Maa Tarini Temple, Ghatgaon
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The Maa Tarini Temple () in Ghatgaon is a famous
Hindu Goddess Hindu deities are the gods and goddesses in Hinduism. Deities in Hinduism are as diverse as its traditions, and a Hindu can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, even agnostic, atheistic, or humanist. Julius J. Lip ...
temple dedicated to Maa Tarini.


Maa Tarini

Maa Tarini is one of the embodiments of
Shakti Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; 'energy, ability, strength, effort, power, might, capability') in Hinduism, is the "Universal Power" that underlies and sustains all existence. Conceived as feminine in essence, Shakti refer ...
and is one of the chief presiding Goddesses in Odia culture. Maa Tarini is the presiding deity for all Shakti and Tantra peeths or shrines in
Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...
. The origin of Shakti or worship of the Earth as a female embodiment of power is found across many cultures all over the world. In Odisha which has a high density of tribal population whose religious practices have been assimilated into the mainstream Hindu faith, the worship of natural formations such as rocks, tree trunks, rivers is widespread among the tribes. Maa Tarini is always depicted as a red face with two large eyes and a mark in the middle which serves as an indication for a nose and also a tilak. This primitive conception is symbolic of the simplicity of tribal beliefs and ceremonies. The red colour has been attributed to dyes made out of iron ores or ocher which are quite plentiful in the state and would thus have been used by the tribes for anointing and decorating the sacred figures of worship. The ornate letters in the background mean "Maa" or Mother in the Odia language. They were a much later addition although the Odia script did change very slightly over the millennia. In this form she is very similar to the conception of the Goddess Kali at
Kalighat Kalighat is a locality of Kolkata (Calcutta), in Kolkata district, West Bengal, India. One of the oldest neighbourhoods in South Kolkata, Kalighat is also densely populated — with a history of cultural intermingling with the various foreig ...
. Although the two are embodiments of the same divinity, Kali is the goddess of death and destruction whereas Maa Tarini is the force of life. Two of the names of Kali are Maa Tara and Maa Tarini. The hill shrine of Maa Tara Tarini the breast shrine of adi Shakti in
Ganjam district Ganjam is a district in the Indian state of Odisha. Ganjam's total area is 8,206 km² (3,168 mi²). The district headquarters is Chhatrapur. Ganjam is divided into three sub-divisions: Chhatrapur, Berhampur, and Bhanjanagar. As of ...
of Odisha represents the force of Both Kali and Tarini and known as Maa Tara Tarini.


Origin of the goddess

In one retelling of the
Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...
, after Sita was abducted by Ravana,
Lord Rama Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda'' ...
and his brother Lakshmana started searching for her. When they reached the forest, near which later Vijayanagar was founded, Rama worshipped Devi Durga and sought her help. The goddess instructed Rama while he was meditating that he must not see her when she appears or she will turn to stone. Rama could not control himself and saw her and the goddess was embodied as a stone idol. She told Rama not to worry and call her later when she would definitely aid him. This second puja was performed by Ravana himself near Rameswaram before the Vanara Sena could cross over to Lanka. Ravana was deemed fit because this ceremony was performed in order to achieve victory in the war to follow. In order to defeat a warrior like Ravana, the performer had to be a
Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...
who performed the ritual of
Trisandya The Trisandya (from ) is a commonly-used prayer in Indian Hinduism and Balinese Hinduism. It is uttered three times each day: 6 am at morning, noon, and 6 pm at evening, in line with the Sandhyavandanam tradition.This tradition oTrisand ...
everyday without fail. At that time, Ravana was the only such Brahmin in all of Creation. After Prabhu Shri Rama left, the stone idol was worshiped by the local tribes. Thus the ancient tribal goddess was described as a Hindu goddess.


Continuation of the history

Bhanja thus worshiped the goddess for her blessings in the war to follow. Bhanja was victorious and both the princess and the goddess were brought back to Puri. After the king of Keonjhar died, Bhanja returned to his state and took the idol of the goddess with him. Mythological accounts hold that Maa Tarini agreed to follow Bhanja provided he never looked backed all the way from Puri to Keonjhar. Bhanja agreed and the two left on horseback. Near the Baitarini river in modern Keonjhar district, Bhanja could no longer hear the following horse. He looked back and Maa halted then and there and asked Bhanja to construct her temple and worship her there.


History

The exact sequence of events which led to the installation of the goddess at her chief shrine in Ghatagaon are still a matter of debate among historians. The reason is that the events have been recorded by poets in devotional works dedicated to her which thus also include some mythological events. Nevertheless, the gist is as below: Near about 1475 CE King
Purushottama Deva Vira Pratapa Purushottama Deva ( Odia: ବୀରପ୍ରତାପ ପୁରୁଷୋତ୍ତମ ଦେବ) was the second ruler from the Suryavamsa Gajapati dynasty. His father Gajapati Kapilendra Deva chose him as his heir to rule the Gajap ...
ruled Kalinga. Once on a trip to
South India South India, also known as Southern India or Peninsular India, is the southern part of the Deccan Peninsula in India encompassing the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana as well as the union territories of ...
he chanced upon Princess Padmavati of Kanchi and proposed marriage. The proposal was accepted and the minister of the king of Kanchi traveled to Puri to finalise the arrangements. The Rath Yatra was in full swing and he saw the king sweeping the chariots of the deities. Marriage to a sweeper was unacceptable and hence the marriage was called off. Insulted, the King of Puri declared war on Kanchi. He was defeated in the first war. He prayed to Lord Jagannath and it is believed that he was directed to appoint one Govinda Bhanja as his Senapati or General of his army. Bhanja was in fact the son of then the king of Keonjhar and was staying in Puri because of differences with his father. Under the command of Bhanja, the army marched towards Kanchi. In the forests near Vijayanagar, the horse of Bhanja refused to move any further. Whatever may be the real reason it is here that Bhanja and thus Hindu society as a whole was introduced to Maa Tarini and she was admitted into the Pantheon.


Alternative history

It is said by the local people that King of
Kendujhar Kendujhar, also known as Keonjhar, is a town with municipality in Kendujhar District in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kendujhar district, and it is one of the fifth scheduled areas of Odisha ...
was bringing Tarini Maa from
puri Puri, also known as Jagannath Puri, () is a coastal city and a Nagar Palika, municipality in the state of Odisha in eastern India. It is the district headquarters of Puri district and is situated on the Bay of Bengal, south of the state ca ...
to
Kendujhar Kendujhar, also known as Keonjhar, is a town with municipality in Kendujhar District in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kendujhar district, and it is one of the fifth scheduled areas of Odisha ...
with a condition that if he turn back then she'll not move further. The King was riding a horse and Goddess was following him to
Kendujhar Kendujhar, also known as Keonjhar, is a town with municipality in Kendujhar District in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kendujhar district, and it is one of the fifth scheduled areas of Odisha ...
. King could know that Maa Tarini was coming behind from the sound of her ornaments but near the ghatagaon in the deep forest the sound of the ornaments didn't came and the king looked back thinking that she's not coming. But Maa Tarini was coming and due to the forest mud her ornaments sounds was not coming. Due to the condition Maa tarini stayed there and worshipped as the queen of Forest.


Rites and rituals

The practice of
Tantra Tantra (; ) is an esoteric yogic tradition that developed on the India, Indian subcontinent beginning in the middle of the 1st millennium CE, first within Shaivism and later in Buddhism. The term ''tantra'', in the Greater India, Indian tr ...
is associated with all manifestations of Shakti throughout the Indian subcontinent. Utkal, a coastal kingdom which was carved out of the former Kalinga is described to have many important shrines and areas for the practice of Tantra. Maa Tarini is the presiding deity.


Sacrifices - Human and Animal

Sacrifices have been offered to many deities all over the world and the same is true in India. However, the practice persisted well into the 20th century in many shrines in
Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...
, Odisha and
Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...
. Although both human and animal sacrifices are banned, criminal and sporadic incidents occur. Tribes in many parts of India sometimes sacrifice virgins to the goddess. Sacrifice of large animals like buffaloes are banned but goats are still sacrificed in some remote temples.


Festivals

* Chaiti Yatra is the most popular and famous festival of this place celebrated in the month of April. Generally it celebrates between the last 5 days of
Chaitra Chaitra () is a month of the Hindu calendar. In the standard Hindu calendar and India's national civil calendar, Chaitra is the first month of the year. It is the last month in the Bengali calendar, where it is called Choitro. Chaitra or Cha ...
and the first 2 days of Baisakha i.e. from 9–15 April of every year. The first day of Baisakha is treated as the Odia New Year (
ଓଡ଼ିଆ ନବବର୍ଷ Odia (;"Odia"
''Lexico''.
,
)। * Patua Yatra is another most famous festival of this place celebrated in the month of April. * Ashadhi parba ( ଆଷାଢ଼ି ପର୍ବ) is also Celebrated here in the last Thursday of the Odia Month:
Asadha Ashadha or Aashaadha or Adi () is a month of the Hindu calendar that corresponds to June/July in the Gregorian calendar. In India's national civil calendar, this month is the fourth month of the year, beginning on 22 June and ending on 22 July. I ...
( ଆଷାଢ଼ ମାସ)


Gallery

Image:Maa Tarini Temple Prashad.jpg, Image:Maa Tarini Temple 2.jpg, Image:Maa Tarini Temple 7.jpg, Image:Maa Tarini Temple 1.jpg , Image:Tarini_Temple_side_view.JPG, SIde view of Maa tarini Temple Image:Maa Tarini Temple 3.jpg, Drinking Water Image:Maa Tarini Temple 5.jpg, Shops inside temple campus


References


External links


Homepage of Maa TariniOfficial Website of Maa Taraini
{{Shakti temples in Odisha Hindu temples in Kendujhar district Shakti temples