A review of the book 'Vishwanath Rises And Rises: The Story of Eternal Kashi' written by Dr. Meenakshi Jain.
Dr. Meenakshi Jain, in Vishwanath Rises and Rises, once again demonstrates the power of good research and scholarship, something clearly missing in the fake narratives put out by Leftist historians such as Romila Thapar and Irfan Habib. Vishwanath Rises and Rises is a must for your bookshelf.
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Coming up: A review of the book 'Vishwanath Rises And Rises: The Story of Eternal Kashi' written by Dr. Meenakshi Jain.
Namaste Friends. My name is 'Shinil Subramanian Payamal' and you are listening to the Historylogy podcast.
Before I proceed, a full disclosure: This book was bought with my own money and not been provided to me by the author or publisher.
Little bit about the author:
Meenakshi Jain is a historian interested in cultural and religious developments in Indian history. In 2020, she was awarded Padma Sri by the Government of India for her contributions to the field of literature and education. Her recent publications include The Hindus of Hindustan (2023); Vasudeva Krishna and Mathura (2021); Flight of Deities and Rebirth of Temples (2019); The Battle for Rama: Case of the Temple at Ayodhya (2017); Sati: Evangelicals, Baptist Missionaries and the Changing Colonial Discourse (2016); and Rama and Ayodhya (2013).
Let me read what is written on inside flap of the cover of the book:
QUOTE
Kashi (Varanasi), the City of Light, was the embodiment of Indian civilization for millennia. Archaeological mounds at Rajghat Plateau, on the northern outskirts of the city, represented the ancient settlement of Kashi. Its three major settlements, Varanasi, Sarnath, and Akhta, all had “a religious nature.” The first reference to Kashi was in the Paippalada recension of the Atharva Veda (V.22.14). The grammarian Panini mentioned Varanasi as the Capital of Kashi janapada, and its citizens as varanaseya.
Varanasi was first attacked in 1013 CE, by the Ghaznavid forces, under Ahmed Nialtagin. The cumulative effect of the subsequent centuries of assault was the complete obliteration of Banaras of the Puranic mahatmyas. The Krittivasa, Omkara, Mahadeva, Madhyameshvara, Visveshvara, Bindu Madhava, Kaal Bhairava, and countless other temples were all razed. In many cases, mosques were built with “calculated insolence” in their place, and the sites were forever closed to Hindus. But despite the difficult centuries, the construction of temples in Kashi did not cease, no matter how modest the structure might be.
The great Vishvanath temple was destroyed no less than three times during those centuries. It was said that in 1194 CE, when first attacked by Aibak, and on each subsequent occasion, Brahmins hid the jyotirlinga in the Jnanavapi, the well of knowledge. Queen Razia, during her short turbulent reign, appropriated the site of the temple and had a mosque constructed there. The temple was subsequently rebuilt at another location, where too it was ravaged.
Despite the repeated onslaughts, Banaras retained its standing as a centre of Hindu religious and intellectual activity.
UNQUOTE
The book moves at a fast pace across the 21 chapters that are there in it. The book starts with the narration of a story of Shiva’s arrival in Kashi from the Purana Pancalaksana and ends with the ASI report on the Gyanvapi in 2023.
In between, it talks about things like:
1st ─ The Gahadavalas, Varanasi’s last Hindu Kings, stood forth “as champions of Hinduism.” They even levied a ‘Turks’ tax’ (turuskadanda), to meet the cost of maintaining a large army, to confront the new threat. Turuskadanda was a war tax “without parallel” in India.
2nd ─ Some details of his encounters with Hindu temples, and religious personages elsewhere were recorded by Jahangir himself. He visited Pushkar in 1614, where he directed that an image of Varaha (Boar incarnation of Vishnu) be destroyed, and thrown into a tank.
3rd ─ Under Qutubuddin Aibak, Ghurid forces attacked Benares in 1194 CE. Persian histories claimed that over a thousand temples were ravaged in the attack, the booty taken away on 1,400 camels. Hardly a shrine survived the onslaught.
4th ─ Any assessment of Dara Shikoh must note that though Dara was conversant, and perhaps appreciative of Hinduism, he “remained a convinced Muslim.” Prince Aurangzeb, from the commencement of the war of succession, accused his elder brother, Dara, of apostasy, and association with Hindu theologians and mystics. Apostasy was declared the official reason for Dara’s execution, in 1659.
5th ─ There is a separate chapter titled “Maratha Attempts to Acquire Hindu Holy Cities” in which, from Peshwa Balaji Viswanath to his son Peshwa Bajirao, to Peshwa Balaji Bajirao, Malhar Rao Holkar, Punyashlok Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar, Peshwa Madhav Rao, their attempts to get control of the Holy Cities is explained very nicely.In fact, Madhav Rao Peshwa devoted three of the nine points in his will to Kashi.
6th ─ The book also talks about the advent of missionaries in Varanasi. Reverend Sherring discussed the prospects of missionary success in Benares, and the obstacles image worship posed to conversion.
He writes:
QUOTE
Let it be well understood, that education de-Hinduizes the Hindu, breaks down idolatry, and inspires him with a distaste for it….
UNQUOTE
If there is a big takeaway and open secret that you are going to learn after reading this book, then the above statement is the one. Absolutely correct and spot on.
Apart from the 21 chapters, the book has nine Appendices, fourteen pages of References and 24 colour pages featuring rare Maps, Prints, Photographs and Paintings which in itself are worth the price of the book.
The timing of the release of this book couldn’t have been better when the Gyanvapi case is so much in the news. I give this book 4.75/5.
The printed price of the book is Rs. 995/- but is available for around Rs. 825/- on Amazon India and for Rs. 995/- on Flipkart. But I highly recommend that you buy the book from the publisher Aryan Books website where it is available for only Rs. 695 with free shipping. At the time of recording this podcast episode, the book is not available on Amazon USA. I have given the respective buy links in the show notes. Please check them out for the latest prices.
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