Mundeshwari Devi in Kaimur Hills: Oldest functioning temple in India

The vehicle in front of this author’s jeep paused and began to roll backwards. The retreat of a vehicle that should be advancing is always a bad idea, especially when one is on a steep upward incline. The author was attempting to reach the summit of a hill on which the ancient temple named after Mundeshwari Devi stands and had unexpectedly run into a traffic jam. It was a weekday in early May and no known festival was on the horizon. One would have imagined that the temple of Mundeshwari Devi would have been practically empty. But it was not!

The more one travels in the state of Bihar, the more one learns to expect the unexpected.

For starters, most history and heritage enthusiasts coming from outside the state to visit Mundeshwari tend to approach it from either Patna or Gaya. That is perhaps a mistake. While Mundeshwari does lie in the Kaimur hill range of western Bihar, it is nearly 200 kilometres from Gaya and a bit more from Patna. On the other hand, Varanasi is a mere 81 kilometres away. The road is good and the countryside verdant especially after one crosses into Bihar.

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If you haven’t studied Mundeshwari’s past and just happen to reach there, it may appear to you as just another old temple on a hill. A bit of pre-reading enables a visitor to see the shrine in its full context. According to historians, Mundeshwari is the oldest functioning temple in India. As per the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), the temple dates to 108 CE making it the earliest temple that still stands in the country.

However, this dating has been a subject of much debate and dispute among scholars and historians. Going by the structure and by various elements within, some date it to the 6th – 7th century Gupta period, others to the 11th century and a third set that mentions many changes being done as late as the 16th century. The answer perhaps lies in the fact that the temple saw many instances of being reconstructed and modified over the ages. This itself shows that the shrine was probably considered a sacred spot for centuries and people kept coming back to it.

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There exists an illustration of the shrine dated to 1790, created by Thomas Daniell, who along with his nephew William, travelled through much of India in that period, and drew the landscape and setting of many sites. The Mundeshwari illustration captures the then condition of the temple. The entire shrine is under a mound, with trees growing on top. A carved gateway is visible with a man standing in the door, the only sign that there is a structure beneath.

In the 1902-04 period, the ASI excavated the site and attempted to restore the temple to its original state. An inscription found during this excavation was dated to the 6th - 7th century. What is fascinating is that in both these periods of discovery and even earlier, rituals and traditions have continued to be conducted at the temple, possibly without a break.

Another discovery, in 2003, changed the perception about the shrine’s age. An inscription mentioning a Sri Lankan king called Dutugamunu was found. Given that this king ruled in the 2nd century BCE, scholars were forced to study the shrine again and in 2008, it was announced that 108 CE was the accepted date.

Equally fascinating are the temple’s unique structure and design. The temple is octagonal in shape and is made of red sandstone. No spire rises above its sanctum, spawning the belief that a spire may have collapsed centuries ago and the current roof being a more recent restoration. It is the earliest example of Nagara architecture which gradually evolved into various forms in north India.

With the structure undergoing changes, it seems probable that the presiding deity too changed over time. What is interesting is that the main deity in this shrine named after a goddess is Shiva. A Chaumukhi Shiv linga is the main form of the divine being worshipped. Some accounts hold that there once was a shrine to Mandaleshwari – meaning Durga — on the southern side of this hill. When that shrine was damaged, its idol was brought to this temple. Over time, the name ‘Mandaleshwari’ mutated to Mundeshwari, while Shiva remained the principal deity.

The shrine is surrounded by broken fragments of idols and slabs which may have been part of this temple or subsidiary temples on the hill which are now lost. It will take only the discovery of one more inscribed slab of stone to push the history of the temple back a few more years. Who knows what else this historically rich region may throw up one day?

Despite being in a land filled with ancient structures of various faiths, Mundeshwari stands out with its unique design. If you happen to visit the shrine during the festive season, watch out for a huge crowd on that narrow road as it winds its way up the hill. While making your way through the crowd, remember that you are doing what people in this part of Bihar have been doing for nearly two millennia – bowing at the shrine of Mundeshwari.

The author is a heritage explorer by inclination 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.