Bamakhyapa ( bn, বামাখ্যাপা, Bamakhæpa, mad saint; 1837–1911
[Kinsely, p. 111]), born Bamacharan Chattopadhyay, was an
Indian
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
Hindu saint There is no formal canonization process in Hinduism, but over time many men and women have reached the status of saints among their followers and among Hindus in general. Hindu saints have often renounced the world, and are variously called Gurus, s ...
who is held in great reverence in
Tarapith
Tarapith is a 13-century Hindu temple in Chandipur village Rampurhat II CD block in Rampurhat subdivision of Birbhum district of the Indian state of West Bengal, known for its Tantric temple and its adjoining cremation (Maha Shmashan) groun ...
and whose shrine is also located in the vicinity of the
Tara temple in Birbhum. He worshipped Maa Tara as if she was his own mother. He was born at
Atla village
Atla is a village in Rampurhat I CD Block in Rampurhat subdivision of Birbhum district, West Bengal, India. It is famous for being the birthplace Bamakhepa, a saint of India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country ...
in Rampurhat subdivision of Birbhum district.
Worship
Bamakhaypa, goddess Tara's ardent devotee lived near the temple and meditated in the cremation grounds.
He was a contemporary of famous Bengali saints like
Ramakrishna
Ramakrishna Paramahansa ( bn, রামকৃষ্ণ পরমহংস, Ramôkṛṣṇo Pôromohôṅso; , 18 February 1836 – 16 August 1886),——— — also spelled Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, born Gadadhar Chattopadhyaya,, was an In ...
Paramhamsa and Vishuddhanand Paramhamsa from Gyanganj or Siddhashram who established Navmundi Asan at Kashi. At a young age, he left his house and came under the tutelage of a saint named Swami Makshadananda, who lived in a village name Dakshingram, in Birbhum district. Later he relocated to
maluti
Maluti (also Malooti) is a village in Shikaripara CD block in the Dumka subdivision of the Dumka district of Jharkhand, India. It was built under the Baj Basanta dynasty. The area has 72 old temples, which are edifices to the kings of the Pala D ...
, an old temple village on the banks of
Dwarka River
The Dwarka River (also called Babla) is a tributary of Bhagirathi.
Course
The Dwaraka originates in Santhal Parganas in Jharkhand, flows through Deucha, and then through Mayureswar and Rampurhat police station areas of Birbhum district. It fina ...
. He stayed in Mouliksha temple for continuing the worship of Holy Mother.
![Bamakhyapa's_Temple](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Bamakhyapa%27s_Temple.jpg)
He perfected yoga and Tantric
sadhana (worship)under the tutelage of his guru baba Kailashpati, which resulted in his becoming the spiritual head of Tarapith. People came to him seeking blessings or cures for their illness, in distress or just to meet him. He did not follow the set rules of the temple and as result was even once roughed up by the temple priests for taking food meant as offering for the deity. It is said: Ma Tara appeared in the dream of
Maharani ("Queen") of
Natore
Natore district is a district of Rajshahi Division located in northern Bangladesh. It borders the metropolitan city of Rajshahi, and used to be part of Rajshahi district.
History
Natore was the District Headquarters of Rajshahi from 1769 to 182 ...
-
Rani Annadasundari Devi
''Rani'' in Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia, sometimes spelled ''Ranee'', is a Hindu/Sanskrit feminine given name. The term is the female form of the term for princely rulers in South and Southeast Asia and applies equally to the wife of a ...
and told her to feed the saint first as he was her son. After this incident, Bamakhaypa was fed first in the temple before the deity and nobody obstructed him.
It is believed that Ma Tara gave a vision to Bamakhaypa in the cremation grounds in her ferocious form and then took him to her breast.
He is also considered one of the main spiritual figures of
Bengal Renaissance
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
for his unbound devotion for Ma
Tara.
Popular culture
Beginning in 2007, a teleserial named ''
'Sadhak Bamakhepa about Bamakhepa ran on television in Bengal. By late 2011, it had run for 1500 episodes.
[Gomolo news desk. (29 Nov 2011)]
"Sadhok Bamakhyapa becomes highly popular"
(accessed 31 Jan 2013)
In the teleserial ''
Mahapeeth Tarapeeth
''Mahapeeth Tarapeeth'' was a Bengali mythological show that was aired on Star Jalsha and is also available on Disney+ Hotstar. The show narrates the origin of Tarapith shrine- the journey from fear to faith and chart the various phases of Maa ...
'', the life of the ardent devotee Bamakhepa was also depicted elaborately.
References
Further reading
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1877 births
1911 deaths
19th-century Hindu religious leaders
19th-century Bengalis
20th-century Bengalis
Indian Hindu yogis
Indian Hindu monks
Tantra
Bengali Hindu saints
{{Hindu-bio-stub