forming a composite glyph that represents abundance. This popular representation of the goddess is known as Gajalakshmi. The inner periphery of the temple is essentially a concrete wall that has an area which protrudes like a shelf displaying an assortment of Shiva lingams (some with an accompanying Nandi–Shiva’s bull), nagas (divine serpents), and a beautiful Ganesh sculpture. Directly behind the main shrine and opposite the door is a marble statue of Adi Shankaracharya, the famous philosopher monk, seated cross-legged. On the right side of the temple is an adjacent room which functions like a sacred storage area. It contains two gated areas which respectively house a sculpted horse and an alternative image of the goddess Vishalakshi. These are periodically brought out during special festival processions when Ma Vishalakshi, seated upon the horse, is wheeled about for a small tour of the nearby streets. Also within this room is a smaller shrine dedicated to Shiva and housing a large lingam–the abstract representation of male creative energy, or the sacred phallus. One very interesting feature of this room is an altar upon which rests nine statues depicting the planetary deities from Vedic Astrology in anthropomorphic form: Surya (Sun), Chandra (Moon), Mangala (Mars), Budha (Mercury), Brihaspati (Jupiter), Shukra (Venus), Shani (Saturn), Rahu (Ascending/North lunar node) and Ketu (Descending/South lunar node). These representations are the focus of regular adoration in the form of flower and leaf offerings as well as being marked with bright vermilion powder. The most ornamented area inside the temple is the verandah directly in front of the main shrine. Its four concrete pillars have been painted over so much that they feel completely smooth when touched. They bare the sculpted reliefs of floral designs, yantras, and protective figures. The ceiling directly above, designed to produce a canopy-like effect, is painted with a grid of 12 squares each containing a different image from a zodiacal house. Above the main shrine we find a scene that would be immediately recognizable to people from Tamil Nadu: a high-relief depiction of Shiva and Meenakshi’s wedding. Meenakshi (the “Fish Eyed”) herself is a popular South Indian goddess and is here associated with Vishalakshi along with Kamakshi (the “Desire Eyed”), to form a triad of goddesses. Finally we come to the main shrine and Vishalakshi’s seat proper. The sanctum sanctorum (garbhagriha in Sanskrit) contains a very ornate marble shrine which itself contains an even smaller shrine housing the image. This “nesting” of shrines produces a stacked, “Russian doll” type of effect. The original, very ancient murti and its accompanying shrine were placed in the larger shrine and temple as the current structure was quite literally built up around it. The goddess Vishalakshi herself is represented by a lovely murti carved from a solid piece of polished black stone. Her upraised right arm bears a lotus in its hand, while the palm of her left, downturned hand is empty and facing away. She gazes directly forward and her darshan can easily be obtained from the street when the front doors are open and it is not too crowded inside the temple. But this stone sculpture, delightful as it is, is not the original representation of Vishalakshi. It was, in fact, carved from stone in 1971 when the temple was renovated with Tamil patronage. The daughter of Prajapati Daksha, Sati was married to the god Shiva against his wishes. Daksha organized a great yajna, but did not invite Sati and Shiva. Uninvited, Sati reached the yajna-site, where Daksha ignored Sati and vilified Shiva. Unable to withstand this insult, Sati jumped into the sacrificial fire and committed suicide. Sati died, but her corpse did not burn. Shiva (as Virabhadra) slew Daksha for being responsible for Sati’s death and forgave him, resurrecting him. The wild, grief-stricken Shiva wandered the universe with Sati’s corpse. Finally, the god Vishnu dismembered the body of Sati into 51 parts, each of which became a Shakti Pitha, temple to a form of the Goddess. Shiva is also worshipped at each Shakti Pitha in the form of Bhairava, the male counterpart or guardian of the presiding goddess of the Pitha. Sati’s eye or earring is believed to have fallen at Varanasi, establishing Vishalakshi as a Shakti Pitha. However, if one asks at the temple there today, the priest and all others aver that the body part that fell was Her face, which is hidden behind the murti. In the sacred geography of Varanasi, six points are said to symbolize Shastanga (six-fold) yoga, which is performing by visiting the six sites. They are the Vishwanath Temple (the most important temple of Varanasi – dedicated to Shiva), the Vishalakshi Temple, the Ganges, the Kala Bhairava temple (dedicated to Varanasi’s guardian deity and Vishalakshi’s Bhiarava), the Dhundiraj Temple (dedicated to the god Ganesha – son of Shiva and Parvati) and the Dandapani temple (dedicated to an aspect of Shiva).

The Goddess Kamakshi prevails in the form of Shakti. There are 51 Shakti Peetas across the country. The goddess residing place in Kanchi is called as “Nabisthana Ottiyana Peetam”. The Goddess is called as “Sri Kamakshi. The word is derived from the heritage “Ka” means Goddess Saraswati (God of Education), “Ma” means Goddess Lakshmi (God of Wealth), “Akshi” means Eye. The name as a whole refers as the god lives in Kanchi with Goddess Saraswati and Goddess Lakshmi as her both eyes. The Lalitha Sahasranama poem is an idle example for the goddess power.

Kanchi is also called as Satyavrita Kshetra . The Goddess worshipped Lord Siva by creating a mud idol in Kanchi. At that moment, Lord Siva incarnated as Kamba River with high tides to test the worship of the goddess, the goddess grasped the idol closely with her two hands from eroding in the tides. This prevented the idol from getting eroded in the floods. The goddess also performed Pooja by sitting in a needle tip surrounded by “Panchakagni” (surrounded by 5 fires) to free herself from the interest of livelihood. The Lord Shiva became happy, gestured before her and married the goddess. Though there are many Shiva temples in the city, the only temple to have the sanctorum of the goddess is ‘SRI KAMAKSHI AMMAN TEMPLE’. There are also eight other Shakti goddesses surrounding the temple.

During Shiva’s tandav after Mata Sati’s death when Lord Vishnu had hurled his Sudarshan Chakra at the burnt corpse, Mata Sati’s lower lip is said to have fallen in Attahas. Literally, ‘Attahas’ is a Sankskrit word which means profound laughter. The lower lip had then taken on the form of a stone and a shrine was erected around it. Shiva had appointed Vishvesh as the Bhairav guarding the temple.

Attahas is famous not only for being a heavenly abode but also the abode of a number of beautiful wild birds. Every year, this place is paid a visit by over two thousand Asian open bill storks, fruit-eating bats and exquisite butterflies. It is for these reasons that Attahas attracts a lot of environmentalists and birwatchers every year, particularly during December-January.

The village of Attahas celebrates their annual Phullora Mela with a great deal of pomp and splendour. Colours abound everywhere and there is fair where the elders of the village tell stories about the miracles associated with the Temple.

There is no particular special ritual performed in the temple, but daily artis at dawn and dusk are mandatory. There are also a number of yagnas that are conducted throughout the year. The festival of Navratri – that coincides with Durga Puja – is celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm here. The nine days of Navratri are accompanied by a number of special pujas and yagnas.

It is said that after the Sudarshan Chakra of Lord Shiva cut the burnt corpse of Ma Sati into fifty-two pieces, her elbow fell on the Bhairav Hills. The Mother is worshipped as Avanti in this temple and is protected by the Bhairav Lambkarna. Many say that it was not her elbow but rather her upper lips that fell there but that is highly debated.

Devi Avanti is worshipped in the Bhairav Parvat Temple and is protected by the Bhairav Lambakarna. Both are said to be manifestations of the divine energy that combine to form the main force that governs the universe. AdiShakti and Shiva fuse together to maintain balance in the universe and must always be together for goodness to prevail. ‘Avanti’ literally means modest and ‘Lambakarna’ refers to the long-eared one. Devi Avanti is also called Ma Avantika and MahaKali. Incidentally, ‘lambakarna’ is what Shiva-Parvati’s second son Ganesh is also called.

Temple Festivals:
Ujjain is famous for the Kumbh Mela that takes place once in every 12 years in Ujjain. Festivals specific to the temple include Navratri and MahaShivratri celebrations where a special bhog is prepared. Aratis are done in the temple everyday at 6 in the morning and 6 in the evening. The former is called Prabhat arati and the latter is referred to as Sandhyarati.

Other information:
Ujjain is well-connected by all means of transport. Indore, located at a distance of 52 km from Ujjain, is the nearest airport. Some of the other important temples located in Ujjain are Mahakaleshwar- famous for being one of the 12 jyotirlingas, Vikrant Bhaivav, Naraditya, Jata Bhadra Teerth, Ram Janardhan Temple and the reputed Mangalnath Temple where you will find a ShivLinga made of a special mineral called Dhatu Nirmita.