Lolark is also mentioned in Shatpath Brahman and Mahabharata. Kashi Khand of Skanda Purana, shiva mystery, The significance of Lolark is described in detail in Surya Purana and Kashi Darshan. According to the belief, the wheel of Surya’s chariot had also fallen here once. Which became famous as a pond. According to the belief, on the sixth day of the Shukla Paksha of Bhadrapada, the rays of the sun make the water of this pond very effective. By taking a bath in this pond on this day, Lolarkeshwar Mahadev becomes pleased and fulfills the wish of couples who wish to have a child.
9 September – Lolark Kund Bathing Day
Among the major pilgrimage sites of Varanasi i.e. Kashi city, the names of confluence of Assi and Ganga, Dashashwamedh Ghat, Manikarnika, Panchgangaghat, confluence of Varuna and Ganga and Lolark Tirtha are prominent. At Dashashwamedh Ghat, famous for millennia, Bharshiv kings had performed ten Ashvamedh Yagyas and consecrated them. Manikarnika is called Mukti Kshetra. The story of the confluence of five rivers in Panchganga is world famous. According to Naradiya Purana and Shiva Purana Kashi-Khand, a person who bathes in Panchganga does not re-incarnate this body made up of five elements, i.e. gets liberated from the cycle of life and death. The confluence of Varuna-Ganga and Keshav Ghat are very ancient pilgrimage sites.
Lolark Kund, located near Shri Lolarkeshwar Mahadev Temple, is one of the most ancient and sacred places in Varanasi. Lolark Aditya, the first of the twelve Adityas of the Sun, who has a prominent place in all the Aditya Peethas of Kashi, is located and established at Lolark Kund near Asisangam in Varanasi. It is considered to be the most important among all the pilgrimages in Kashi, because being located at Asisangam, the water of Lolark Kund reaches other pilgrimages of Kashi only after it merges with the Ganga. It is believed that the welfare of the people of Kashi is always done through this. Lolark is also mentioned in Shatpath Brahman and Mahabharata. The greatness of Lolark is described in detail in Kashi Khand of Skanda Purana, Shiva Rahasya, Surya Purana and Kashi Darshan. According to the belief, the wheel of the Sun’s chariot also fell here once, which became famous as a pond. Over time, it became popularly believed that if a childless couple takes a bath in this pond along with their wife and they take a bath in this pond, they will definitely get the blessing of having a child.
It is believed that thousands of years ago a meteorite fell from the sky making a terrifying sound at this place. The meteorite surrounded by flames was giving the impression that the Sun itself was falling on the Earth. Lolark Kund was formed due to the fall of the meteorite on the Earth. According to the story mentioned in Kashi Khand regarding Lolark Kund, when the Yogini Mandala sent by Lord Shiva to expel Divodas from his kingdom in Kashi could not return, then with the desire to know the news of Kashi, Shiva sent Suryadev to Kashi and said, O Sun! You know the activities of all the creatures in the world. That is why you are called Jagchakshu. Therefore, you should go to Kashi for the accomplishment of this task. After getting the permission of Shiva, Suryadev went towards Kashi. Suryadev, extremely eager to see the Mukti-giving beautiful Kashi, reached Kashi and roamed both inside and outside, but he did not see any wrongdoing in the matter of the king. The Sun God, while living in Kashi in many forms, could not find any fault in the kingdom of that pious king for even one year. Ultimately, instead of returning to Mandaraachal, the Sun God established himself in Kashi by making twelve idols of himself. Aditya Bhagwan was very much enamoured with the sight of Kashi. Therefore, the Sun God was named Lolark there. This pond is also known as Surya Kund.
It is believed that on the day of Pakshithi of Shukla Paksha of Bhadrapada, the rays of the sun falling on the water coming from the well adjacent to Lolark Kund leads to the possibility of child birth. During this period, women bathing here give birth to children. On the basis of astronomical and scientific belief, the structure of Lolark Kund has been made in such a tantric way that on the sixth day of Bhadrapada month, the rays of the sun become extremely effective at this Kund. On this day, after bathing here, a fruit is bought and a needle is pricked in it, which is also considered a symbol of the sun’s rays. According to a study, this is the only Kund in India, whose four directions are completely based on astronomical standards. To its north is the pole Cosmic North, that is, the direction of exact north as per the standards of astronomy. On Lolark Shashthi, the rays of the sun pass through its northern pole. As these rays go down the inverted pyramid-shaped stairs and pole, their intensity increases. The energy that the body receives from the water and rays of the Ganges is most beneficial for conception.
According to the belief, on the sixth day of Shukla Paksha of Bhadrapada, the rays of the sun make the water of this pond very effective. By taking bath in this pond on this day, Lolarkeshwar Mahadev becomes pleased and fulfills the wishes of the couples who wish to have children. Therefore, a large number of devotees come here to take bath in the Lolark Kund located in Bhadaini locality on the sixth day of Shukla Paksha Shashthi of Bhadrapada month i.e. Amavasya, which takes the form of a huge fair. On this day, devotees worship Lolarkaditya to fulfill their wishes and wish for the desired result. This day of Shashthi Tithi of Shukla Paksha of Bhadrapada month is popular as Lolark Chhath. According to the belief, by taking bath in it on this day, even infertile women, i.e. those who are unable to have children, get children. Skin patients get relief. Therefore, a large number of devotees from every corner of the country come here with the desire to have a child. People whose wishes are fulfilled get their children’s heads shaved here and make donations. There is a tradition of leaving the clothes in which the devotees take bath there. After taking a bath in the Kund, one does not look back. It is said that this Lolark Kund is also connected to the Ganga river from inside.
Even Lord Surya comes to bathe in this Kund. By leaving fruits in this Kund, one gets the blessings of Lord Surya and gets a child. After donating the fruit, a vow is taken to not eat that fruit for the whole year. Lakhha fair is held here in the month of Bhadrapad. According to mythological belief, a person gets freedom from all sins by making an annual pilgrimage to Lolark on Saptami or Shashthi Tithi of any Adityawar of the month of Agahan. By bathing at Asisangam and performing Tarpan and Shradh of ancestors and gods, one gets freedom from ancestral debt. By bathing in Lolark Kund at the confluence of Ganga and Asi on the Shukla Saptami of the month of Magh, a person gets freed from the sins accumulated in seven births.
According to mythological and historical accounts, later on, the queen of Indore, Ahilyabai Holkar, had decorated this Kund with precious stones all around. Shaped like an inverted Egyptian pyramid, this Kund is about 50 feet deep and 15 feet wide. It gets water from a well located next to it. Mention of the Lolarkaditya Lolark Kund and the temple located near Tulsi Ghat in Varanasi is also found in the Gahadwal copper plates. The mouth of the stepwell is double, water collects in one and goes into two wells. These wells are made of stone and a platform is built on them. There is a Pradakshina Path between the two platforms. Later, Ahilyabai, Amritrao and the Maharaja of Cooch Behar etc. also supported its construction from time to time. A chakra, the symbol of Lord Surya, is made on a niche of this Kund. Till the time of Akbar and Jahangir, this Kund was considered the eye of Varanasi. In that era, there was also a locality named Lolark here.