| Temples & Legends of Bengal |
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| Temples & Legends Of India |
THE TEMPLES IN BANKURA |
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| The temples
dedicated to Lord Siva are found scattered throughout the district. The Siva Gajans or
melas associated with the worship of Lord Siva are often the scene of various types of
self-immolation. Charak or swinging by rope fixing an iron hook to the body mentioned
elsewhere was a common feature throughout Bankura district in connection with the Siva Gajans. This has now been prohibited but fire walking is still observed at certain places. Chandi Devi is also another favourite deity in this district. The impact of Jainism in Bankura district was once as great as that in Purulia district discussed elsewhere. There are still a number of Jain relics scattered in the district. But the Jain relics at villages Sonatopal, Bahulara, Dharapat,Harmasrah, Paresnath (near Ambiknagar village) are now taken as Hindu relics and some of the intact images are daily worshipped as Hindu deities. The temples at Dharapat and Bahulara villages have got naked Jain images, which are known as "Nangta Thakur" or the naked deities. The influence of Jainism has abated by the impact of Brahmanism and later by the spread of Vaishnava religion and the temple at Dharapat is one of the greatest illustrations of this adjustment of three different religious creeds.3 3 Bankurar Mandir by Amiya Kumar Bandopadhyaya, p. 77. |
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| About Bankura | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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