Man Mandir Ghat and Man Singh Observatory

Varanasi is said to be older than the traditions and the history of mankind too. The Ghats here are the ones that make the city more lively. Right from Assi to Aadikeshav Ghat each Ghat has its unparalleled importance. One of these Ghats is Maan Mandir Ghat which is situated near the Dashashwamedh Ghat. This Rajasthani style of architecture Ghat is also known as ‘Maan Mahal’ and ‘Maan Singh Vedshala’.

This beautiful piece of architecture was constructed in the 16^th century by the king of Amer, Raja Maan Singhand that’s how it got its name, Maan Mandir Ghat. Earlier the name of this place was Someshwar.

The first mention of this Ghat was done by James Prinsep. After the construction of this Fort, the king of Jaipur, Raja Sawai Singh II has built Vedshalas at the Fort. He had also built similar observatories in Delhi, Mathura, Jaipur and Ujjainnfor astrological study.

Some of the instruments of this observatory include the Samrat Yantra whose primary objective is to indicate the apparent solar time or local time of a place.

The Nadivlay Yantra is used to determine whether the celestial body is in the Northern or the Southern Hemisphere.

While the Chakra Yantra is used for measuring the declination of the Sun, moon and the stars and their distance in time hour angle for meridian.

The Digansha Yantra measures the angle of azimuth of a celestial body and the Dhakshinottara Bhitti Yantra is used to measure the meridian altitude or the zenith distance of an object such as the Sun, the moon or the planets.

At the present this Ghat is being looked after by the Indian Archaeological Department and the work of constructing a virtual museum at the Maan Mandir Ghat is under the process.

Opening hour: All Day/ Sunrise to Sunset

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