| Temples & Legends Of Bihar |
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| Temples & Legends
Of India |
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MUNDESVARI |
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| Here the
goddess is depicted with ten hands bearing, the usual weapons of a Mahisha- mardini but
with the difference that she is not in the act of killing Mahishasura but is shown as
riding a buffalo representing the demon . Mundesvari image is now the principal deity in
the temple, which is visited by thousands who offer puja to the deity. It is, however,
strange that the image of Mundesvari is found installed in one of the sub-chambers of the
sanctuary and not at the centre of the cella, as is normally the case. A mukhalingam
with four faces has been installed at the centre of the sanctuary of the temple, but this
has not got the honor of being the presiding deity. The mukhalingam is deemed to bear the
Gupta characteristic of art. The present position of Mundesvari has an interesting
history. Dr. K. C. Panigrahi, sometime a Superin- tendent of the Eastern
Archaeological Circle, has held that the presiding deity of the territory round about
Mundesvari Hill was originally Narayana or Vishnu and, in 348-59 A.D., another new deity
Vinitesvara was set up. |
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