Bomikhal Gourisankara Siva Temple, Odisha

Address

Bomikhal Gourisankara Siva Temple, Bomikhal, Rasulgarh, Bhubaneswar, Odisha 751007.

Diety

Gourisankara (Siva)

Introduction

Gauri Shankar Temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva located in Bhubaneswar, the state capital of Odisha, India. Since it is located in the center of cross roads, the temple came to be called as Traffic Mahadeva Temple. The Temple is situated at the cross roads of Ganga Jamuna Road and Bindusagar Road. The Temple is believed to be 1000 years old. The Temple is half buried in the road. It can be accessed through a flight of steps descending down. The Temple is painted in red completely thus hiding all its original architectural features. Presiding Deity is called as Gauri Shankar. He is housed in the sanctum in the form of Lingam. The Temple follows Rekha Deula Style. It doesn’t have Jagamohana. The Bada is tri ratha in plan and gandi is pancha ratha in plan.

Puranic Significance

The deity of God Shiva is worshipped as Gourisankara Siva; the deity in the form of a Linga is enshrined on a circular yonipitha at the temple. The changes in building and construction of roads have impacted on the structure of the temple. The temple is buried and due to this, not much can be said about its decorative themes. Although, two separate sculptures of Goddess Parvathi and four-armed God Ganesha standing on a lotus pedestal are present inside the sanctum. The temple has not been renovated over the years, due to which it has been buried from three sides till the front porch. There is a narrow passage on the west side of the temple that leads to the sanctum from the main road. The temple’s architecture depicts the Rekha kind of Kalingan order and the Pancharatha style. There is an Aksalinga present on top of the linga rather than a kalasa. The temple is constructed in a way that it faces the western direction. A Vimana is present at the square base of the temple, along with a frontal porch.