Alarnath in Odisha

The state of Orissa is an immense treasure not only of natural resources, architectural monuments and human resources but the same is also having interesting rituals of worship. In this nexus, while Lord Jagannath of Puri is regarded as the prime deity his rituals are very much identical to the lifestyle of human being. Like, he falls ill after a grand bathe on the Devasnana Purnima and then falls ill. In this two week nobody is allowed for a darshan in Puri, but interestingly it is believed that during this tenure one can earn the same amount of virtues visiting his abode in Bramhagiri. There, he is worshipped in the name Alarnath. Himanshu Guru attempts to provide a brief report on this temporary abode of the Lord.

Legend

In the Satya Yuga, Lord Brahma, one of the Hindu trinity came and worshipped Lord Vishnu in today’s Brahmagiri atop a hill. Pleased with his endeavor, Lord Vishnu surfaced before him and advised him to raise a four-armed Deity of him holding conch shell, disk, club and lotus in his arms. He also hinted that the Deity should be made off from a piece of black stone and the stature of his ‘bahana’ Garuda should also be erected. The lord named the place as Brahmagiri since Lord Brahma worshipped him there.

The tale of Sri Chaitanya

Legendary saint Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who is also believed as an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, was an ardent devotee of Lord Jagannath. He used to visit the Lord’s abode at Puri regularly. Yet, as per the ritual, once during Anasara period, when the lord is believed to have fallen sick and so darshan was not allowed in Srimandira, Chaitanya was restricted from darshan. It was too intolerable for the devotee to live for long 15 days without getting a glimpse of the God. It is believed, being impressed by his devotion, Lord Jagannath advised in his dreams to visit him in the temple of Alarnath in Brahmagiri. Accordingly the saint visited Alarnath and got a glimpse of his cherished God. Even a piece of stone (shila) found in the temple premises is believed to be the one where the saint stood to get darshan of the God.

History

As per history long ago Alwars visited the famous shrine in Brahmagiri and the temple was named after their name as Alvarnaath which was later simplified to Alarnath. 

Location

Alarnatha temple is located in Brahmagiri block around 20 kms away from the district head quarter of Puri. The place is well connected in roadways through National Highway 203A. Puri railway station is the nearest railhead while the Biju Patnaik Airport in Bhubaneswar is the nearest airport to the place.

Festivities

Alarnath is not a very famous place around the year but the temple witnesses thousands of devotees/tourists during the Anasara period that falls normally in the month of June each year. For fifteen days during the krishnapaksha of Ashadha, after the Snana Yatra when lord Jagannath of Puri cannot be visited, large number of people visits Alarnath.

Kheer, the sweet offering

It becomes crowded During this period, popularly known as Anasara or 'Anavasara' (literally meaning no opportunity to see the lord of Puri), instead of having darshan in Jagannath temple, people believe that Lord Jagannath during this time manifests as Alarnath Dev, at the Alarnath temple in Brahmagiri.

Temple Timings

The Temple opens at 6 AM and closes at 9:30PM.Morning Baal Bhoga is offered and mid day different kinds of rice, daal and vegetable curries with Payasam is offered. In the night different kinds of Pitha and Khichudi with Plantain fry is offered. During Anavasara time the Payasa or Kheeri bhoga offered to Alvarnaath Swami is much hyped and in demand.

Anasara in year 2015

Year 2015 being the Nabakalebara year, Anasara of Lord Jagannath will continue for 45 days unlike other normal years when the normal span of Anasara is two weeks. Accordingly, this year devotees can take the privilege of darshan of Lord Alarnath in Bramhagiri for 45 days.

Alarnath temple in Brahmagiri, Puri District, Odisha

Ghanteshwari in Sambalpur District of Odisha

Goddess Ghanteshwari

Orissa is replete with natural treasures and religious shrines with rare and distinctive features. The Ghanteshwari temple in Sambalpur district is one of them. Ghanteshwari, the goddess of bells, is the presiding deity of the temple. The Oriya word ‘ghanti’ means bell, and hence the name. Situated in a naturally opulent atmosphere adjacent to the Chiplima hydroelectric power plant, the temple is visited by tourists throughout the year. The most spectacular sight of Ghanteshwari is the numerous bells, of sizes ranging from the tiniest to the biggest. They are seen knotted everywhere in this spot. Before construction of the famous Hirakud dam, the spot served as an alarm zone for the sailors. Besides being a place of devotion and tourist attraction, it is also an ideal picnic spot. A report by Himanshu Guru.

Walk-able Iron bridge to reach Ghanteshwari

Backdrop

Ghanteshwari is located on the banks of the Mahanadi and is the meeting point of the three streams of the river. Here the water current is fast enough to form a whirlpool. Resultantly, it was a risky zone for the boatmen and sailors in the early days. People say a number of boats drowned in this particular spot in the river. Again, during those days roadway connectivity was not very good and the water route served as a prime route for communication. It is said even traders from Madhya Pradesh travelled through this route to sell their stuff in Sambalpur and would often travel right up to Cuttack. However, to deal with the situation huge bells were fixed. As this place witnessed high wind speed, the bells rang loudly, thereby giving out an alarm to the sailors. Thus the spot was known as the ‘lighthouse without light’. The goddess was also established soon after. Yet, after construction of the famous Hirakud dam, the water stream lost speed and it was no more a risky water zone. In the following years, the roadway developed a lot and the earlier usage of bells became a legend.

Bells in Ghanteshwari

Description

The shrine of Ghanteshwari is not a big edifice but the surroundings are very beautiful. The main attraction of the spot is the bells that people tie up to make their wishes come true. As the place is on the banks of the Mahanadi one can witness a picturesque landscape, immense greenery and lush water bodies. The Chiplima hydroelectric project adjacent to the spot is also worth a watch. The only way to reach the shrine is via the walk-able iron bridge and taking a stroll on this man-made bridge is an experience by itself. After moving through the bridge you need to get down a number of steps to reach the deity. One can witness slivery fishes swimming in the river – a sight to behold.

View of river Mahanadi from Ghanteshwari

How to reach

Ghanteshwari is situated 33 km southwest of Sambalpur.

When coming from Sambalpur you need to take a left turn at Goshala chowk and travel 15 km to reach Chiplima, the nearest village. The place is merely at a distance of 2 km from Chiplima. The road from Goshala chowk to Ghanteshwari is not very smooth but manageable. The place is accessible throughout the year but visitors should avoid the monsoon season. The nearest railhead to Ghanteshwari is the Hirakud station and Sambalpur junction. Most visitors hire a cab from Sambalpur. Also, ferry buses run from Sambalpur to Chiplima, but tourists usually avoid ferry buses as they again need to travel 2 km to reach the spot.

Facilities

As facilities are scant it is wise to stay in Sambalpur. Also, there are no eateries nearby. Of course, there are small markets nearby the shrine from where you can buy flowers and sweets for worship. Tourists usually make their own arrangements for food, vehicles and night stay.

Touristspeak

Alok Ranjan Guru, lawyer, Sambalpur

Once my grandfather told me what he had learnt from the old and the learned. He said, “As we all are sailors of our own voyage, sailing without any compass, sometimes without any aim of direction, many times get entangled and lose hope. The divine grace of goddess Ghanteswari comes like a north star raising hope; the goddess is so kind that the mere act of tying a bell with utmost devotion and submissive request brings Her grace. Highly revered by the local populace, the goddess of bells has protected the sailors every time against bad weather and guided them with proper directions. Situated on the banks of the Mahanadi, bounded by mountains, cascading waters and forests, the temple of goddess Ghanteswari serves as an excellent destination for pilgrims as well as tourists. Thirty-five km off Sambalpur, this place with innumerable bells, is a perfect spot for those seeking divine grace as well as recreation.

Shiba Prasad Sahu, lyricist, Balangir

As I am a part of the Sambalpuri entertainment industry, I visit Ghanteshwari to worship a script, otherwise assumed as the ‘mahurat’ of an album. We flock to the shrine to seek the blessings of the goddess for an upcoming project.

Surendra Nayak, teacher, Jharigaon

I have visited the shrine on several occasions. Once we visited the spot for a picnic. The temple is an excellent place to sit for a while and to meditate on the idea of divinity since it is a calm and quiet place far away from the hustle-bustle of city life. It is place enveloped in natural beauty and splendour.

Nrusinghanath in Odisha: Abode of the divine cat

Nrusinghanath idol

The Nrusinghnath temple in Bargarh district of Odisha (India) stands amidst the verdant beauty of the picturesque Gandhamardan hills. Coupled with a series of beautiful waterfalls and eye-catching sculptures, its location offers an air of serenity and visual delight. Lord Vishnu is worshipped in the incarnation of a cat in this popular and attractive temple that beckons pilgrims and devotees from far and near. The place was a centre of Buddhist scriptural learning as well according to Huen Tsang, the historic Chinese traveler. A report by Himanshu Guru.

Background & Legend

Some 600 years ago, a tribal woman from the Kandha caste named Jamuna, (as referred to in the book Nrusingha Charitra) composed an epic that sang the glories of Marjara Keshari who played a stellar role in overthrowing the reign of suppression, tyranny and torture of Musika Daitya (both mythological characters).

According to the legend, at a time when people were greatly afflicted by Musika Daitya (the incarnate Mouse Demon), Lord Vishnu in the incarnation of a cat (Marjara Keshari) entered the scene to put an end to the demon’s excesses. He gave the demon mouse, Musika Daitya, a hard chase and the demon took refuge in the place. While the cat could not enter the mouse hole, the mouse never came out of the tunnel. Since that time, the God has been guarding the mouse-hole at the foothills of the Gandhamardan. He is worshipped as Nrusinghanath in this temple. 

The story symbolizes the holing up, as it were, of the demonic evil power of tyranny and torture, that never dares to come out into the open, as Lord Nrusinghanath, alias Marjara Keshari, has been guarding it ever since. It is also a strange that not a single crow can be spotted near the temple.

Location

The temple of Lord Nrusinghanath is situated at Durgapali in Paikmal block under the Padampur sub-division in Bargarh district. The place is 400 km away from Bhubaneswar, 160 km from Sambalpur; 110 km from Bargarh district headquarter, 115 km from Bolangir and 150 km from Raipur in Chhattisgarh. Khariar Road and Bargarh Railway Stations are the nearest railheads. 

In and Around 

At Nrusinghanath one can visit Chal Dhar, a stream which lies at a distance of 400 meters from the temple, Bhima Dhar, another stream (425 meters from the temple), Sita Kunda, a natural reservoir (500 meters from the temple), Panchupandava, a place of mythological interest (1.5km from the temple), Kapil Dhar and Supta Dhar, other streams located nearby, and Bhima Madua (11km from the temple).

As per historical evidence, Baijal Singh Dev, king of Patnagarh, laid the foundation of this historic temple in 1313 AD. The temple is 45 feet high and divided into two parts. While the first is the throne of the deity the second is allotted to Jagamohana. It is a chamber with three gates and supported by four pillars. The temple displays the Odiya style of architecture. 

Asthabhuja Ganesh

A statue of Lord Ganesha with eight hands is found near the entrance of the temple. It is a unique piece of sculpture. The Asthabhuja statue is carved on a large slab of stone and is a rare sculptural specimen. 

Festivals

A massive fair is held every year on the 14th day of the bright fortnight in the month of Vaisakha here. Visitors and devotees from the adjacent districts as well as those from Chhattisgarh flock in to witness the great ‘Baisakha Mela’.

In the small market near the temple rare medicinal herbs and roots are available. The Gandhamardan hill has precious herbs that are not available anywhere else. Also, trekking at Narsinghanath can be immensely exciting. People trek up to Harishankar traversing the seven hills during Baisakha Mela.

The beautiful garden that attracts tourists has statues of Lord Krishna in His different avatars and a 28 ft Hanuman statue. There are many guesthouses here like the Mandir Guesthouse, Vindhyavasini Guesthouse, Dharmasala and the Panthanivash of the tourism department – all near the temple. So, tourists can plan to stay over for a night or two if they want. But there are not only good eateries around, and if you are on the lookout for quality cuisine you would be disappointed.

Pramod Rath

Pramod Rath

I have visited Nrusinghanath several times. It is a calm and quiet place and the picturesque location beckons tourists. The tourism department should create more facilities for visitors. The temple is a religious shrine of great importance as rituals performed to wash off sins like the killing of cows and cats are performed here unlike in many other temples in the state.

Swaroop Rath

Swaroop Rath

The thread ceremony of my son was held at Nrusinghanath. I am happy that my son got the blessings of the Lord at this sacred shrine. This is a place loaded with mythological significance. We really enjoyed our two-day stay as the ambience is simply divine. The experience of taking a bath in the Chal Dhar was thrilling. 

Sujata Sadangi

Sujata Sadangi

The idol of Lord Nrusinghanath went missing a few years back. It was later found at Sambalpur railway station. A person was accosted by the police carrying the idol in a jute bag. Surprisingly, he found it extremely difficult to carry the bag, though it was light. The stolen idol was found in the bag.

Jugar Yatra at Kuchipali in Bargarh, Odisha

Jugar Yatra in Kuchipali village of Bargarh District is a unique celebration. This is the only festival of its kind though some other villages of the same district have attempted in the last few years to organize one in their villages. It is true that western Orissa pays homage and gratefulness to the deities via a series of festivals but some rituals of those festivals do not go well with a majority of people. Amongst those, the practice of animal sacrifice has been objected several times in different ways. Protesting against this cruel ritual, the villagers commenced Jugar Yatra in 1985 where Jugars are offered to Goddess Kali declining the brutal convention of sacrificing animals in the name of devotion. A report by Himanshu Guru.

Goddess Kali in Kuchipali Village

In this festival mammoth Jugars are taken in a carnival and finally offered to Goddess Kali at her shrine located in the village. After the ‘Jugar’ is offered to the Goddess, it is distributed among the villagers and devotees present there. The inhabitants believe that offering the ‘Jugar’ and distributing it among the people fetches peace and prosperity to the village. The festival has become very popular and lakhs of devotees visit the remote village from different places of Orissa and some from the adjacent state Chhatishgarh. A report by Himanshu Guru.

What is ‘Jugar’

Jugar

Jugar is a cone-shaped food item made of parched boiled rice and jaggery, called Lia and Gur respectively in the local language besides coconut and 12 different kinds of palatable items, put together in a frame of 12 to 15 feet high. Jugars are offered to the mother deities including Goddess Durga and Kali. Normal size of Jugar prepared in houses and offered to the Goddess during occasions like Durga Puja, Bhai Jiuntia and Kali Puja ranges from ½ to 1 foot high. But the Jugars prepared for the ‘Jugar Yatra’ ranges from 8 to 15 feet approximately. And that is the prime attraction of the festival. The fiesta takes name from this recipe. Normally People make wishes and when their wishes are fulfilled they make Jugar and offer it to the divine mother. Of course some people also prepare without any wish but just out of devotion.

Preparation

Prepartion of Jugar for the Yatra begins four months ahead of the festival since the right quality of jaggery and fried paddy are available then. Jugar is a huge sized food structure and no compromise can be made in selection of its raw material, lest the formation may collapse at any point of time.

Motto of the festival

The Jugar Yatra of Kuchipali basically conveys the message to the society to propagate devotion without harming anybody else, human or animal. It is their way of conveying to the society that Gods and Goddesses can be pleased with non-vegetarian food materials. Slaying of a huge number of animals is not a essential ritual of worship. And even if this is a ritual, the tradition can be compromised and there is no harm in it.

Communal harmony

Jugar Yatra is not only about divine aspect, but it also sows seeds of communal harmony. The hamlet of Kuchipali houses people from all the religions and all of them take part actively in the festival. In the last years it has been observed that not only Hindus but Muslims have also prepared Jugars for the festival. They also take active part in the whole process. Not only just as members but sometimes have they become organizers of this festival. Again, despite prevalence of strong laws on equality, sometimes lower caste people, like Harizans are kept away of the social functions in some remote pockets. But Jugar yatra even counters this evil practice and people from these castes have taken leading part in the last years in this festival.

Kalash Yatra at Kuchipali

The Carnival

The Jugar Yatra carnival, locally called procession is the most fascinating part of this festival. People prepare life size Jugars, decorate them with gift papers, nylon clothes and other decorative stuffs and include it in the carnival that passes through the main road to finally reach the shrine of Goddess Kali in the village. Lakhs of people witness this incredible gala. Not only the Jugars, but musical extravaganza road shows are also part of the carnival. The festival is also a platform where a series of music and dance troupes showcase folk culture of the area. Amongst these, duldulibaza, namoguru, ramtali, karamsani, krushnaguru, ghantabadya, sankhadhwani etc. are the popular music-dance extravaganzas.

The silver Jugar

The ‘silver jugar’ is a noticeable element in the festival. In the last years, silver Jugars made of 21x21 kg parched rice and sugarcane molasses were witnessed. The Jugar was enclosed with a layer of silver sheet. The silver sheet was carved with drawings.

Bottom Line

In the name of custom, innocent animals are killed during festivals dedicated to Gods and Goddesses. This rite has become a tradition and the same is followed from generation to generation while the followers do not bother to pay heed to their conscience whether to slaughter innocent animals or not. But Jugar Yatra of Kuchipali in Bargarh district has discarded this ever going evil tradition and has successfully completed 29 years, which is proof to the fact that Goddess of course do not want innocent animals be killed in huge numbers in her name.

The Carnival for Jugar Yatra

If not used for God, It is useless

Karunamayee Durga Maa

All natural things around us, created for a noble reason, should be used only after offered to God. Because God has created the whole world and he has provided us with natural resources like flower, fruit, greenery, water, soil etc. Hence, being grateful to the provider, we should try to offer all affirmative stuffs to God. One can ask, if all the stuff will be offered to the almighty, what is left for us? Think practically, does God practically take away anything from us that we offer during worship? No. The flower, fruit or food stuff (that we offer as ‘Prasad’) can very well be used even after offering it to God. 

Mother gives birth to a child. Likewise God has created us and so she/he is our eternal mother or father. He loves us and so affectionately longs for things from us, like we expect gifts from our parents on our birthdays. Thus, if we really love God, we should offer him good stuff around us. 

One can think, we can’t sit for worship throughout the day to offer things to the God. But sages as well as mythological texts have solved this dilemma too. You don’t need to sit before the idol always to offer something, rather you just hold it in your hands and imagine that you are giving it to God and he is receiving it from you. That’s all. The process will take only a second, not even a minute. My personal feeling is that even if you don’t do so, still God is kind enough not to hurt you, but yes, if you do so, definitely He will be happy to bless you.

To explain the aforementioned notion let us analyze the lyrics of the famous devotional song - ‘Maili chaadar Odh Ke Kaise dwar tumhare aaun’. In this bhajan by great singer Hari Om Sharanam, the interlude says, “In pairon se chalkar tere Mandir Kabhi naa aaya, jahan jahan ho puja teri kabhi na sish jhukaya…..” The meaning says, “I’ve never visited any of your temples after having a walk with the help of my legs, I’ve never bowed down my head at any places of your worship”. The inner meaning of these rich lines is – the lyricist feels guilty of not visiting a temple using his legs or not bowing down his head before an idol and so these body parts are useless. This is the thinking style of great devotees, who want to dedicate all their efforts to God and when miss out, feel to be at fault.

For further understanding let me narrate a story – Once two friends were moving through the forest and came across with a tiger. One of the friends at once climbed a big tree. The other was unable to climb and so decided to lie down on the ground like a dead body to pretend the beast. The tiger went close to him and first observed his hands and behaved as if it did not get the thing it was expecting. Then it inspected his legs and went on observing all his body parts. Finally it spared him and returned back to the deep forest. 

The first man got down from the tree and asked his friend on the ground why the tiger did not made him its prey. The friend was also surprised and had not any answer. Subsequently, both of them went to a sage, who could read minds of both humans and animals to uncover the reason. The learned person used his special aptitude and explained the reason – The bear first observed his hands to find whether this individual has any day worshipped God using his hands and it found it to be negative. Then the animal approached his legs to check whether he has walked to a shrine to offer prayer utilizing his legs and it was again negative. Likewise it examined all the organs and found that none of those were used for God and hence rejected to make him its prey. It was a shame that even a beast rejected a human being since he never devoted a single effort to God.

The effect of the above notion can be witnessed in our daily life even today. I would like to narrate a real incident that occurred in my life in this context. My wife wanted to create a roof top garden and accordingly brought some flower plants along with their vases. She took care of the plants everyday and soon flowers were there in these plants. I wanted to pluck some flowers for daily worship, but she was of the opinion that the flowers should be in the plants for a beautiful scene. Not to displease her, I started praying God to make some other arrangement for the flowers and another lady volunteered me to take flowers from her garden. To my surprise I found that almost all the plants erected by my wife in the roof top garden dried up despite regular care in a couple of days. You may take it as a coincidence, but my belief, that everything should be used for God and if not used it is useless, earned a confirmation from the incident.

God loves us as His children and so waits for our gifts. These are very small things to offer, in comparison to our cherished big material wants for which we waste the whole of our life to earn. Again, it is not taken away from us after offering. So what is bad in offering the same to God?