After the battle of Lanka was over, Ram wished to perform a special prayer to Lord Shiv to remove the effects of the sin of ‘Brahmahatya’ (the sin of killing a Brahmin). Ravan was the son of sage Vishrav and hence a Brahmin. So, Ram asked Hanuman to go to Kasi (Varanasi) and get a ‘Swayambhu ling’ (a self-originated Shivling) from there. On reaching Kasi, Hanuman was in a dilemma when he saw innumerable lings there. He could not find out which one the Swayambhu ling was. Hanuman prayed to Lord Vishnu. Vishnu sent his mount Garud to help Hanuman. Garud circled repeatedly around one ling. Simultaneously, a lizard too made a sound to confirm that Garud had identified the Swayambhu ling correctly. Hanuman removed the ling and started off to meet Ram. In those days, Lord Bhairav was the guard of Kasi. Bhairav, another incarnation of Lord Shiv, spotted Hanuman flying away with a ling.
Hanuman Searches for Swayambhu Ling
