Vashishtheshvar/Tixi Temple Etawah

Maratha Sardar had built Tiksi Temple

Etawah: Tiksi Temple situated on the southern edge of the city is included in the invaluable cultural heritage of the district. Shivalinga is established by Vashishtha Muni in this temple built in Maratha style. The temple was built to fulfill the vow of defeating the Nawabs of the region who supported Ahmed Shah Abdali in the third battle of Panipat. The construction work was completed in 1780, since then this temple has remained the center of faith of the devotees.According to folklore, in ancient times this area was a rugged forest, sage Vashishtha had established Vashishteshwar Mahadev here. Shivalinga was at a height from the ground level, being a proven place, Shiva devotees used to come here to worship and do penance. The ghats of Yamuna river are established at a distance of about 500 meters from this site. During that time, people traveling towards Gwalior-Bhad used to travel through boats in the river. Maratha Sardar Sadashiv Bhau had stopped on the Yamuna River in 1772 with his army to eliminate the Nawabs of Kannauj and Farrukhabad. At that time the Nawabs also had a strong military organization. At that time, some devotees advised the Maratha Sardar to ensure his victory by performing Rudriya Abhishek on this Shivalinga. The Maratha chieftain defeated the Nawabs by praying and making a vow. Then the Maratha Sardar built an arched roof with stairs up to Shivalinga in Maratha style. The completion of construction in 1780 is recorded in the Gazetteer of Etawah. Tiksi made of Tikri Prominent litterateur Dr. Kush Chaturvedi says that scholars are not unanimous about calling it by the name of Tiksi temple, according to legends Vashishteshwar Mahadev Shivalinga was in the open. During summers, devotees of Shiva make arrangements to keep drops of water dripping on Shivalinga by placing a Kalash on a Tikri i.e. a tripod.At that time, due to the placement of Tikri, the temple became famous by the name of Tikri Wale Temple, which when the British came to rule, it became famous from Tikri to Tiksi Temple. There are a lot of stairs from the ground level on this temple, in the folk language of Maharashtra, stairs are also called Tiksi, hence the name of Tiksi temple. However, the name of this temple kept changing according to the times, currently it is called TT Temple.