Malinithan is an archaeological site containing the ruins of an early medieval period temple on the northern bank of the

Brahmaputra River The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, northeast India, and Bangladesh. It is also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, Luit in Assamese, and Jamuna River in Bangla. It ...

in the

Indian state India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, with a total of 36 entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into districts and smaller administrative divisions. History Pre-indepen ...

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (, ) is a state in Northeastern India. It was formed from the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and became a state on 20 February 1987. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It shares int ...

. It is assumed to be built by the Chutia kings in the 13th-14th century.Thakur, A.K, ''Pre-historic Archeological Remains of Arunachal Pradesh and People's perception: An Overview'', p.6
/ref> Kechai-Khaiti, a tribal goddess found among the Bodo-kachari groups or the Buddhist goddess Tara is considered to be the chief deity worshipped in the ruined temple. The worship of the goddess Kechaikheiti even after coming under Hindu influence was performed according to her old tribal customs. Some scholars identify ''Kesaikhaiti'' to the Tai Khamti female deity of ''Nang Hoo Toungh''.

Location

The Malinithan archaeological site is located at the base of the Siang mountains in the Likabali town and a sub-division of the

Lower Siang district Lower Siang (Pron:/ˈsjæŋ or ˈsɪæŋ/) is one of the 25 administrative districts in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, India. The new district was carved out of West Siang and East Siang districts and declared operational on 22 September 2017 a ...

of Arunachal Pradesh. It is situated on a hill that rises to a height of , which affords a commanding view of the plains around it and of the

Legend

A legend was implanted around the site in the 16th century, connecting the place to the mythological king of Bhishmaka (Lord of

Vidarbha Vidarbha (Pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, �id̪əɾbʱə is a geographical region in the east of the Indian state of Maharashtra and a Proposed states and union territories of India#Maharashtra, proposed state of central India, comprising th ...

) of the epics. The association of the legend with the place led to a widespread renaming of the region. As per the mythology constructed, when

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...

wanted to marry Rukmini, the daughter of King Bhishmaka of Vidarbha, he abducted her prior to her wedding with Shishupala. Krishna and Rukmini then travelled from Bhishmakanagar to Dwarka, stopping at Malinithan on the way over, where they were guests of

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 ...

and

Durga Durga ( sa, दुर्गा, ) is a major Hindu goddess, worshipped as a principal aspect of the mother goddess Mahadevi. She is associated with protection, strength, motherhood, destruction, and wars. Durga's legend centres around co ...

, who were doing penance.

Parvati Parvati ( sa, पार्वती, ), Uma ( sa, उमा, ) or Gauri ( sa, गौरी, ) is the Hindu goddess of power, energy, nourishment, harmony, love, beauty, devotion, and motherhood. She is a physical representation of Mahadevi i ...

, Shiva's consort, warmly welcoming her guests, presented them with garlands made of flowers plucked from her orchard.

History

The temple does not find any mention in the 10th–11th century

Kalika Purana The Kalika Purana ( sa, Kālikā Purāṇa), also called the Kali Purana, Sati Purana or Kalika Tantra, is one of the eighteen minor Puranas (''Upapurana'') in the Shaktism tradition of Hinduism. The text was likely composed in Assam or Cooch Beha ...

. From all archaeological evidences at the site, archaeologists have opined that the temple belonged to the 13th century. Stone mason marks found in Malinithan were also found in other sites of

Sadiya Sadiya is a town in Tinsukia district, Assam. It was the capital of the Chutia Kingdom and after the downfall of the kingdom it became the seat of the ''Sadiya-khowa-Gohain'' of the Ahom kingdom. Extensive remains of buildings and fortificati ...

Tamreswari temple Tamreswari temple (also Dikkaravasini, Kesai Khati) is situated about 18 km away from Sadiya in Tinsukia district, Assam, India. The temple was in the custody of non-Brahmin tribal priests called Deoris. Some remains suggest that a Chut ...

, Bura-buri, Padum pukhuri as well as other places like Nakshaparbat and Buroi.

Features

The archaeological excavations revealed a very well designed and carved plinth of a temple, high, with sculptures of deities and animals, designs of flowers, damaged columns and panels. Four sculptures of lions on two elephants were found at the four corners of the ruins of the temple. Among the sculptures found at Malinthan, five notable ones carved out of granite stone are of

Indra Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war. volumes/ref> I ...

riding his mount Airavata,

Kartikeya Kartikeya ( sa, कार्त्तिकेय, Kārttikeya), also known as Skanda, Subrahmanya, Shanmukha (), and Murugan ( ta, முருகன்), is the Hindu god of war. He is the son of Parvati and Shiva, the brother of Ganesha ...

riding a peacock,

Surya Surya (; sa, सूर्य, ) is the sun as well as the solar deity in Hinduism. He is traditionally one of the major five deities in the Smarta tradition, all of whom are considered as equivalent deities in the Panchayatana puja and a m ...

(Sun) riding a chariot, and

Ganesha Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu d ...

mounted over a mouse and a large

Nandi bull Nandi ( sa, नन्दि), also known as Nandikeshwara or Nandideva, is the bull vahana of the Hindu god Shiva. He is also the guardian deity of Kailash, the abode of Shiva. Almost all Shiva temples display stone-images of a seated Nandi, g ...

. On the basis of the erotic Maithuna sculptures found here in different postures, it is believed that tantricism prevailed here as a fertility rite of the primitive tribal people who held the "mother principal as the procreative power of nature". The temple is carved entirely out of stone, a type of temple known as ''Asmamayai''. Iron dowels discovered in the ruins of the stone temple resembles the ones found in the Tamreswari temple of Sadiya, showing that it was probably built by the same people.Religious History of Arunachal Pradesh by Byomakesh Tripathy, p.354
/ref>

Gallery

File:Malini than Mother godess scuplture.jpg, Malinithan Mother goddess sculpture File:Gaja-singha of Malini Than.jpg, Gaja-singha of Malinithan File:Malini than Shiva sculpture.jpg, Malinithan Buddhist Tara sculpture File:Malini than Kartika scuplture.jpg, Malinithan Kartika sculpture File:Malini than Apsara scuplture.jpg, Malinithan Apsara sculpture File:Malini than Likabali.jpg, The newly developed Mandir of Malinithan

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{Cite journal, last = Gogoi, first=Kakoli, title = Envisioning Goddess Tara: A Study of the Tara Traditions in Assam , journal= Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, volume=72 , year=2011, pages= 232–239, jstor=44146715, issn= 2249-1937 Shiva temples Hindu temples in Lower Siang district Shiva temples in Arunachal Pradesh 13th-century Hindu temples 14th-century Hindu temples