Beyond Digha: Bengal’s temple glory already shines in Kalna

Recent weeks saw a spat between the Governments of Odisha and West Bengal over the latter naming a newly built temple at Digha as ‘Jagannath Dham’. Odisha’s point of contention was over the word ‘Dham’ – it being attributable only to the much older and deeply revered shrine at Puri. Eventually, the other state blinked and the Digha temple dropped ‘Dham’.

While the West Bengal Government has built a magnificent replica of the Puri Temple at Digha, with sandstone sourced from Rajasthan and marble from as far away as Vietnam, they would do well in bringing more focus on stunning temples that already exist in their heartland. Temples such as those at Ambika Kalna, usually referred to simply as Kalna.

Located about 90 kilometres north of Kolkata in Purba Bardhaman district, Kalna first finds mention in the 6th century CE Kubjika Tantra – ‘Kubjika’ being a manifestation of Shakti. A strategic location on the banks of the Bhagirathi River gave it importance as a port during the time of the Tamralipta kingdom. Its finest hour came in the 18th and 19th centuries when the rulers of Bardhaman built a series of temples here. However, the finding of two Vishnu idols dating to the 10th and 11th centuries CE indicates unbroken traditions of faith.

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A visitor to the town today sees the green countryside give way to narrow lanes and then a large central space, usually with visitors from Kolkata. The centre of attention, and sometimes the sole focus are the Nava Kailasha temples here. Built in 1809 under the patronage of the Bardhaman ruler Tej Chandra Bahadur, the complex comprises 108 temples built in two concentric circles – an outer circle with 74 shrines and an inner one with 34. Each shrine contains a Shiva linga, with the lingas in the outer circle alternating in black granite and white marble while those in the inner shrines are white.

Most first-time visitors tend to get a surprise when they come out of the Nava Kailasha complex and look around. Separated by a narrow road from the Nava Kailasha is the much bigger Kalna Rajbari temple complex, with some of the most ornate terracotta temples ever built. In fact, the temples spread beyond this complex and through the town, inviting visitors to explore its by-lanes.

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First within the complex is the Pratapeshwar Temple. Built in 1849 under the guidance of Tej Chandra Bahadur’s daughter in law, the temple is a riot of terracotta carving, the intricacy of which is on par with the best of Bishnupur, considered the acme of terracotta shrine-making. Prominent in the mythological stories depicted are the battle between Rama and Ravana, Rama and Sita sitting on a throne, scenes from the Krishna Leela, Durga as Mahisasuramardini and others. The temple is entered via a gateway in front, and the doors on the other three sides are merely decorative, providing space for more artistic expression.

Deeper in the complex is the Lalji Temple, dating to 1739 making it the oldest temple here. Built under the patronage of the ruler Kirti Chand Rai for his mother Braja Kishori Devi, its unique feature is that it is a ‘Panchavimasati’ temple, referring to its twenty-five pinnacles. It is only one of five shrines that have this feature, and it is interesting to note that two of the others are also in Ambika Kalna. In front of this temple is a mandapa which seems to date to a later period, and whose exterior is rich with carved creatures, ranging from peacocks to crocodiles.

Another aspect of the main Lalji Temple structure that stands out are the edges of the shrine’s corner walls. These protrude out and have carvings running from top to bottom, depicting a range of stories and mythical creatures. These vertically carved panels are called ‘Mrityulatas’, so named as every row of human and animal figures shown here looks poised to attack the figure below.

Some temple experts hold that the Mrityulatas are a carry forward of the tradition of wooden chariot making in Bengal, which had such figures depicted in vertical panels at the corners. Since the chariot makers were from the same community that moved into the temple building, the designs came with them.

Next up comes the Krishna Chandraji Temple, also a Panchavimasati-styled shrine. Continuing the tradition seen at the Lalji Temple, this one too was built by a Bardhama ruler in the memory of his mother - Raja Tilok Chandra for Lakshmi Devi. The same ruler also built the Vijay Vaidyanath shrine nearby. Completed in 1751, the Krishna Chandra lives up to its name by incredible depictions of the life and deeds of Krishna. Also prominent in the complex is a Rasmancha, which retains a dome in the middle but has lost other parts of its roof. One can imagine this place coming alive with music and song centuries ago, during the Raas Festival. It still looks dramatic when lit up in the evening.

Outside the Rajbari Temple complex are more shrines, such as the Ratnesvara, Jalesvara and Rupesvara, to name a few. Each has its own features and design. The design variations at Ambika Kalna are such that an explorer gets glimpses of divergent styles of temple design in one place itself. The town also has several mosques as well as a Buddha temple. The latter has a gold-plated Buddha idol which came from Thailand and its original stone Buddha idol, said to be of Burmese origin. There is a small Theravada Buddhist community in residence.

In a place with such a rich tradition of temple building, it comes as no surprise that Kalna has many educational institutions whose names are prefixed with Mahishmardini, Nigamananda, Mayasundari and Gajalaxmi. Truly an abode of the Gods! When you have an Ambika Kalna, do you really need to try and acquire ‘Dham’ status for a newly built temple?

The author is a heritage explorer with a penchant for seeking obscure sites. A brand consultant by profession, he tweets @HiddenHeritage. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.