Maluti (also Malooti) is a village in
Shikaripara
Shikaripara is a community development block in India that forms an administrative division in the Dumka Sadar subdivision of the Dumka district, Jharkhand state, India.
Geography
Shikaripara, the eponymous CD block headquarters, is located at ...
CD block in the Dumka subdivision of the
Dumka district
Dumka district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand state in eastern India. Dumka is the administrative headquarters of this district. This district covers an area of 3716.02 km. This district has a population of 1,321,442 (2011 ...
of
Jharkhand
Jharkhand (; ; ) is a state in eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north and Odisha to the south. It has an area of . It ...
, India. It was built under the Baj Basanta dynasty. The area has 72 old temples, which are edifices to the kings of the Pala Dynasty.
They portray various scenes from Hindu mythology including the
Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...
and the
Mahabharata
The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
. Maluti is known for the annual sacrifice of over 100 goats on
Kali Puja
Kali Puja, also known as Shyama Puja or Mahanisha Puja, is a festival originating from the Indian subcontinent, dedicated to the Hindu goddess Kali. It is celebrated on the new moon day (Dipannita Amavasya) of the Hindu calendar month of Ashway ...
, besides one buffalo and a sheep. Animal activist groups have often strongly looked down at this activity. Today Maluti is endangered by insufficient management of the old temples, and threatened by natural disasters.
Geography
Location
Maluti is located at
Note: The full screen map is interesting. All places marked on the map are linked in the full screen map and one can easily move on to another page of his/her choice. Enlarge the full screen map to see what else is there – one gets railway connections, many more road connections and so on.
Demographics
According to census of 2011; the total number of Houses in Maluti is 325, and the total population is 1469 (male=761, female=708). The total number of children aged 0-6 is 163 (male=93,female=70). 363 people (male=189, female=174) belong to
Schedule Caste
The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...
s, and 52 (male=23, female=29) to
Schedule Tribe
The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...
s.
Maluti village has higher literacy rate compared to Jharkhand overall. In 2011, literacy rate of Maluti village was 75.42% compared to 66.41% in Jharkhand. In Maluti Male literacy stands at 81.29%, while the female literacy rate was 69.28%.
History
Maluti village came into limelight in fifteenth century as the capital of nankar raj (tax-free kingdom). The kingdom was awarded to one Basanta Roy of villag Katigram by
Sultan Alauddin Hussan Shah of
Gauḍa (1495–1525). Son of a poor Brahmin Basanta managed to catch the pet hawk of the sultan and gave it back to the sultan. In lieu of the hawk (Baj), Basanta was given the kingdom. Hence, the king was called Raja Baj Basanta. The capital of Baj Basanta dynasty was in Damra. Later it was shifted to Maluti. The royal family was very pious.
Basanta became a king in lieu of a baj (hawk) by the help of a Dandi Sanyasi of Sumeru Math, Kashi may be true to a great extent because the word Baj has been pre-fixed with the name of Basanta to commemorate the event. The name Baj Basanta is comparatively prominent because it can be found both in local history and government records. Swamiji, the head of Sumeru Math,
Varanasi
Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.
*
*
*
* The city has a syncretic t ...
, was the preceptor of Basanta. Since then the head of Sumeru Math who is called Rajguru becomes the preceptor of descendants of king Baj Banata. Even today Rajguru from Sumeru Math Varanasi spends sometime at Maluti every year.
How Maluti — the capital of Baj Basanta dynasty — turn out to be a 'temple city' is also an interesting story. Instead of constructing palaces, the Rajas built temples. The dynasty was broken into parts (tarafs) but each taraf kept building temples, competing with the others. In the end, it turned out be a unique temple village. Inscriptions in Proto-Bengali on the temples show they were named after women.
In another opinion the name of the village Maluti probably comes from ''Mallahati'' of Malla Kings of Bankura,
Vishnupur had suzerainty over this area. That point of time this area ruled by Malla kings of Bankura was Damin-i-koh ( present
pakur
Pakur (previously known as ''Pakaur'') is a town with a nagar palika in the Pakur subdivision of the Pakur district, Jharkhand state, India.
History
Pakur was earlier a Sub-Division of Santhal Parganas district of Bihar. It was upgraded to the ...
in north.
Burdwan
Bardhaman (, ) is a city and a municipality in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of Purba Bardhaman district, having become a district capital during the period of British rule. Burdwan, an alternative name for the city, ...
in the east,
Midnapore
Medinipur or Midnapore (Pron: med̪iːniːpur) is a city known for its history in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the West Medinipur district. It is situated on the banks of the Kangsabati River (variously known as '' ...
in south and some portion of
Chota Nagpur Plateau
The Chota Nagpur Plateau is a plateau in eastern India, which covers much of Jharkhand state as well as adjacent parts of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal and Bihar. The Indo-Gangetic plain lies to the north and east of the plateau, and the bas ...
in west) This vast land was called
Mallabhum
Mallabhum (The Country originally known as Mallabhoom or Mallabani bn, মল্লভূম or Bishnupur kingdom ) was the kingdom ruled by the Malla kings of Bishnupur, primarily in the present Bankura district in Indian state of West Bengal ...
. The village might have been named in those days by prefixing 'Malla' in relevance with royal dynasty.
Around 1857,
Swami Bamdev (or ''Sadhak Bamakhyapa''), one of Bengal’s greatest spiritual leaders, came here to be a priest but failed because he couldn’t memorise Sanskrit mantras. He was made to cook food for the puja. During his 18-month stay in Maluti, Bamakhyapa used to spend most of his time at Mauliskshya temple. Here he was first blessed. Then, he moved to Tarapith. His trident is still preserved at Maluti.
But Maluti, may not be in this name, existed long before being the kingdom of the tax-exempted capital of Baj Basanta dynasty. It was once revered as a great seat of learning. Mention of Maluti — known as Gupta Kashi in ancient times — is found as early as the
Shunga dynasty
The Shunga Empire (IAST: ') was an ancient Indian dynasty from Magadha that controlled areas of the most of the northern Indian subcontinent from around 185 to 73 BCE. The dynasty was established by Pushyamitra, after taking the throne of the ...
(185 BC - 75 BC), whose founder was
Pushyamitra Shunga
Pushyamitra Shunga (IAST: ) or Pushpamitra Shunga (IAST: ) (ruled ) was the co-founder and the first or second ruler of the Shunga Empire which he and Gopāla established against the Maurya Empire. His original name was Puṣpaka or Puṣpami ...
(185 BC - 151 BC). It was at Maluti that the king of
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 ...
performed
Ashvamedh Yajna. Later
Vajrayani Buddhists, followers of Tantrik rituals, settled here. So, Mauliksha Maa is the most ancient idol ever found in Maluti.
It is said that Adi Shankaracharya, on his way to Varanasi, had stopped over at Maluti. And it is here that he launched his mission against Buddhism. Some historians say Maluti is the first place where the Vedic upheaval started. Dandiswami of Varanasi's Sumeru Math still comes here once a year as part of the ritual that began with Adi Shankaracharya.
The Pre-History
Some pre-historic stone tools found in the river bed of Chila confirm that Maluti used to be inhabited by our pre-historic fore-fathers, though the area was never excavated.
The river Chila is flowing at the edge of the village and marks the boundary of Jharkhand and West Bengal. The river originated from Banspahari, a highland in the
Dumka district
Dumka district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand state in eastern India. Dumka is the administrative headquarters of this district. This district covers an area of 3716.02 km. This district has a population of 1,321,442 (2011 ...
and meet with
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 ...
in Bengal. Stone tools and primitive weapons are found on the river bed at different place.
The stone-tools found in the area are hand-axes, scrappers and blades. Plenty of waste materials are also found scattered everywhere on the river bed. These tools belonged to transit period from
Early Stone Age
The Lower Paleolithic (or Lower Palaeolithic) is the earliest subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. It spans the time from around 3 million years ago when the first evidence for stone tool production and use by hominins appears in t ...
to the
Middle Stone Age
The Middle Stone Age (or MSA) was a period of African prehistory between the Early Stone Age and the Late Stone Age. It is generally considered to have begun around 280,000 years ago and ended around 50–25,000 years ago. The beginnings of pa ...
. The working edge is scattered and is still sharp. Neolithic or Chaleolithic specimens are not found in the village or its vicinity as yet. According to archeologist Prof. Subrata Chakravorty of
Visva-Bharati University
Visva-Bharati () is a public central university and an Institution of National Importance located in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, India. It was founded by Rabindranath Tagore who called it ''Visva-Bharati'', which means the communion of the w ...
, the tools belonged to Paleolithic period.
Prof. Subrata Chakravorty divided the tools into two broader categories Acheulian and Middle Paleolithic. Some Mesolithic artefacts also are available in the site. Prof. Chakravorty detailed the Acheulian finds discovered from Chila, classification of such tools collected from the site and raw materials used to make those tools.
Acheulian found at Maluti Sadarghaton Chila, the river that flows in Birbhum – Jharkhand border land. Acheulian finds discovered from three localities one of them fossiliferous include hand axes, cleavers, choppers, scrappers and unqualified wastes, flakes, cores and chips are made of raw materials — traps, basalts, quartzites, charts, jasper. The assemblage of Maluti Sadarghat Acheulian sites show preponderance of various other tools such as retouched flakes, side scrappers, end scrappers, point borers and sundry light duty tools.
The tools bearing area extends from a point called Sadarghat to an up-stream point named Shirali. The distance between the two points is only a kilometer. The archeological remains of late medieval period inside the village Maluti and availability of pre-historic stone tools from the outskirt have made this village a treasure trove of archeology.
Temples of Maluti
![Tepmles_in_maluti](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Tepmles_in_maluti.jpg)
Today, an important priority of the village Maluti is maintaining its 72 ancient temples. It is alleged that the king of Nankar state originally constructed 108 temples, but later generations could not maintain such a huge number of monuments, and most were left uncared for. With the passing of time, as many as 36 monuments deteriorated and finally crumbled completely.
In a 2010 report titled ''
Saving Our Vanishing Heritage ''Saving Our Vanishing Heritage: Safeguarding Endangered Cultural Heritage Sites in the Developing World'' was a report released by Global Heritage Fund on October 17, 2010. It illuminated five accelerating man-made threats facing global heritage si ...
'',
Global Heritage Fund
Global Heritage Fund is a non-profit organization that operates internationally.
Founded in California in 2002, its mission is to "transform local communities by investing in global heritage."
To date, it has partnered with over 100 public and ...
identified Maluti's Temples as one of 12 worldwide sites nearest ("On the Verge") of irreparable loss and damage, citing insufficient management as primary cause.
With regards to the temples' architecture, it is noticed that in the existing temples no particular style, like Nagara, Vesar or Dravida, have been followed. The specialist artisans who were obviously from Bengal had given shape to numerous designs while constructing these temples. Their designs have been assigned to five categories.
The main temple of
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 ...
site is Ma Mauliksha Temple, which is the main deity of royal family of Baj Basanta Ray and Guardian Goddess of Maluti. Interestingly this goddess is not found in Hindu scripture but is found in
Vajrayana Buddhism
Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
as the Goddess ''Pāndora''. Gradually the Buddhist influence of this region tempers down and become a Goddess of
Hindu tantra
Tantras ("''doctrine''" or "''framework''" or "''system''" ) refers to numerous and varied scriptures pertaining to any of several esoteric traditions rooted in Hindu and Buddhist philosophy. The religious culture of the Tantras is essentially ...
.
External links
Explore Maluti Temples with Google Earthon
Global Heritage Network
Global Heritage Fund is a non-profit organization that operates internationally.
Founded in California in 2002, its mission is to "transform local communities by investing in global heritage."
To date, it has partnered with over 100 public and ...
References
MalutiGlobal Heritage Fund's page on Maluti
{{Santhal Pargana Division topics
Bengal
History of Jharkhand
Terracotta