The Hindu and Buddhist history of Odisha , or rather, ancient Kalinga, is rather well known to everyone. Who hasn’t heard of the grand temples of Odisha – Puri, Lingaraj and Konark, or the great war of Kalinga which inspired Ashoka to convert to Buddhism? In contrast, very few know of the Jaina heritage of this region. This is quite a pity, since, just around 7 km from the city, is one of India’s most ancient inscriptions, which throws light on the Jaina heritage of Odisha. This inscription is the Hathigumpha inscription of Kharavela, in the hills of Udaygiri. Udaygiri and Khandgiri are two hills located opposite each other, and both are testaments to the rich Jaina heritage of Odisha. The caves at Udaygiri are older, while Khandgiri is relatively newer, but has lasted much longer, and continues to be a place of pilgrimage for Jains even today. These hills, from inscriptions and excavations of caves, shrines and rock beds, appear to have been a haven for Jaina monks, right from the ...
At
Sirpur, a dark
room, with every window tightly closed, doubles up as a museum for the rarest
of artifacts discovered here during excavations. Entering the room is like
opening a door into another world, one filled with unimaginable treasures. You don’t
know where to look, what to see first, and what to look closer at – there is so
much to see! My eyes, however were drawn to this one….
She is
no pleasing, beautiful figure. Yet, she is striking. She is emaciated, almost skeletal in appearance.
Her face is terrifying, with teeth so uneven, they look like fangs. She wears a
garland of skulls, and carries two decapitated heads in her hands. She is
seated on a corpse, and jackals are nearby, probably eating it. Entrails hang
from her mouth, and it is evident she has been drinking the blood of her
enemies, the ones she has succeeded in killing.On her stomach, holding the entrails with pincers, is a scorpion! On her matted hair, she wears a
snake, and another snake is coiled around, behind her. In her hand is a khatvanga – a
skull mace.
She
is Chamunda –
the slayer of the demons Chanda and Munda, whose decapitated heads she holds in
her hands. According to the Devi Mahatmyam, she is Kali, who is given the name
Chamunda, to commemorate the killing of the terrifying demons.
I saw
her at Sirpur
in January this year, when I visited Chhattisgarh to attend the SirpurFestival. It is soon going to be a year since I saw her. Yet, her image has
stayed with me.
Recently, in the Indian Aesthetics class
that I am pursuing, there was a discussion on the depiction of the Nava Rasas. When it
came to Bibhatsa, or disgust, I wondered which deity we would look at in such a
manner. And suddenly, she came to mind. She did inspire disgust, and yet we
worship her. Even in this disgust, there is beauty, in the concept itself, so
detailed in imagery; in the symbolism, which extols the virtue of action
against evil, and above all, in the artist, who created her, with such
attention to detail.
Chamunda is believed to be one of the
deities assimilated into Hinduism from tribal societies. She is one of the Sapta
Matrikas, the seven mothers, who are worshipped across the country, in many
forms. I have seen depictions of Chamunda elsewhere, yet this one, has made an
impression, like few others have! Which is why she features today on the blog,
for the third day of Navaratri.
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Really very nice information.. Most of the people are enjoyed this festive. especially in Chhattisgarh more famous of Navaratri time. Really i loved to read this article. thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteThank you Sravani!
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