Tag: Temples of Bangladesh

There is a twin Temple of Shiva in Bangladesh in Jessore suburb.

 

Incidentally this was the first city to be liberated during Pakistan Bangladesh conflict when Bangladesh was a part of Pakistan,as East Pakistan.

 

 

 

 

‘ Near the town of Jessore, there is a suburb called Chanchra and in there lays a Jora Shiv Temple at Murali in almost dilapidated condition. That temple is a tiny treasure trove of mythological creatures that spawn primarily the Hindu mythology preserved magnificently over the ages, and knowing its history only heightens its significance. Furthermore, getting there from Dhaka is not a big hassle and the can be done within a span of give and take five hours which makes it a must see for those interested in our ancient history…

 

As the name says, there are two almost identical Shiv temples in the location (Jora, meaning a pair) and the temple themselves are roughly 27 feet in height – not that impressive. However, what are impressive lies in the doorway of the first temple; the arch of the doorway is engraved in repetitive motifs and a little above it lies engraved the head of a mythical creature, with its head shaped like an elephant and teeth like that of a crocodile. Two heads are engraved in symmetry above two ends of the archway and jumping from the two heads are two lions in leap towards a fruit tree, their mouths perched open with a fruit clasped in their teeth. Furthermore, roughly 7-8 feet above the lions lie plastered a small almost destroyed image with four arms which could either represent the Hindu god Shiv, or Kali (Shiv’s destructive form is known as Kali; Shiv being the destroyer of the world). Above the plastered image lie a row of images of humans and one fruit, with the two heads of the mythical creature at two ends of the row as if engulfing the humans.

 

The Sea Monster

I was amazed the first time I saw the temple. Most famous temples are engraved with stories from the Mahabharata or the Ramayana, such as the Kantajee temple or the Govinda temple, but this was a first I encountered in Bangladesh intricately decorated solely based on creature mythology. The elephant head with teeth of a crocodile was undoubtedly that of a makara. Locals address it as the mokkor and claim it to be a sea monster still lurking in the waters of our part of the world – our very own lochness monster you may say – and some even claimed that their forefathers had seen it. I do not know about the sightings but they were at least partially right.

The makara has appeared in Indian and Buddhist art from ancient times: on temple pots, on rare pre-Kusana (1^st century AD, in the region that is now Afghanistan) coins, on temple walls, as sculptured waterspout.

 

The temple is in a ruined condition.

 

I am unable to get the History of the Temple.

Citation.

http://bangladeshunlocked.blogspot.in/2011/03/chanchra-shiva-temple-jessore.html

http://adnanfakir.wordpress.com/2011/07/17/chanchra%E2%80%99s-jora-shiv-temple-the-legend-of-the-makara/

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