Chinnamasta Bhagawati also called Shakhada Bhagawati and Shakhadeswori ( Nepali: छिन्नमस्ता भगवती) is a temple and

Shakti Peethas The Shakti Pitha or the Shakti Peethas ( sa, शक्ति पीठ, , ''seat of Shakti'') are significant shrines and pilgrimage destinations in Shaktism, the goddess-centric denomination in Hinduism. The shrines are dedicated to various fo ...

in Eastern Nepal. It was established as a Siddha Peetha originally by Shaktisimhadeva in 13th cenury, the fifth ruler of Karnata dynasty. The temple is situated in Chhinnamasta Rural Municipality,

Saptari Saptari ( ne, सप्तरी जिल्ला}), a part of Madhesh Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. Its district headquarter is Rajbiraj. Saptari is an Outer Terai district. This district covers an area of and has ...

, 10 km from

Rajbiraj Rajbiraj ( ne, राजविराज) is a mid-sized municipality located in the south-eastern part of Madhesh Province of Nepal. Rajbiraj is the district headquarters of Saptari and is the eighth largest city in the province. The township of ...

near the Indian border. It is the most oldest, most revered holy place and prominent worshipped place in the Saptari district. There is a statue of the goddess inside the temple. The holy temple is one of the major temples of the country that draws thousands of devotees from

Nepal Nepal (; ne, :ne:नेपाल, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in S ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

during Bada Dashain and other

festivals A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

to worship goddess Bhagawati.

Etymology

The historical name of the temple is Sakhada Bhagawati and the place is known as Sakhada. The name 'Sakhada' is an abbreviation of the last affix of 'Shakra'. The name is derived from the King's nickname, Shakrasimhadeva who is also known as Shaktisimhadeva. In modern times, the temple is known as Chinnamasta because goddess head was missing.

History

In 1097 CE, the

Karnat dynasty Karnat or Karnata dynasty was a Maithil dynasty established in 1097 CE. The dynasty had two capitals which were Simraungadh in Bara District of Nepal and Darbhanga, Bihar which became the second capital during the reign of Gangadeva. The kingdom ...

was established by

Nanyadeva Nanyadeva ( IAST: ') was the founder of the Karnata (Karan Kayastha) dynasty of Mithila. He was the ancestor of Harisimhadeva and descendant of Suheldev . He established his capital in Simraungadh and ruled the greater Mithila region for 50 yea ...

Simraungadh Simraungadh, Simraongarh or Simroungarh (, Devanagari: सिम्रौनगढ) was a fortified city and the main capital of the Tirhut Kingdom founded by Karnat King Nanyadeva in 1097. At present time, it is a municipality of Nepal, locat ...

, who was from Karnata left his state and ran through

Pataliputra Pataliputra ( IAST: ), adjacent to modern-day Patna, was a city in ancient India, originally built by Magadha ruler Ajatashatru in 490 BCE as a small fort () near the Ganges river.. Udayin laid the foundation of the city of Pataliputra at the ...

and came to stay in

Bara district Bara District ( ne, बारा जिल्ला ) is one of the seventy–seven districts of Nepal, located in the western part of the Madhesh Province. The district is third richest district in Nepal after Kathmandu and Morang with 3.3% sh ...

of Nepal. He made Nanapura,

Champaran Champaran is a region of Bihar in India. It is now divided into an East Champaran district and a West Champaran district. Notable people * Manoj Bajpai – Indian film actor * Dinesh Bhramar – poet and noted figure in Hindi and Bhojpuri l ...

as his first capital but later he moved his capital to

. He was accompanied by lot of his followers including Hindu priests and Kayastha community members. King Nanyadeva's fifth generation descendant was King Shaktisimhadeva aka Shakrasimhadeva (r. 1285 to 1295 CE). He was

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

by his

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

and minister Chadeshwar Thakur with the help of Think-tank council in 1295 CE. After he was dethrone from his supremacy, he came to the present day Saptari district to live the rest of his life in ''Vaanaprastha'' (Forest Life) after handing over Kingdom to his younger son Harisimhadeva. Over time, the village was full of

jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''ja� ...

. He cleared the dense jungle with his men to build a temple and establish his goddess deity in his name as ''Sakhreswari''. The king's fort was nearby the temple, known as ''Gadhi Gaachhi'' locally. The temple is locally known as ''Sakhra Bhagawati'' or ''Sakhreswari Bhagawati''. Since the idol's severed head of the goddess Bhagwati is there, it is known as Chinnamasta Bhagawati.

Invasion

The

Tughlaq dynasty The Tughlaq dynasty ( fa, ), also referred to as Tughluq or Tughluk dynasty, was a Muslim dynasty of Indo- Turkic origin which ruled over the Delhi sultanate in medieval India. Its reign started in 1320 in Delhi when Ghazi Malik assumed the ...

ruled the Delhi sultanate and most of Northern India from 1320 to 1413 CE. In 1324 CE, the founder of the dynasty and

Sultan of Delhi The following list of Indian monarchs is one of several lists of incumbents. It includes those said to have ruled a portion of the Indian subcontinent, including Sri Lanka. The earliest Indian rulers are known from epigraphical sources fou ...

, Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq turned his attention towards

Bengal 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 ...

. They invaded Bengal and on his way back to Delhi, the ruler comes to know about Simraungadh. The Tughlaq armies cross through present-day Saptari to reach Simraungadh, which cause damage of this temple and idol of goddess Bhagawati.

Gallery

File:Chhinnamasta Bhagwati.jpg, The temple seen from the north gate. File:Chinnamasta Temple(North entrance gate).jpg, North entrance gate. File:Temple Dharmashala.jpg, Chinnamasta temple dharmashala.

Etymology

History

Invasion

Gallery

References

External links

See also