Kankalitala is a temple town in

Bolpur Sriniketan Bolpur Sriniketan is a community development block that forms an administrative division in Bolpur subdivision of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. Overview Birbhum district is physiographically a part of the ancient Rarh region ...

CD block in

Bolpur subdivision Bolpur Subdivision is an administrative subdivision of Birbhum district in the state of West Bengal, India. Overview Bolpur subdivision is part of the Suri-Bolpur Plain, a sub-micro physiographic region. It covers the interfluves of the Mayurak ...

Birbhum district Birbhum district () is an administrative unit in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the northernmost district of Burdwan division—one of the five administrative divisions of West Bengal. The district headquarters is in Suri. Other imp ...

in the

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 ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...

Geography

Location

It is located about from

Bolpur Bolpur is a city and a municipality in Birbhum district in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Bolpur subdivision. Bolpur municipal area includes Santiniketan, Sriniketan and Prantik. The city is known as a Cultural a ...

on the

–

Labhpur Labhpur is a census town in Labpur CD block in Bolpur subdivision of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is known to the outside world as the native place of Tarashankar Bandopadhyay and one of the 51 Shakti Peethas. Geogr ...

road. It is situated on the bank of the

Kopai River The Kopai River (also called Sal River) is a tributary of the Bakreshwar River. It flows past such towns as Santiniketan, Bolpur, Kankalitala, Kirnahar and Labhpur in Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a small river ...

. Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the area. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map. Earlier, Kankalitala was marked as a

gram panchayat Gram Panchayat () is a basic village-governing institute in Indian villages. It is a democratic structure at the grass-roots level in India. It is a political institute, acting as cabinet of the village. The Gram Sabha work as the general bod ...

under Bolpur-Sriniketan block. However, in the 2011 census, it was not identified as a separate place, as per Google map and map of Bolpur-Sriniketan on page 718 o
District Census Handbook Birbhum (Part A)
it appears to be a part of Bengutia village.

Politics

As per orders of the Delimitation Commission, Kankalitala, Kasba, Sarpalehana Albandha, Sian Muluk and Singhee gram panchayats of Bolpur–Sriniketan CD Block will form part of

Nanoor (Vidhan Sabha constituency) Nanoor Assembly constituency is an assembly constituency in Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. The seat is reserved for scheduled castes. Overview As per orders of the Delimitation Commission, No. 287, Nanoor Assembly constit ...

and Bolpur (Lok Sabha constituency).

Culture

It is one of the

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 ...

where the waist (or ''kankal'' in Bengali) of

sati Sati or SATI may refer to: Entertainment * ''Sati'' (film), a 1989 Bengali film by Aparna Sen and starring Shabana Azmi * ''Sati'' (novel), a 1990 novel by Christopher Pike *Sati (singer) (born 1976), Lithuanian singer *Sati, a character in ''Th ...

fell. There are several temples in the town. This is also a popular Hindu pilgrimage site of West Bengal. There is another temple in Kankalitala, Kanchishwar Temple in Kankalitala Temple complex.

The Kankalitala Temple as a Shakti Peeth

''The mythology of Daksha yaga and Sati's self immolation'' is the story of origin behind

are holy abode of Devi formed due to the falling of body parts of the corpse of

Sati Sati or SATI may refer to: Entertainment * ''Sati'' (film), a 1989 Bengali film by Aparna Sen and starring Shabana Azmi * ''Sati'' (novel), a 1990 novel by Christopher Pike *Sati (singer) (born 1976), Lithuanian singer *Sati, a character in ''Th ...

Devi, when

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

carried it and wandered through. There are 51 Shakti Peeth linking to the 51 alphabets in Sanskrit. Each temple has shrines for Shakti and

Kalabhairava Bhairava (Sanskrit: भैरव ) or Kala Bhairava is a Shaivite and Vajrayāna deity worshiped by Hindus and Buddhists. In Shaivism, he is a powerful manifestation, or avatar, of Shiva associated with annihilation. In Trika system ''Bhairav ...

. The Shakti of the temple is addressed as "Devgarbha" and the Bhairava as "Ruru". It is believed that Sati Devi's bones have fallen here.

References

External links

* {{Temple towns in West Bengal Cities and towns in Birbhum district