There are lots of Buddhist heritage places within our state which we all are unaware of. So one day, I get the information about Aragarh and after that I decided to visit the site.
A route map from Bhubaneswar to Aragarh via Jatani
Aragarh, also known as Airagarh, is situated north of the river Daya in Godiput-Matiapada panchayat under Delang block. It is a hill located 256 feet above sea level and stretches for over three km from east to west.
The sign board
The sign board
The stairs up to the site are really hectic one. First straight and then in zig-zag type. On a sunny day you must have two liters of water with you otherwise it will really give you a dehydration.
The stairs up to the site
The stairs up to the site
Archaeological Findings
On its top(eastern side) there stands a two storied, flat roofed Buddhist Chaitya (temple). The backside of the Chaitya has been closed by a masorry wall, two sides fitted with grilled stoned windows measuring 21" X 20".
Pic. №1
Some more archaeological findings are in below pictures.
Pic. №2
Pic. №3
Pic. №4(Votive Stupas)
The four pillars of Chaitya are carved with nagakanyas and gajasimha motifs. In the upper chamber, Buddhist icons were worshipped. The ground floor was for mendicants. They practised yoga and lived there.
Pic. №5
Pic. №6
I tried to capture inside this chaitya but the picture was not up to the mark. Still, I guess, we can have a view of inside in below photos.
Pic. №7
Pic.№8
A broken Buddhist icon of 42" X 21" is also found in this place. Another broken icon of 2 feet X 2feet, made of igneous rock is lying south of this Chaitya. As many Buddhist icons are found here and there on the hill top of Aragarh, it confirms this place as a great stronghold of Buddhism. The site and images of Aragarh dates back to 10th or 11th century A.D.
Pic. №9
Pic.№10
A Kunda (54" X 50" X 42") carved out of muguni rock is found 4 feet west of this Chaitya.
Pic. №11
A Kunda (54" X 50" X 42") carved out of muguni rock is found 4 feet west of this Chaitya.
Pic. №12
A view of apsidal chaitya of Aragarh , which is almost in destroyed condition.
Pic. №13 An aerial view from Aragarh.
In the mean time, the Buddhist stronghold declined. But the dying flame of the faith lingered in Odisha for several centuries more, that is, even today.
Thanks…
Khambeswari temple, Aska. PC: Debashish Dash https://twitter.com/TheDashDD Goddess Khambhesvari is originally an tribal Goddess worshipped by the tribes of hinterland Odisha. In course of time She was like many other tribal deities given a place in the Hindu pantheon and subsequently she was transformed from a nomadic cult to Shakti cult. Khambhesvari, the Goddess of the Post or Pillar is one of the famous formless autochthonous deities widely worshipped in the hill tracts of Bargarh, Sambalpur, Angul, Dhenkanal, Bolangir, Subarnapur, Boudh, Kalahandi and the Ganjam districts of Odisha. She is worshipped as a manifestation of Shakti in the form of wooden posts or pillars and also through stones. Legends: Khambeswari temple--Aska An interesting legend about the temple in Aska says that once Goddess Khambhesvari appeared in a dream before Khambamuni who lived in the forest and desired that she should be worshipped by the latter. As per the stipulation of Khambamun
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It feels really very exciting when you make reading and travelling your hobby. And believe me then only you will be able to co relate the things. One fine day, I was reading a pdf file of Odisha Govt. and I came to know about a place called Kuruma, an ancient Buddhist site. I decided to go to that place to explore more. This site is located 8.6 kms to the south-east of the famous Sun Temple at Konark in the district of Puri, Odisha. First, you have to go to famous Sun Temple Konarka. From there you just move on to Balidokan, which is just 7.3 km on Konarka-Kakatpur road. From Balidokan square, just turn left to go to Kuruma, which is 1.3 km from there. The Dharma Pokhari or the Pond of Dharma is located nearby the site. Prior to this excavation, a stone slab containing the beautiful figure of Buddha was lying on the bank of this tank. Later on, this image was replaced and enshrined in a newly built shed. Besides the Buddha image, other two images were
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