Masarh or Masar is a village situated 10 km west of
Arrah
Arrah (also transliterated as Ara) is a city and a municipal corporation in Bhojpur district (formerly known as Shahabad district) in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the headquarters of Bhojpur district, located near the confluence of the G ...
in
Bhojpur district of
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...
. It is an important historical site for Jains and Hindus.
Etymology
Masarh is derived from the word Mahāsāra. A 600 old Jain inscription in the temple of
Parshvanatha has mentioned this place as Mahāsāra.
However, according to some other people, its name was ''Padmvatipura'' which was later chanced by a Jain Marwar to ''Vimalnath'', after that it was changed to ''Matisara'' and then it became Masarh.
History
According to localities, It was the residence of
Banasura
Bana, also referred to as Banasura (), is an asura king in Hindu mythology, ruling from the city of Śoṇitapura. He is described to be the son of Mahabali. His tale of battling Krishna is described in the Bhagavata Purana.
Legend
A mighty ...
, whose daughter ''Ukha'' married to
Aniruddha
Aniruddha ( sa, अनिरुद्ध ') is a character in Hindu mythology, the son of Pradyumna and Rukmavati, and the grandson of Krishna and Rukmini. He is said to have been very much like his grandfather, to the extent that he is co ...
the grandson of Krishna and its name was Sonitpur.
According to
Archaeological Survey of India
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexand ...
there was a statue of ''Banasur'' on ruined mould, but later the mound was excavated for making bricks for railways and the statues was in the pool made after excavation. Since Banasura was a demon and enemy of gods the villagers didn't try to save the statue, children often used to pelt stones on the statues. After that, the statues got immersed in water after first rain.
The earliest mention of the village can be found in the accounts of
Xuanzang
Xuanzang (, ; 602–664), born Chen Hui / Chen Yi (), also known as Hiuen Tsang, was a 7th-century Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator. He is known for the epoch-making contributions to Chinese Buddhism, the travelogue of ...
, where he named it as mo-ho-so-lo.
He described these places as the Places of Brahmins who didn't have respect for the laws of
Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...
.
Archeological findings
Foundations of many old small temples and large number of Brahmanical statues have been found at this place.
See also
*
Masarh lion The Masarh lion is a stone sculpture found at Masarh, a village near Arrah town in the Bhojpur district in the Indian state of Bihar.Page 88: "It is carved out of Chunar sandstone and it also bears the typical Mauryan polish. But it is undoubtedly ...
*
Parashanatha Temple, Arrah
References
Villages in Bhojpur district, India
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