The Ṣaṇḍeśvar Shiva temple of Cooch Behar, a historical perspective .

 

Author - Biswarup Chatterjee.

    The north-western part of present-day Bangladesh and Northern part of West Bengal is generally known as the North Bengal region. The Bangladesh part denotes the Rajshahi and Rangpur division. In general, it refers to the region north of the Padma river and west of the Jamuna river. The West Bengal Part denotes the Jalpaiguri division and the Malda division together. Now this Jalpaiguri division consists of five districts viz., Alipurduar, CoochBehar, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Kalimpong. Among these, one of the most popular as well as prosperous district is CoochBehar district, which is situated on the North-Eastern border of West Bengal and broadly surrounded by the Jalpaiguri to the north, Assam and Bangladesh to the east, Bangladesh and Jalpaiguri to the south and Jalpaiguri to the west. Cooch Behar district belongs to Jalpaiguri Presidency under the state of West Bengal. The Tista, Jaldhaka, Torsa, Kaljani, and Ridak etc are the main water channels of this district. Cooch Behar  also known as a princely state during the British period. The place is Located in a vast land near the foothills of the Himalayas and quite significant as well as rich in terms of historical and archaeological monuments. The district town is also a traditional town of about 25 years of royal history, and at present declared as a heritage town of West Bengal. The district has been preserving its cultural and historical Legacy for a long period. The ruins of the old forts, structures, antiquities, and old temples are Some of the most notable landmarks of this place which are very significant to glorify this district.              

     One of the most important as well as oldest sub-division under Cooch Behar district is Tufanganj subdivision, previously known as Phulbari. The importance of this place is immense in terms of archaeological artefact  and ancient monuments. Almost all the rulers of Cooch Behar, belonging to the Koch dynasty exhibited a liberal outlook and desire to build temples and monuments for the advancement of the Art, culture, history etc. As a result of that this place has been progressively enriched in terms of cultural as well as historical perspective and these are the source of Immense pride for the locals as well as the district. 

      In order to discuss about the cultural and historical prosperity of a particular place, first of all we need to know about the overall geographical scenario of that respective region. Although it is also true that a geographical boundary or a piece of land can't define the historical identity as well as the cultural prosperity of a region. Overall, in case of any Civilization, beside its behavioural nuances, religious conviction, work ethics, religious sites, ancient pictures and engravings, its folktales and myths should also be explored to get a comprehensive picture of a country and its history.       

        So it's clear that apart from the art and  cultural heritage of this place, these archaeological treasures as well as the religious sites also bear an important role in reflecting the rich history of a place. The Surviving monuments, religious sites and the archaeological treasures which still remain in this sub-division are the Forts and temples. These historical monuments as well as the religious sites are very important and impressive due to geographical location and structural attributes, although most of them are not intact today.

     Among the five subdivisions of Cooch Behar district, except for Dinhata, Tufanganj subdivision is quite rich and notable for its religious monument and heritage.

       Among these religious monuments one of the ancient and most fascinating monuments is the temple of Ṣaṇḍeśvar or Yaňjeśvar Shiva. 

Ṣaṇḍeśvar or Yaňjeśvar Shiva temple:- 

          The temple is located five miles (8 km) south of the town of Tufanganj Subdivision and about two and a half miles (4 km) south of the National Highway, under Nakkatigach Gram Panchayat of Tufanganj Subdivision of Cooch Behar District. (26০16’24”N 89০39’31”E) Ṣaṇḍeśvar Shiva temple is also known as ‘Choṭo Mahādeva’ (small Shiva). The easiest way to reach this temple is to reach Tufanganj Coochbehar National Highway through Balabhut crossing. From there, take a right turn along the road towards Krishnapur.

      There are divergent of opinions regarding the founder of this temple. According to the popular belief, Shukladhvaja, who was also known as Chilarai, founded this temple. He was the younger brother of King Naranarayan Bhup Bahadur (1555 – 1587 CE). Although it is also said that Sukladhvaja was only installed the idol of this Shiva or Chhota Mahadeva in this village, it is not known whether he built any temple here or not, but it is believed that he may had also installed the temple while installing the idol. According to some literary sources this temple was established by King Prananarayan Bhup Bahadur (1625-1665 CE) of Koch dynasty. Though few texts refers that the temple was only renovated by King Prananarayana, it was established by Nazir Shantanarayana or Khagendra Narayana, during the reign of the King Upendranarayana Bhupbahadur (1714-1763 CE). It may also be possible that the temple was damaged heavily during the time of Naziradeoa, and he was bound to rebuild it, because the ruins of the ancient temple can be seen behind the present main temple. However, Sukladhaja is generally considered to be the founder of this temple, although there is no reliable evidence in favour of this view. Although it is believed that this temple has been renovated several times since it was first built. Perhaps the temple was rebuilt after it was destroyed by the devastating earthquake of 1897.

        The present temple of Ṣaṇḍeśvar Shiva, facing west and has paved walls with four tin sheds. In front of the entrance to this temple is a sloping tin shade. Apart from the main temple, there is a well built in 1903 in the temple premises and there are the kitchen for preparing the Prasad (food offered to the god in temple) as well as the waiting halls built by tin on both sides for the pilgrims. Adjacent to the main temple on the north side is a two and a half feet high idol of ‘Masan’, in an open space surrounded by a paved wall. ‘Masan’ is a quite popular as well as local deity of Rajbanshi Community in North Bengal region and also known as ‘Māsān ṭhākur’. The Devotees are offering worship with banana, flattened rice, jaggery to this Masan thakur. The paved base of the main temple is about the same height as the altar. The ruins of an ancient temple are found behind the present main temple and according to the prevalent myth this was the first temple of Ṣaṇḍeśvar Mahadeva, which was founded by Shukladhvaja. The ruins are located behind or eastern side of the main temple, which still bears the memory of the past. Broken domes and pillars can still be seen in these ruins. Probably this temple was decorated with a dome over a charchala like all the other temples of Cooch Behar.

       At present lord Shiva is worshipped daily in this temple in Linga form. Among the three Shiva Lingas, the middle one is very small and placed towards the inside. Apart from this there are a 51/2" size Aṣṭadhātu (alloy of eight precious metals ) Shiva sculpture on a wooden throne, a 10" size Surya sculpture made of stone and also a 10” x 43” x 17’ Shaligram rock. Special pujas (worship) and festivals are organised here during Mahashivaratri (a hindu festival celebrated annually in the honour of Lord Shiva) and Durga Puja, A special fair is held during the Bengali month of Falgun (mid February & March). Madan Chaturdashi (a local festival) and Dol Utsav (Holi) are also celebrated here with much fanfare. Apart from this, daily worship, offering prasad (food) to the deity, offering sacrifice, vows etc. are done here. Currently, the Cooch Behar Devotar Trust is responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of this temple. Priests from Tirhut region of Assam have been worshipping in this temple for generations, besides this there are deuri (Guards of the gate), bhaḍāli (in charge of store room), musicians, sweepers, gatekeepers etc. in this temple. All of them are employees of Cooch behar Devattar Trust.

     Like other temples or religious institutions, there is also a number of fascinating mythology or folktales which are associated with this temple, such as the milk pouring scene by a cow on a stone, the king's dream, Lord Mahadeva's bathing in the Raidak river on Ashokastami, etc.

         Finally, it can be said that the social and historical importance of this temple is immense and somewhere this temple is not only an ancient temple but also a refuge for religious sentiments of all the people of this region. Like other temples of Coochbehar, this temple has also a direct connection with the Koch Dynasty, which has been mentioned earlier. It can be assumed that the entire Cooch Behar district was once known as the famous pilgrimage site of Lord Shiva, which can be felt after entering into this 500-year-old and traditional temple premises. The most popular and important male deity in the culture and folklore of Cooch Behar is lord Shiva. Lord Shiva is one of the most adorable deity of the Koch dynasty. Although later on the influence of Vaishnavism was uplifteed within the Koch royal family, this is probably due to the propagation of Vaishnavisim by Sankaradeva in the Koch kingdom. Some famous Shiva temple of this place can be mentioned as an example, such as Baneshwar shiva, Siddhanath shiva, Dameshwar Shiva etc. The famous Shandeshwar Shiva temple of Tufanganj subdivision is mentionable as an old architecture of contemporary Koch dynasty, which reflects the tradition, customs and cultural values as well as the architecture of that era. However, at last according to my observation, this temple still needs proper maintenance and conservation. The ruins of the ancient temple lying behind the present temple are getting destroyed which needs proper preservation. If this temple will be preserved properly then on one hand this temple will be saved from destruction as well as it will gain importance as a tourist place and historical place and on other hand it can be an area of research as an archaeological site, which may lead to some new history in the future.                              ★★----------------------------★★

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1) Ahamad, Khan Chaudhary Amanatulla. 1990 [rep.]. Kochbiharer Itihas 1 (in Bengali). Kochbihar: Kochbihar State Press. 

2) My personal field work.