Report of a Tour through the Bengal Provinces/Baijnâth
BAIJNÂTH.
About 30 miles west by a little north of Bháskinâth is Baijnâth; this place is famed for its sanctity all over Northern, Central and Eastern India, and thousands of pilgrims flock here from all parts, even from the Dakhin. The remains here are numerous and extensive, but little of great antiquity, and almost all of no interest, apart from what attaches to them as the objects of reverence to thousands of pilgrims.
The objects of reverence here may be divided into three groups:—
- (1) The group of temples in Baijnâth.
- (2) The„ group of„ temples„ at Harlajhuri.
- (3) The caves, &c., at Tapoban.
The remains at Baijnâth consist of several detached temples in various parts of the city, and of the great group of temples within an enclosure near the east end of the city.
The former consist generally of single cells of various, but none of ancient, periods; they are of various styles and built of a variety of materials, among which the materials of former temples make a prominent figure. There is nothing of interest in or about them, and they may be dismissed without further notice.
There is, however, one object that must be excepted: this is a great gateway consisting of two pillars spanned by an architrave; this is clearly the remains of some great ancient temple, which has entirely disappeared, leaving its outer gateway alone standing. I infer it to have been an outer gateway from its resemblance in all essentials to the great outer gateway of the temple at Pathâri in Central India; like it, it stands entirely isolated, and although the pillars are plain rectangular ones, and have not the elaborate sculpture and the graceful statues that adorn the example at Pathâri, there is nevertheless about it an air of impressiveness that takes it out of the common place. I could not obtain access to it, but was obliged to content myself with a distant view; it is situated in a small raised spot entirely surrounded by private huts; at present it is known as the hindola, or swing, and at a certain festival the statue of Krishna is brought and made to swing beneath it.
The great group of temples is enclosed within a paved courtyard by high walls. There are four entrances to it; the principal one is to the west, and a similar one is on the north. Of the two minor ones, one is on the north and one on the east. Within the enclosure, which is an irregular quadrilateral, is a fine octagonal wall. The number and disposition of the various temples may be seen from the plate.
From a study of the plans of the temples (vide plate) it will be evident that of all the temples that now exist, there is not a single one which can be considered as old, or if old, in its original condition. The irregular grouping of the pillars that support the mandapas, and the clumsy way in which the mandapas are joined on to the sanctums, are proofs that these are subsequent additions; the sanctums may be ancient (I was not allowed to go in), but if so, the tower roofs that surmount them appear to have been added on afterwards. The finest of all the temples is the unfinished temple D; this from the plan is seen to be a single cell, once surrounded on all sides, now on three sides only, by pillars, which supported the roof of a verandah all round. From an examination of the pillars, however, it is clear that they formed no part of the original design, as they differ among each other in form, in size, in execution, and in position with reference to the central building, the pillars being not at a uniform but at varying distances from the walls on the various sides; these pillars further shew that the enclosure wall is a later addition even than themselves, as one of the pillars is imbedded in the eastern enclosure wall.
Divested of its pillars, this temple is seen to be a single cell, surmounted by a tower roof; it is ornamented externally by plain raised bands of mouldings; these are neither elegant nor bold, and are situated so high up, leaving such a height of bare blankness below, as to look quite out of place. Below, the corners are indented and sculptured into plain rectilinear mouldings by way of ornament; this process has the effect of making the corners look particularly weak, and, but for the verandah which now acts a friendly part, by breaking up the height, and shutting off as it were the main tower from the basement portion, the error of the proceeding would become painfully evident.
A general idea of this temple may he obtained from the photograph. The tower does not diminish with a graceful curve, but slopes upwards from above a certain point in almost a straight line. The knee or point of intersection of the vertical lower portion and the inclined upper tower portion is so little rounded as to be painfully prominent, and prominent too in such a way, as to shew that the architects really did not know how to deal with it; they had not the courage to leave the line sharp, and bring it out by a bold moulding, and they had not the taste to round it gracefully.
The form appears to be a compromise between the Muhammadan dome of the early type, i.e., without a bulge, and the Hindu spire; if a semicircle be described on the top of the vertical portion of the tower, and if on the semicircle so described a triangle, whose base is less in width than the diameter of the semicircle, be slipped till the lower extremities of its sides rest on the curve of the semicircle, we shall get a form that nearly approaches that of these towers.
Judging, therefore, from the form of the towers, they cannot be ascribed to a period anterior to the Muhammadan conquest, and this inference of their late age is confirmed by the painful want of relief and variety both in plan and in elevation. The insipid flatness of design of these temples, whether we regard the plan or the profile, is indeed their most essential characteristic, and this want of relief is a strong argument against any great antiquity being ascribed to them. For these reasons, combined with the evident want of proportion and beauty, I ascribe the first erection of these temples to the earlier periods of the Muhammadan conquest.
But as intolerance was a characteristic of the early Muhammadan conquerors, and as we have no record of any event which could render it probable that Hindu temples had been built at any time after the Muhammadan conquest and before the reign of Akbar, and as, lastly, we have distinct record of a Hindu General, Mân Singh, exercising supreme authority in these parts during Akbar’s reign, I consider it most probable that to Mân Singh’s period these temples owe their construction.
The inference thus arrived at becomes a certainty when we examine the inscriptions; there are altogether thirteen of these, distributed as follows:—
1. Inscription on the outer entrance to the great temple S; it consists of thirteen long lines, and two small ones written sideways; it is in Bengali, and is divided into slokas; it records the erection, or rather I consider the repair, of a temple by one Sri Bydyanatha Mahamyáma. This name and also the name of one Raghunatha recurs in the last line.
2. Inscription from the inner entrance or the real entrance of the original temple, divested of its verandah and vestibule, which are evident after-additions; this consists of five lines in modern Nâgari; it mentions the name of some king with the title of Nripati. Raghunatha’s name also occurs in the last line.
3. One from outside of the great temple; this is in seven lines, and is in Bengali; it records the name of some local Raja in the second line.
4. One from the temple of Káli Mái, temple C; this is cut in relief in modern Nagri characters in two compartments of five lines each; it was dated, but the date has been purposely chiselled out, having the word Samvat followed by a rough space; this again followed by Mâgh Sudi, then a blank, and lastly "tisa;" the record is clearly one of the building of the temple; the builder's name occurs in the second compartment.
5. One from the same temple in Sanskrit slokas in nine lines; it is a record of the construction of the "Sunidara Mandirâm."
6. One from the temple of Anna Purna, temple F; this is in Bengali in 10½ lines, and is a record of the dedication of the temple to "Anna Purna" Devi.
7. One from the temple to Ganeça, temple R; this is in eight lines, Bengali; it mentions a Tikarâm Dvijendra.
8. One from the temple of Sanjhyá Mai; this is in eleven lines in Bengali; it records the construction of the temple by several people.
9. One from the temple of Surya, M, in six lines, Bengali; this is dated in the 17th century Sake; it is in bad order.
10. One from Anand Bhairon, temple J; this in in nine lines in modern Nagri, and is dated in Sake 1745.
11. One from the statue of Anand Bhairon in three lines; this is apparently an ancient inscription, dating to, perhaps, the 9th or 10th century.
12. One from the statue of "Surya" in two lines, is also old; it is the usual Buddhist formula, Ye Dharmma, &c., &c.
From all these inscriptions it is evident that not a single one of the temples dates to the pre-Muhammadan period, while several are very recent.
Among those which I consider as likely to be more ancient, dating, however, at the furthest only to Mân Singh's time, are temples S B D; but even these I should not be surprised to find dating to a later period.
It now remains to ascertain, if possible, why these temples were built here, and not rather at any other place; this is accounted for by the existence of the two ancient inscribed statues, one of which is clearly Buddhist; and of a third figure, not inscribed, but clearly Buddhist, being a fine seated statue of Buddha himself, beautifully polished, and equal in execution to the finest statues to be met with in Bihar. These statues prove beyond a doubt that here was at one time a large Buddhist establishment.
What this establishment was named it is, perhaps, impossible now to determine with certainty; but if I may be permitted to speculate, I should think it to have been the site of the famous Uttániya monastery of Winjjha. Winjjha is the Páli equivalent of Vindhya; the passages in Turnour referring to it are—p. 115—"the monarch departing out of his capital and preceding the river procession with his army through the wilderness of Winjjha, reached Tanialitta on the 7th day," and in p. 171 "From various foreign countries many priests repaired hither" * * * * "There Uttaro attended accompanied by sixty thousand priests from the Uttaniya temple in the wilderness of Winjjha."
It is evident that the wilderness of Winjjha lay on the route from Pátaliputra to Tamluk. I have indicated some of the routes from Tamluk to various places. The principal route would, it appears to me, have to pass through, or close to, modern Bankurah; from here there was a choice of several routes. Clearly the route to Bhâgalpur would branch off northwards from there, passing through Seuri, under Mandar, close past Bhaskinâth; it is remarkable that an old track yet exists from Bhaskinâth to Deoghar Byjnâth, whence it goes on skirting the eastern spurs of the Kawalkol range, past Afsand, Parvati, Bihar to Patna. I should consider that this was the route taken by the king when he passed through the wilderness of Winjjha, for it appears to me pretty certain that the wilderness of Winjjha can only refer to the wild country now known in part as the Santál Parganas.
If this be admitted, we have but one place in the Winjjha forests where Buddhist temples existed, as testified by existing Buddhist relics, and this place is Deoghar Baijnâth.
It is remarkable that close to the city of Deoghar and still closer to the temples is a small village named Utmuria; this may be a corruption of the original of the Páli Uttama. I put forward this suggestion merely in the absence of any more positive; it is possible that an examination of the 3-line inscription from the Buddhist statue noticed before may throw new light on the subject.
I have described but one of the temples in the enclosure, as that is the best of the group, and may be regarded as the type of the others; it is needless to describe each of the uninteresting edifices in detail. I shall now give the legends and stories connected with the place.
The great temple is the chief of the group, and enshrines a lingam; this is said to have a small depression at its summit, and I am assured by Hindus that the cavity feels soft to the touch. Tradition says that it is the mark of Râvana's thumb, when in his rage he pressed down the lingam, intending to send it to Pâtâla; the legend will be given presently. Facing it is the temple of Pârvati. At certain times the two spires are connected together by a thin, long cotton sheet, and this is done to shew that Sivá and Pârvati are enjoying each other's society. Comment on the gross indelicacy of the idea is needless.
The legend about the lingam is as follows:—
Râvana used daily to go to Uttara Khanda to worship Sivá. One day he went there, and in the exuberance of physical strength he shook the mountain, disturbing Pârvati. Having done this, he went towards Sivá's abode to worship; when he approached, Nandi forbad his advance, as Sivá and Pârvati were asleep together. Râvana, however, was not to be denied; he told Nandi that he being in the place of a son to Sivá, there was no harm in his going in at any time. Saying this and pitching away Nandi to a distance, he entered. Sivá was much pleased at his courage and firm faith, and desired him to ask a gift. Râvana said, "It is a long distance for me to come daily from Lanka to worship you here; be pleased to go to Lanka and abide there." Sivá consented on the condition that Râvana was to carry him all the way, without for a moment setting him down. Râvana gladly took up the lingam, and proceeded; when he arrived at Lájhuri village, near the place where the temples stand (the village is now known as Harlájhuri), he felt it necessary to go to the fields; he could not carry the lingam with him and pollute it, and he was cogitating what to do. In this emergency Vishnu, who saw that if Râvana succeeded in carrying Sivá to his kingdom he would become invincible, assumed the guise of a poor Brahman, and being accosted by Râvana and requested to hold the lingam for a few minutes, while he went a short way, the pretended Brahman agreed. Râvana now made over the lingam to the Brahman and went aside. While Râvana was engaged, the Brahman quietly walked away with the lingam, arriving finally at the spot where the great temple stands; here he set the lingam down and vanished. Râvana on returning at the expiration of the whole day (for Varuna had entered into him and occupied him all that time in letting out the sea of waters within him) found the Brahman gone. After some search he found the lingam, but on attempting to lift it up, Sivá reminded him of the agreement between them and refused to stir. Râvana enraged, pressed the lingam down, saying, “Since you wont go to Lanka, go to Pâtâla instead.” This is the mark which exists on the summit of the lingam to this day. Finding at last threats and entreaties vain, Râvana set about to worship the lingam in its new location, and brought water from the adjacent tank, which he had constructed and filled with water from the Patalapuri Ganga for libations; but Mahadeo refused to receive that water, as it had been contaminated by Râvana’s urine, when Varuna, having entered into him, had issued out as a sea of waters. Râvana then dug a well to obtain water for libations, and to this day water from the tank just outside of the sacred enclosure is not used for libations. To console Râvana, however, for his trouble in digging the tank, Sivâ ordained that all his votaries must bathe in the tank before approaching him. At present thousands of pilgrims of both sexes are continually bathing in that tank, a constant stream of bathers always going to or from the tank to the temple; the scene is gay—I cannot say much for its decency, nor for the wholesomeness of the water, which is a thick liquid more resembling pea-soup than water.
The lingam thus established became known as Mahadeo Râvaneswara. In course of time the site of the lingam was overgrown with jangal, and no one but a poor gwâla knew of its existence. This man, Baiju by name, used to dwell in the vicinity, living on roots and fruit; he was ordered by Mahadeo in a vision to worship him; the poor man accordingly used to bring Bel leaves for the worship daily, but having no vessel to bring water, used to bring water for the libations in his mouth. This strange libation, however, did not please Sivá, who, after much patient endurance, complained to Râvana of the gwala’s treatment. Râvana came, washed the lingam with water from Haridwâr, and ordained that thenceforth none but Ganges water from the Trithas of Haridwâr, Gangotri and Dasâsumedh (Ajodhya) was to be poured on the lingam, and to ensure its being done, he brought the waters from the Pancha Trithas, the five holy trithas on the Ganges, viz., Haridwâr, Gangotri, Dasâsumedh, Prayâg, Kâsi, Trivini (here are six named however) and put it into the well he had dug.
Subsequently Râma, pursuing Râvana, passed that way and worshipped the lingam.
Siva at last was pleased with the untiring devotion of Baiju Gwâla, and offered to give him any gift he should ask. The independent gwala replied—"What can you give me? I have enough to eat and drink. I want nothing, but if you are determined to grant me a gift, grant that henceforth my name should precede yours." From that day, the lingam known as Râvaneswara came to be known as Baijnâth.
A few miles to the north-east of Baijâth is Harlájhuri; here are a few modern temples and fragments of statues; two have inscribed on them a jogi's name. Sri Chintâman Das is said to have lived here and built these temples 50 years ago. There is nothing of interest in the place, but an inscription which I found here in late medieval characters of the Bengali type is of interest as showing that the Krimila Desa, mentioned in the Mongir plate, was here, or hereabouts;
About 6 miles south-east of Deoghar Baijnâth is a solitary hill known as Tapoban; in this hill is a natural cavern, enshrining a lingam which is worshipped; it is said to have been the residence or a Tapasya of ancient tunes; there is also a kund known as Sul Kund, in which pilgrims bathe. On the rock near the cave are two inscriptions; one, a single line, reads Sri Deva Râmapâla; the other in two lines is quite illegible.
Eight miles north-west from Baijnâth is a group of hills with three curious peaks; it is known as the Trikuta hill, awl is marked in the Ind. atlas sheet as Tecor or Tirpahar. Here is a natural cavern, empty, and in the plains below, which is low-lying and said to be marshy in the rains, a small, old, uninteresting deserted fort; there is a lingam here known as Trikutanâth Mahâdeva.
In concluding my account of the remains at Baijnâth and its vicinity, I must express my acknowledgments to the Public Works Overseer at Deoghar, without whose assistance it would have been impossible for me to have obtained the plan of the interior of the great temple.
Lithographed at the Surveyor General's Office, Calcutta, February 1878.
Lithographed at the Surveyor General's Office, Calcutta, February 1878.