Til bhandeshwar Mahadev Temple Varanasi

The Tilbhandeshwar Mahadev Temple is one of the oldest temples in the holy city of Varanasi. Shri Tilbhandeshwar Mahadev Mandir is situated in Pandey Haveli, Bhelupur, adjacent to Bengali Tola Inter College, 500 meters East of river Ganga, 3.2 kilometers North of Banaras Hindu University and 1.5 kilometers South-West of Shri Kashi Vishwanath Mandir.  It is believed that the Shivling in this temple emerged by itself 2,500 years ago and its size increases every year by the size of a 'til'. Watch this report to know more about Tilbhandeshwar Mahadev Mandir.

The temple opens in 'brahmamuhurt' (ब्राह्ममुहूर्त). It remains open for the devotees from 4:30 AM to 9 PM. The priests perform the ‘shringaar’ (श्रृंगार- decoration) of the deities and temple before the shrine is opened for the general public. The ‘Mangala Aarti’, the first aarti of the day, is done when the temple is opened for the public. Thus, the devotees also happen to be part of the aarti. Since last three hundred years, the temple and adjoining ‘ashrama’ is being looked after by the saints of Kerala. The arrival of saints and sages from Kerala to this place took place at the time of Adi Shankaracharya's arrival in Kashi. 

Azamgarh

 Azamgarh is an important town of historical significance in Uttar Pradesh.Named after its founder, Azam who was the son of Vikramajit, a descendant of the Gautam Rajputs. Many arresting, imposing structures from the Rajput era are spread out across the city, giving it a royal, vintage look. Moreover, Azamgarh acts as a gateway to other historically important cities like Ayodhya, Kanpur, and Bareilly.Azamgarh is an important town of historical significance in Uttar Pradesh. Azam’s father, Vikramjit had converted to Islam and married a Mohammedan woman. Hence, Azamgarh is largely a Muslim city with strong influences of its erstwhile rulers still visible today. Later on, Azamgarh became a hub for Islamic literary scholars, theologists and poets.