VARANASI: In a rousing tribute to tradition from the newly opened Kashi Vishwanath Dham corridor, PM Narendra Modi on Monday hailed the holy city of Kashi as an “imperishable” confluence of the ancient and the new that has come to symbolise “the unique resilience of the people of this land in fighting off a long line of tyrants and invaders”.
“Whenever an Aurangzeb comes along, a Shivaji rises. For every Salar Masud, there is a brave warrior like King Suheldev to show the world the might of India’s unity,” the PM said from the decked-out courtyard of the shrine that is now linked to the three main ghats of the Ganga by a 400m-long and 75m-wide corridor.
“Invaders like Aurangzeb who put Kashi to the sword have long been relegated to the dark pages of history, while this ancient holy city is writing a new chapter of glory,” Modi said, pointing to Kashi’s endurance as proof that “the soil of this country is different from the rest of the world”.
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The PM held up the new Kashi Vishwanath Dham complex as not just a grand structure, but also a symbol of “Sanatan culture”. He said India’s spiritual soul, ancient traditions and commitment to progress go hand in hand. “If a temple is being constructed at Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya, medical colleges are also getting opened in each district. If KVD has taken a grand shape, houses are also being constructed for the poor,” he said.
The PM said “only one government exists in Kashi today, and it is the government of those who play the damru (the percussion instrument carried by Lord Shiva, the presiding deity of Kashi)”.
Amid chants of ‘Har Har Mahadev’, Modi said the Kashi Vishwanath Dham corridor is a reflection of how the ancient city has time and again found a way to reclaim its glory even as “many sultanates were formed and lost”. He recounted that when the temple was destroyed, the Queen of Indore, Maharani Ahilyabai Holkar, ensured that a new shrine came up 250 years ago.
“The king of Punjab, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, donated gold to brighten the temple. The queen of Bengal, Rani Bhawani, and the kings of Mysore and various other provinces contributed towards rebuilding Kashi. This is why temples that reflect north Indian, south Indian, Nepalese and all other styles can be found here,” he said.
Modi also harked back to Kashi’s abiding connection with Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. “On the ghats along the river Ganga, boatmen and vendors can surprise anyone by speaking Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Bengali and other languages fluently. The same bonding keeps the energy of India intact,” he said. “The strength of destroyers can never be bigger than India’s shakti and bhakti. The world will look at us in the same way we look at ourselves.”
The PM performed rituals associated with ‘Shivarchan’ in the shrine before dedicating the first phase of the project to the nation.
UP CM Yogi Adityanath, BJP president JP Nadda and over 3,000 seers and religious leaders from across the country sat alongside dignitaries at the ceremony, which was telecast live.