Viśvakarmā and Viśvakarmeśvara

This is the account of how the Viśvakarmeśvara Liṅga came to be in Kāśī. A young brahmachārī (student living with his guru), the son of Tvashṭṛ, said yes to requests he had no skill to meet. He ran away in fear. Bhagavān Śiva, in the form of a wandering ascetic, sent him to Kāśī. There, after three years of worship, Bhagavān Śiva gave him mastery of every craft. So his name Viśvakarmā (“the one who does all work”) became true. The Skanda Mahā Purāṇa tells it in Chapter 86 of the Uttarārdha of the Kāśī Khaṇḍa.

Promises made out of fear

Tvashṭṛ’s son was an earnest student, full of confidence. He lived in his guru’s house, lived on alms and served his teacher with care. When the season changed, his guru, the guru’s wife, the guru’s son and the guru’s daughter each came to him with requests. They asked for a hut that nothing could destroy, a bark garment that fitted perfectly, wonderful sandals made without leather that would work on water as on dry land, toys of ivory, a pair of golden earrings, a mortar and pestle that could not break, foot-stools that cleaned themselves, and a portable house on a single pillar.

To every request the boy said, “Let it be so.” He could not bear to disappoint those he was bound to serve. (Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Kāśī Khaṇḍa, Uttarārdha, Chapter 86)

Flight into the forest

When the weight of all these impossible promises fell on him at once, Tvashṭṛ’s son was seized by fear. He thought: “A student who agrees to his guru’s request but does not carry it out falls into naraka (hell). I have promised everyone. I know none of these crafts. I am weak and I have no helper.”

He could not face it. He ran from the āśrama (hermitage) into the deep forest and sat there in despair, crying: “Bow to fate that cannot be avoided!” (Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Kāśī Khaṇḍa, Uttarārdha, Chapter 86)

The ṛshi in the forest: Śiva in disguise

At the moment of his deepest sorrow, an ascetic came into the forest. He was bright and kind, and plainly no ordinary wanderer. Tvashṭṛ’s son felt that something great was about to happen. He said: “Has my karma itself taken the form of an ascetic and come? Or is this Śiva himself, the ocean of mercy?”

He bowed and told the ascetic his whole trouble. The ascetic gave him the counsel of Kāśī: “Is this anything strange? By the blessing of Viśveśa, even Brahmā has become skilled in making the world. If you please Bhagavān Śiva, who knows all, at Kāśī, your name Viśvakarmā (‘one who performs all tasks’) will become truly meaningful.” (Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Kāśī Khaṇḍa, Uttarārdha, Chapter 86)

Three years of worship at Kāśī

The ascetic went with Tvashṭṛ’s son to Kāśī and then vanished. This showed that the ascetic was indeed Bhagavān Śiva, as the boy had felt. The boy was now full of faith. He set up a liṅga in Kāśī and began to worship it every day. Each day he brought flowers from the forest, bathed at dawn and worshipped Īśāna. He lived on roots, bulbs and fruits. For three full years he kept up this worship with a steady mind. (Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Kāśī Khaṇḍa, Uttarārdha, Chapter 86)

Śiva’s varas of craft

At the end of three years, Bhagavān Śiva came out of the liṅga and said: “O son of Tvashṭṛ, I am pleased with your steady devotion. You shall have the power to make everything that your guru, his wife and his children asked for.”

Bhagavān Śiva gave more varas (boons) as well:

• mastery of every craft and art in gold, metals, wood, stone, gems, flowers, cloth, camphor, water, bark and all other materials
• knowledge of all kinds of houses and temples
• mastery of all the fine arts, and of the threefold art of music, dance and playing instruments
• skill in making weapons, machines, musical instruments, ponds and forts, so that his work would be better than all others

Bhagavān Śiva said: “Because of my vara, you will master all the fine arts.” He also said that in future Viśvakarmā would be called to build the palace in Kāśī in the time of Divodāsa. This points forward to the later account in the Kāśī Khaṇḍa itself. (Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Kāśī Khaṇḍa, Uttarārdha, Chapter 86)

The Viśvakarmeśvara Liṅga

The liṅga set up by Tvashṭṛ’s son, who had now truly become Viśvakarmā, was named Viśvakarmeśvara. It stands in Kāśī to the north of Aṅgāreśa. It is counted as one of the fourteen great liṅgas of the Mukti-kshetra, the eleventh in the list. Worship of it gives moksha (liberation). (Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Kāśī Khaṇḍa, Uttarārdha, Chapter 86)

Sources

• Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Kāśī Khaṇḍa, Uttarārdha, Chapter 86