A Visit to Bhubaneswar...

Bhubaneswar; the capital city of Odisha (Orissa) situated towards the eastern coast of India. The city has been named after Lord Shiva. Bhuban(Universe) and Ishwar(God) means the God of the Universe which refers to Lord Shiva; the mightiest God in Hindu mythology. More than one lakh Shiv Ling (Ist Dev of the City) are found in and around this city of Temples. Now only a few hundred ancient temples remain. The Lingaraj temple is one of the most impressive temples in India. Regrettably, non-Indians are not permitted to enter, but can view the temple only from the outside.The City in its earlier days was also known as Ekamra Nagari since the greenery of the city was almost covered by “eka” (only) “amra” (Mango) trees.

The city spans over a geographical area of approximately 135 square kilometers (52 Sq Miles). Though no so big in size as compared to its peers, the city has its own distinguished charm and beauty and has always been attracted out comers through its peaceful and tidy environment.
Bhubaneswar was designed by Otto H. Koenigsberger, a German town planner. It became the capital city of Odisha in 1948. Once famous for its clean and green environment and beautiful weather, the city has started expanding both in size and population in recent times.
It offers a lot of “must see” tourist attractions out of its bouquet.

Orientation:
There is no real downtown area; rather, everything is spread out. The railway station and the old bus stand are close to each other in the center of town. The New long-distance bus station is about 5 km west of the center of the town. Most of the temples are located in the southeast section of the city, near the Bindu-Sagar Tank.

Khandagiri and Udaygiri :
The twin hills of Khandagiri & Udaygiri are best of example peaceful co-existance of various religions in the province of Orissa not only now but also in its ancient history.
The 135 ft high Udaygiri and 118 ft high Khandagiri hills have ancient caves. Khandagiri means "Broken hill" and Udaygiri means "Hill of the sunrise." The caves on the two low hills of Udaygiri and Khandagiri give ample proof of Jain and Buddhist occupation. This served as the site of an ancient Jain monastery, which was carved into cave like chambers in the face of the hill.

The twin hills of Kumargiri and Kumarigiri known as Khandagiri and Udaygiri contain varieties of rock-cut caves. Dating back to the 2nd century BC, some of the caves have beautiful carvings. The Rani Gumpha (Queen's Cave) - one of the largest and double-storied is ornately embellished with beautiful carvings. In the Hati Gumpha (Elephant Cave), King Kharavela carved out the chronicles of his reign. It is a magnificent specimen of “Pali” records so far found in India.

There are many caves in the middle of the second hillock. There are statues of elephants on the gate of first Alkapuri cave. Behind it, “Rani Cave” has numerous internal caves. In patel cave there are several idols of different Tirthankaras. Udaygiri is adorned with a number of beautiful caves out of which the largest one is the 'Rani Gumpha'. Another important cave is 'Hathi Gumpha' containing the only rock-cut inscription in India, which records chronologically the deeds of king Kharavela.

Dhauligiri:
Dhauligiri "Shanti stupa" is worth seeing alongwith other temples here.
Dhauligiri is located about 17 Kms away from the heart of the city and on the way to Puri. On the banks of river "Daya" , the scenery at Dhauli giri is magical during sunrise and sunset.
The calm and peaceful Dhauli has a shocking story behind. Its here the devastating “Kalinga War” took place between the mighty Emperor Ashok of Magadha(Bihar) and the daredevil patriots of Kalinga (Ancient Orissa). Ashok won the war but at the cost of lots of soldiers of his side and at least 100000 Kalinga soldiers. With the blood of the soldiers the color of the water of River “Daya” (Which means mercy) turned red. This trembled the mighty and cruel Ashok and compelled him emotionally to turn to a peace loving Ashok. It is said that the war was for one lady called “Karubaki” who was from an ordinary family of Kalinga. Ashok wanted to achieve her with power which the Kalinga People opposed and it took the shape of Kalinga War.

You might have seen some part of this story in the Bollywood film “Ashoka” starring SRK and Karina Kapoor.

Lingaraj Temple:
“Linga-Raj” which means The King amongst “Shiva Lingas”. He is considered as the ruling Deity of Bhubaneswar and hence the name of the city “Bhubaneswar”. Surrounded by high walls on four sides, the Lingaraj temple is another magnificent example of the architectural excellence which the artists had attained with their magical touch of chisel during 11th century.

This temple is also known as the Bhubaneswar temple. The outer walls of the temple exhibit exemplary carvings. The beautifully sculpted images of various God and Goddess are unmatched. The temple tower can be seen from a long distance. The temple complex has three parts and each part has one temple each. Towards south of the entrance to main temple is image of Lord Ganesha, at the back is the image of Goddess Parvati and to north is Lord Kartikeya. There are about 600 temples in Orrisa.

Lingaraj temple was built in 617-657 A.D and its height is about 54 meters. It was Jajati Keshari who laid the foundation of the Lingaraj temple and his great grandson completed the work. This temple was constructed in the 11th AD at the site of an old seventh century shrine. The “Nata Mandapa” (Dance hall) and “Bhoga Mandapa” (offerings hall), were some more additions to the temple later on, that has evolved over different historical periods.

By the time, the Lingaraj temple was built; the Jagannath culture had become widespread, throughout Orissa. The temple is dedicated to Lord Siva the “Lingam” here is unique in that it is a “Hari Hara” linga(half Siva and half Vishnu). There are 150 shrines within the immense Lingaraj complex, many of them extremely interesting in their own right. This is exemplified by the fact, that the presiding deity, here, is the Swayambhu Linga (One who has come up the ground by itself), a unique feature of the temple. Almost all the Hindu gods and goddesses are represented in this temple, mirroring the inherent element of harmony within the religion.

Rajarani Temple:
The exquisitely carved masterpiece of Utkalian (Ancient Orissa) craftsmanship manifests Rajarani temple which is located towards north-east of Lingaraj temple is one of the most beautiful temples representing a unique experiment in the field of temple architecture in Odisha. Unlike any other temple, the sanctum is devoid of any deity.

The present name Rajarani has been derived from a very fine grained yellowish sand stone called Rajarania in common parlance with which the entire edifice has been built. With height of 17.9m the monument is noted for its exuberant sculptural wealth. On the basis of sculptural art architectural style this temple is assignable to circa mid 11th cent. A.D.

The best preserved and the most outstanding sculptural wealth of the temple are the standing astadigapalas on the central façade of kanika appearing on the jangha portion of the bada clad in diaphanous drapery, they stand on lotus with their mounts below. Among the dikpalas, the intact Varuna is remarkable for its body ornamentation, coiffure and facial expression. Scenes of marriage of Siva, Nataraja, Parvati are some of the important cult images of the temple.
The monument remains open from sunrise to sunset. Entry fee for each Indian citizen is Rs. 5.00, foreign visitor has to pay Rs. 100.00/ $ 2.00 each while children below the age of 15 years are not charged any entry fee.

Kedar gauri temple & Pond:
The Story Behind: Kedar and Gouri were two lovers in ancient Orissa. Once when wandering in the Jungle, a tiger attacked on them. While fighting with the tiger Kedar and the tiger both went into the deep jungle. Despite a long search Gouri couldn’t find Kedar. But on her return path she found a blood stained cloth of Kedar and thought that Tiger had killed Kedar. In deep shock and sorrow, she committed suicide. On the other hand Kedar was alive and on his way back he found Gouri dead. He also committed suicide and laid himself on the same place near Gouri. People liked them and their love story. By passage of time, people built a Temple and a Pond (Called Kedar-Gouri Kunda) in their memory and started worshiping them like deity.

Vaital Deul Temple:

This interesting 8th century temple is dedicated to Chamundi (Kali). She wears a necklace of skulls and is shown as the eight-armed slayer of the buffalo demon. Her robes usually hide her necklace of skulls and the corpse upon which she is sitting. In her arms she holds a snake, bow, shield, trident, thunderbolt, and an arrow with which she is piercing the demon’s neck, thus displaying the most terrifying aspect of the Goddess Kali.
This temple is close to the “Bindu-Sagar” Tank, and it has some intricate exterior carvings. To get a good view of the temple’s interior, a flashlight is needed.

Mukteswara Temple:
Built in the late 10th century, this small, elegant temple has been described as the most exquisitely ornamented temple in Bhubaneswar. It has an 11m (35 ft) high tower. The sandstone carvings are this temple’s most notable feature. It is known for its decorative gateway, carved dwarves around the windows, and intricate motif carvings of a smiling lion with beaded tassels in its mouth. On the gate in front of the main entrance is a decorative gateway (torana) complete with two reclining female figures. Mukteswara means “the Lord who bestows freedom through yoga.”

Sidheswar Temple:
The Sidheswara (11th century) is on the same grounds. It has interesting carvings of Ganesh and Karttikeya (Siva’s son) on the tower.The small Marichi Kund, between the Mukteswara Temple and the road, is known to cure infertility in women. It is a pleasant place to sit for awhile.

Parasurameswar Temple:
This temple is the oldest Siva temple in Bhubaneswar (built in the late 7th century). It is full of intricate carvings and is the best preserved and most impressive of the city’s early temples. It has carvings of elephant and horse processions and all the windows are carved. On the east wall of the tower there is an interesting carving of the marriage of Siva and Parvati.

There are also panels depicting Lakulisha, a Shaivite, who helped revitalize Hinduism in Orissa in the 5th century. He is seen on the west wall of the tower meditating under the sculptures of Nataraj (dancing Siva), and on the east wall with disciples at his feet.

In the corner of the courtyard is the Sahasra-linga, 1,000 small lingas joined together. This temple is close to the Bhubaneswar-Puri road, on the east side of Bindu-sarovara, northeast of the Lingaraj temple.

ISKON Temple: The followers of Prabhupad have a unique place in the present day sanatan (Hindu) dharm. Bhagawan Sri Krishna is worshipped as main god in the ISKON with his other avatars i.e. Sri Jagannath, Sri Ramchandra. All types of religious books, Audio Cassettes, Postures of different gods & goddess are available for people.
The beautifully built modern ISKCON temple (413-517) is located on National Highway No 5, Nayapali. The Deities in the temple are Krishna-Balarama, Jagannath, Baladeva, and Subhadra, and Gaura-Nitai. There is also a Radha-Krishna temple. Srila Prabhupada laid the cornerstone for this temple in February 1977, and construction was completed in 1992.The temple has a small guest house. with rooms with attached bathrooms. Guests are expected to follow the ashram rules. There is a vegetarian restaurant.

Nandankanan:

This is your window to wildlife in Odisha under one roof. Nandankanan zoo is approximately 15Kms from airport and at about similar distance from railway station. Nandankanan has gifted the wild and the world with a precious and never before gift “the first white tiger of the world”. You can have a close-up experience with almost all types of wild creatures here.

Amongst other attractions it has Lion safari, Gharial Crocodile in its pocket to offer. Nearby the wild life zoo you can also have the pleasant experience of cabin car & boating at the Botanical garden in the surrounding of coconut trees and thousands of medicinal plants.

Ekamrakanan:

It’s a botanical garden and park maintained by horticulture department occupied by lots of greenery, medicinal plants, lake, a small jungle and 3 artificial fountains. The park offers ample space for kid’s activities with kids sports facilities.
BDA Nikko Park: It’s a modern times amusement park built in coalition of BDA & Nikko in the centre of city. The park has an entry fee of Rs.40/- per head.

State Museum:
The museum is on the way to Puri. It caters orissa’s culture, heritage, food style etc and you can have an idea about Oriya culture if you visit it.

Ekamra Haat:
Situated almost at the heart of city Ekamra Haat showcases Oriya Art & Sculpture for the tourists who want to make their trip a memorable and lively forever. It’s a government owned enterprise where you can buy handicrafts, decorative pieces, and handloom items of various parts of Orissa as per your pocket permits.

Raised on a five acres campus, Bhubaneswar Urban Haat, named as EKAMRA HAAT, mainly aims at showcasing Orissan art & artifacts, crafts, weaving marvel, culture and cuisine, besides providing direct marketing access to the crafts persons, sculptors, weavers and performing artists from within the State as well as from other States of the country. An impressive gathering of art & craft loving people from different parts of the State enjoyed the colourful function including the famous Chhau Dance exposition. On this occasion a "Craft Bazar" is being organized by the Commissioner (Handicrafts) and the Commissioner (Handlooms), Ministry of Textiles, Govt of India. Crafts persons / Organisations dealing in art & artifacts and crafts from different States like West Bengal, Assam, Meghalay, Delhi, U. P. etc have displayed their wares here. These exhibitors are doing fabulous business and as per available information the Craft Bazar has already done business worth over Rs. five lakh within just four days of its opening. This clearly indicates the potential of Ekamra Haat as a business centre. The Craft Bazar continues up to the 11th of Nov.

Tribal Museum:
The tribal museum caters tribal lifestyle of Odisha in a miniature form. It is situated just some meters away from CRP square towards Baramunda on National Highway No5.
These are prime attractions Bhubaneswar. However, there are other places which a visitor may find interesting.

Information and Tours:

The OTDC Tourist Office (243-1-99; Web Site: http://www.orissa-tourism.com), 5 Jayadeva Marg, near the Panthanivas Tourist Bungalow, has a good free map of Orissa and can arrange tourist taxis and guides (Mon to Sat 10 am to 5 pm). There are also tourist counters at the airport (253-4006) and railway station (253-0715) open 24 hr.The OTDC has a luxury bus tour that goes to the temples and museums, Dhauli, Nandankanan, Khandagiri, and Udayagiri from 9 am to 5.30 pm daily except Mon. You can book this tour at the tourist office.

The Government of India Tourist Office (243-2203), BJB Nagar, around the corner from the Panthanivas Hotel (Mon to Sat 10 am to 5 pm).

Practical Information:

STD Code 0674Money can be changed at the State Bank of India on Raj Path, opposite New Market (may not change American Express travelers cheques); Indian Overseas Bank, corner of Janpath and Station Square (may ask to see purchase receipt to change travelers cheques). Some banks are closed on Mondays.

The GPO is on the corner of MG Marg and Sachivalaya Marg by the bus stand. There is a man outside to make packages. The middle counter is the poste restante.

Shopping:

Most shops are closed from noon to 4 pm every day and all day on Thursdays.Good fabrics can be purchased at Handloom Weavers’ Cooperative, Hall No 2, West Market Building (closed Sundays).Utkalika, the Orissa State Emporium at East Tower Market Building, has a good selection of quality Orissan items, but may be a little more expensive than other shops. Most of the year, however, the government emporiums offer discounts, and the quality is guaranteed.

So, come and lets explore the Ekamra Nagari....Welcome to Bhubaneswar…