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TEMPLES OF TRIPURA
TRIPURA SUNDARI TEMPLE :
The temple of Tripura Sundari, considered to be one of the
51 pithas of Hindu pilgrims consists of square type
sanctum of the typical Bengali-hut type construction with
a conical dome and stands on a hillock at Udaipur. It is
located at a distance of 58 kms from Agartala and 3 kms
from Udaipur which is the district Head-Quarter of the
South Tripura district.
According
to an inscription note on the monuments by the
Archaeological Survey of India, there are two identical
images of the same deity i.e. Tripura Sundari, inside the
temple. One is called 'Chhotima' which appears to be a
regional one measuring about 2 feets in height, while the
other 'Tripura Sundari' is of 5 feet. It is difficult to
date the image of Chhotima accurately as it is worn-out.
Moreover the attributes in her hands are either too much
blurred or lost. This pithasthan is also known as 'Kurma
Pitha' because of the shape of the temple premises resembles that of
a 'kurma' i.e. a tortoise. Inside the temple the idol of
Maa Kali is kept which is made of 'reddish black Kasti
pathar'. Maa Kali is worshipped here in 'Soroshi' form.
There is an idol of a smaller size of Maa Kali called 'Chotti
Maa' which used to be carried by the Maharajas of Tripura
during "Mrigaya'' (i.e. hunting) and also during war.
It
is known that the temple was first constructed by Maharaja
Dhanya Manikya in 1501 A. D. It was repaired by Maharaja
Rama Manikya in 1681 A D, when it was damaged by lightning
and again by Maharaja Radhakishore Manikya during the
beginning of this century. In the Eastern side of the
temple there is the famous Kalyan Sagar where fishes and
tortoises of huge size are found and devotees feed them
with puffed rice (Muri) and biscuits. No fishing is
permitted in Kalyan Sagar.
Bhubaneswari Temple:
The temple of Bhubaneswari also stands on the right bank of the Gomati
river at Udaipur. It was built by Maharaja Govinda Manikya,
the name immortalised through Tagore's famous works,
Visarjan and Rajarshi. It is located near
the old Royal palace of Maharaja Goivinda Manikya
constructed during 1660-1675 A.D. Prior to shifting of the
capital to Old Agartala by Maharaja Krishna Manikya,
Udaipur (Rangamati) continued to be the capital of Tripura.
Udaipur is also famous as 'temple
town of Tripura'. The architectural beauties of Gunabati
group of temples, Mahadev Bari, Ramkrishna Mission etc.
have already attracted the attention of the visiting
tourists.
Kali Temple:
The Kali temple of Kasba also known as Kasba Kali Bari is about 27 kms
from  Agartala and is situated on a hillock over looking a
wide pool of water called Kamala Sagar.
The image of the goddess resembles that of
Dasabhuja Durga or Mahishasurmardini. Made up of sand
stone, the goddess is worshipped in the temple as Kali and
the presence of a Shivalinga at its feet has led to the
naming of the temple as Kalibari. Thousands of pilgrims
from different parts of the country and neighbouring
country Bangladesh visit this sacred temple during
festival.
BenuBan Bihar:
This Buddhist temple
in Agartala,
bears testimony to the fact that from the years of
yore Tripura has been extending hospitality and patronage
to the religion and culture of its neighbours. The quiet
temple and the monastery on the picturesque setting is
indeed an attraction to the visiting tourists.
Chaturdasha Devta Temple:
It is located about 14 kms away from Agartala at old Agartala. The
Chaturdasha Devata Temple of old Agartala goes back not to
a very remote past, but from the historical point of view,
it has a special importance. During the middle of the 18th
century A. D. Udaipur fell before Samser Gaji, compelling
Maharaja Krishna Manikya to shift his capital from Udaipur
to Old Agartala. The royal palace of Old Agartala, now in
ruins, still attracts visitors. The temple of Chaturdasha
Devata was built for the fourteen head images of Gods and
Goddesses called 'Chaturadasha Devta' by the King Krishna
Manikya and these head images are ceremoniously worshipped
during the ‘Kharchi Puja’. The images present in the
temple represent only the heads of the gods and goddesses
worshiped. It is only during Karachi Puja that all the
fourteen gods are brought in the open for worship in
public. Thousands of pilgrims and devotees from tribal and
non-tribal communities visit this place during festival.
The temple consists of a Nat Mandapa and Garbhagriha. The
roof of the temple is flat, on which rise two conical
domes, the upper one stepped slightly behind the lower
one. The top of the dome is crowned with Kalasa (pitcher)
including Pataka (flag).
Jagannath Temple:
Besides several temples of Vishnu, temples belonging to Siva and Sakta
cult have been found at Udaipur. Hari Temple on the bank
of Jagannath Dighi, the Jhulan Temple, the Durga Temple
and Vishnu Temple date back to the the 17th century A.D.
On the South West bank of the famous Jagannath
Dighi (tank) in the heart of Udaipur town, is found the
ruins of a temple called the Jagannath Temple, a rare
specimen of temple architecture in Tripura. It is said
that, Daityanaryana, the General-in Chief of Maharaja
Bijaya Manikya (1529-1560 A. D.) had brought the idol of
Lord Jagannath from Puri and installed it in this temple.
This was afterwards removed from this temple and installed
at Comilla. But according to the author of
Silalioi-Samgraha, this temple was built and dedicated to
Vishnu by Maharaja Govinda Manikya and his younger brother
Jagannath Deva jointly in 1661 A. D. It was built in a
style characteristic of the Mohammedan fashion - i.e. the
top crowned with a dome with a vaulted roof. The temple
has its vertical portion built of embodiment of serenity. |