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Odisha Part 9 : The Vaital Temple, Bhubaneshwar

The Vaital temple is of the many intriguing temples in Bhubaneshwar. To begin with, the structure itself resembles a South-Indian temple more than the typical Kalingan style that we see everywhere else in Odisha. The temple has been dated to the last quarter of the 8 th century CE. Further , unlike most of the temples in Bhubaneshwar, this temple is not dedicated to Lord Shiva. Inside the sanctum is one of the deities who is very rarely seen in a sanctum – Chamunda, along with the Saptamatrikas. This is evidently a Shakta shrine. However, the presence of Lakulisha on the vimana indicates the connection with the Pasupata sect, which is most prevalent in this region during this time period. Further, the name of the temple – ‘Vaital’, comes from the word ‘ vetala’ , referring to spirits, which were invoked by tantrics to attain siddhis. Thus, this temple is an amalgamation of Pasupata and Shakta philosophy, with a strong emphasis on tantric rituals, and this is reflected in the iconogra...
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Faces in the Crowd - Some unusual sellers of wares for Diwali

Happy Diwali everyone!!!! The roads are filled with people selling earthen lamps, kandeels, and firecrackers. But here are some traders selling some unusual wares for Diwali....

Brooms are considered to be a part of Lakshmi, since she only enters clean homes. There are some who pray to brooms at this time of the year, a sort of prelude to cleaning their homes! Gives a different thought to the festival, doesnt it?


These holy threads are part of the festival too, a part of the Lakshmi Puja. Sort of like what we do during Varalakshmi puja, people tie these threads to their wrist after performing their puja. Different names, similar rituals! 

Which festival is complete without sweets? Here is one selling sweets made of sugar

I clicked these images at a village on the way to Lonar last year, which is where we spent our last Diwali. This year, it a different kind of celebration for us.. Different, but no less interesting!

Once again, wish you all a very happy Diwali!!

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