[1] It was Built and Maintained by Nattukottai Nagarathar a mercantile community from Tamil Nadu[2] It is generally regarded as a Shakti Pitha, the most sacred temples dedicated to the Hindu Divine Mother.

The name Vishalakshi (Viśālākshī, Sanskrit: विशालाक्षी, "she who has large eyes")[3] is an epithet of the goddess Parvati.

The Skanda Purana narrates the tale of the sage Vyasa cursing Varanasi, as no one in the city offered him food.

Shiva gratified by Annapurna's food, establishes Varanasi and appoints her as its presiding goddess.

[7] In the sacred geography of Varanasi, six points are said to symbolize Shastanga (six-fold) yoga, which is performing by visiting the six sites.

Unable to withstand this insult, Sati jumped into the sacrificial fire and committed suicide.

Finally, the god Vishnu dismembered the body of Sati into 51 parts, each of which became a Shakti Pitha, temple to a form of the Goddess.

Sati's eye or earring is believed to have fallen at Varanasi, establishing Vishalakshi as a Shakti Pitha.

[10] The Tantric work Rudrayamala, composed before 1052 CE, mentions 10 principal Shakti Pithas, which includes Varanasi as the fifth one.

[11] Vishalakshi of Varanasi is mentioned as first of 108 Shakti Pithas in the list in the Devi Bhagavata Purana.

The Devi Gita within the same text gives a long list of Pithas, where Vishalakshi is mentioned as dwelling in Avimukta (Varanasi).

[12][13][14] In the non-scripture 16th century Bengali work Chandimangal, Mukundaram lists nine Pithas in the Daksha-yajna-bhanga section.

The goddess is especially worshipped by unmarried girls for a groom, childless couples for progeny and unfortunate women for the turn of their fortune.

On each of nine days, one of Varanasi's goddess temples – corresponding to one of the Navadurga (nine Durgas) or nine Gauris (Parvatis) – is recommended to be visited.

Women sing "amorous" rainy season songs called kajali (black) around this time.