Shaṭpañcāśat Vināyakas: The 56 Vināyakas of Kāśī

Shaṭpañcāśat Vināyaka · shaṭ-pañcāśat vināyaka, “the fifty-six Vināyakas”

The Shaṭpañcāśat Vināyakas (“fifty-six Vināyakas”) are fifty-six forms of Bhagavān Gaṇeśa, also called Vināyaka. They came forth from his own tejas (divine radiance) and were placed around Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) in seven rings, one in each of the eight directions in every ring. Together they form a lasting protective maṇḍala (sacred circle) around the holy city.

The Krīḍā Khaṇḍa of the Gaṇeśa Purāṇa tells how they were created when the asura Dairāsada attacked Kāśī, at the time when Gaṇeśa lived there as Mahotkaṭa in the Kṛta Yuga (the first age). The Kāśī Khaṇḍa of the Skanda Purāṇa also describes the same fifty-six Vināyakas, in the account of how Ḍhuṇḍhirāja welcomed Śiva back to Kāśī. Both texts agree on their number, their arrangement and their role as the lasting ring of guardians around Kāśī.

How They Arose: The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa Account

According to the Krīḍā Khaṇḍa, the fifty-six Vināyakas were created while Mahotkaṭa was living in Kāśī in the Kṛta Yuga. At that time the asura Dairāsada, son of Bhasmāsura, attacked the city. Mahotkaṭa did not meet this threat with ordinary fighting alone. He drew on his own tejas (divine radiance and energy) and brought forth fifty-six forms of himself, each a complete Gaṇeśa with full power. These fifty-six were set in place as the lasting protective structure of the holy city.

How They Arose: The Kāśī Khaṇḍa Account

Chapter 57 of the Kāśī Khaṇḍa of the Skanda Purāṇa presents the same fifty-six Vināyakas when Śiva returns to Kāśī after King Divodāsa gives up his rule. Ḍhuṇḍhirāja stands at the centre, and the fifty-six Vināyakas form the outer protective rings that Śiva meets as he enters his eternal city again. The Kāśī Khaṇḍa names each of the fifty-six.

The two accounts do not contradict each other. The Krīḍā Khaṇḍa tells of their creation in the Kṛta Yuga. The Kāśī Khaṇḍa tells of the honour paid to them when Śiva returns, a later event in which the fifty-six Vināyakas, already in place, receive Śiva’s respect.

The Sacred Pattern: 7 Rings × 8 Directions = 56

The arrangement follows a pattern that mirrors the order of the universe:

• 7 āvaraṇas (rings), one inside the other, around Kāśī
• 8 Vināyakas in each ring, one in each of the eight directions (N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW)
• 7 × 8 = 56

The number 7 carries deep meaning in the Purāṇas: seven continents, seven oceans, seven Manus, seven great ṛshis (the Saptarshis) and seven lokas (worlds). Seven stands for completeness, so the protection covers every level of the universe.

The number 8 stands for all the directions. The eight directions make up the whole compass of space, and each is watched over by one of the eight Dikpālas (guardians of the directions). With eight Vināyakas in every ring, there is no angle from which Kāśī can be approached unguarded.

Together, fifty-six is a number of complete protection: every direction, at every layer of this sacred maṇḍala, is guarded by a form of Gaṇeśa.

The Full List of the 56 Vināyakas

Chapter 154 of the Krīḍā Khaṇḍa of the Gaṇeśa Purāṇa records the names of all fifty-six Vināyakas. The divine gaṇas (attendants of Gaṇeśa) recite them to King Somakānta during his journey by vimāna (celestial chariot) to Gaṇeśa’s dhāma (abode). The gaṇas say that these Vināyakas, not counting Ḍhuṇḍhirāja and four more Vināyakas of Kāśī, are placed starting from the east (pūrvādi dik-krama) and going round the eight directions in each ring.

Avimuktavināyaka in the seventh ring is singled out as mokshaprada, the giver of moksha (liberation).

Four More Vināyakas of Kāśī

Besides the fifty-six, four more Vināyakas are honoured in Kāśī:

1. Bhagīrathavināyaka
2. Hariścandravināyaka
3. Kapardīvināyaka
4. Binduvināyaka

The gaṇas say that reciting all these names every day destroys every obstacle. Offering pūjā to each of them with dūrvā grass, taṇḍula (rice), tila (sesame) and śamī-patra (leaves of the śamī tree) brings invincibility, long life, health and wealth beyond compare.

Two Vināyakas Named in Chapter 43

Chapter 43 of the Krīḍā Khaṇḍa mentions two of the Vināyakas by name:

• Pañcamukha Vināyaka (the five-faced Vināyaka): placed at the door of Viśveśvara, the innermost shrine of Kāśī. His five faces match the five directions (the four sideways directions and the one above) and the five elements.
• Eka-pāda Vināyaka (the one-footed Vināyaka): placed at Tuṇḍana-pura, a place inside or near the pañcakrośī boundary of Kāśī (the sacred circuit around the city).

Ḍhuṇḍhirāja at the Centre

At the centre of all seven rings stands Ḍhuṇḍhirāja, the highest Vināyaka of Kāśī, who gives the whole maṇḍala its focus and power. Mahotkaṭa installed Ḍhuṇḍhirāja as the central guardian, the source from which all fifty-six spread outward. The Krīḍā Khaṇḍa explains the name. It comes from the root ḍhuṇḍh (“to search”): Ḍhuṇḍhirāja is “the king who searched”. He searched all three worlds for the most auspicious place and found it to be Kāśī.

What This Means for Pilgrims

Anyone who enters Kāśī, from any direction, passes through the protective field of the fifty-six Vināyakas before reaching the inner tīrthas (holy places). The Purāṇic understanding is that together the fifty-six screen every being who enters the city. Those with heavy karmic obstacles will feel drawn to offer pūjā at the outermost Vināyakas, while the inner rings open to seekers who are purer and purer. Ḍhuṇḍhirāja at the centre receives pūjā last, or first if one enters through the heart of the city.

Sources

• Gaṇeśa Purāṇa, Krīḍā Khaṇḍa, Chapters 39–43
• Gaṇeśa Purāṇa, Krīḍā Khaṇḍa, Chapter 154
• Skanda Purāṇa, Kāśī Khaṇḍa, Chapter 57