Kashi Vishwanath: destroyed, rebuilt, still here

The Jyotirlinga at Kashi has been continuously worshipped through every rebuilding of the structure around it. The present temple dates to 1780 and Rani Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore; the gold on the spire to Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

Architecturally, it is modest — a compact Nagara shikhara in a dense lane, now opened out by the corridor completed in 2021. Its importance was never in its scale.

Kaal Bhairav, a short walk away, is the kotwal of the city. Tradition holds that permission to be in Kashi is his to give, which is why many pilgrims go there first.