Kshetra and Yogini shrines
Gajanana Devi (Gajasya)
Rana Mahal · D 21/22
History & traditions
This elephant-faced Yogini is recorded near Rana Mahal Ghat. The survey also includes her in the local protective Devi circuit.
Gajanana, the elephant-faced goddess, opens the Kashi Khanda’s list of sixty-four Yoginis. Singh also identifies her as Gajasya in the group of goddesses protecting the directions of Kashi. Both entries point to Rana Mahal, where the survey gives the address D 21/22.
Deity & sacred image
- Deity or sacred figure
- Gajanana Devi (Gajasya), a form of the Goddess in Kashi’s Shakti tradition
- Idol or shrine image
- The sources identify the deity. The image’s appearance and material are unconfirmed.
PILGRIMAGE CONTEXT
Kshetra and Yogini shrines
Kshetra means a sacred area. The Kashi Khanda describes its protection through groups of Shaktis distributed across the city. Singh’s inventory records local identifications using landmarks such as wells, host temples and walls. The survey address helps distinguish the particular image from the main deity of the precinct.
SKANDA PURANA
In the Kashi Khanda
Read the chapter’s account of why the Yoginis stayed in Kashi and how this name fits the wider list. The place reference supplies the local identification.
Browse the Kashi Khanda reading guide