Sri Bakreswar Shakti Peeth Temple, West Bengal

Address

Sri Bakreswar Temple, Birbhum Temple &Hotspring Road, Bakreshwar, West Bengal 731123

Diety

Shakti: Mahishmardini Bhairava: Vakranath Body part or ornament: Portion between the eyebrows

Introduction

The Bakreshwar Temple of West Bengal lies on the banks of the Paaphra River in the district of Birbhum, around 24 km from the town of Siuri and 240 km from Kolkata. The temple is renowned for its Oriya-style of architecture. Inside the temple complex are the Mahishmardini and the Vakranath temple. The former has ancient paintings of the goddess, preserved well by the Archaeological Survey of India

Puranic Significance

The portion between Devi Sati’s eyebrows- symbolic of her mind – is said to have fallen in this region ANOTHER STORY OF SATI: In Hindu mythology, the son of Brahma, King Prajapati Daksha had a daughter named Sati.Princess Sati grew up adoring the legends and tales of Shiva, and when finally her age of getting married came, she knew it was only the ascetic Lord Shiva of Kailash where her heart and soul resided.Soon enough, Daksha’s daughter left her father’s luxuries and palace and began her meditation to win Shiva’s heart.She performed intense penance in dense forests and renounced food completely. When she finally pleased Shiva through her austerities, the lord of Kailash appeared in front of her and agreed to marry her. The legend goes that Sati and Shiva were happy in their marital bliss, but their marriage had not gone down too well with King Daksha, who considered ascetic Shiva nothing short of an uncouth lad who lives a hermit’s life not worthy of his daughter. So when Daksha organized a great yajna, he invited all the deities, gods and sages–but consciously excluded his son-in-law Shiva to insult him. Hurt by her father’s decision, Sati decided to visit her father and demand the reason for not inviting them. When she entered Daksha’s palace, she was bombarded with insults directed towards the Shiva.Haughty and proud King Prajapati Daksha called him all sorts of names right from a dishevelled god who hung out in graveyard to the supposed ‘lord of the beasts’. Unable to bear anything against her husband, a devastated Goddess Sati threw herself in the glowing scared fire of yajna.When Shiva’s attendants informed him about the demise of his wife, he grew enraged and created Veerbhadra from a lock of his hair. Veerbhadra created havoc in Daksha’s palace and killed him.Meanwhile, mourning his beloved soulmate’s death, Shiva tenderly held Sati’s body and started his dance of destruction (taandav). To save the universe and bring back Shiva’s sanity, Lord Vishnu cut Sati’s lifeless body using Sudharshan Chakra into 51 pieces.

Beliefs

The Phaphra River is said to be the Remover of Sins. This region is known particularly for its scenic beauty. The centre portion of “eyebrows” Goddess Sati had fallen here and she is worshipped in the form of Shakti Mahishmardini The temple is renowned for its eight natural hot springs which are enriched with healing powers.

Century/Period/Age

1000 years old

Managed By

Archaeological Survey of India

Nearest Bus Station

Siuri

Nearest Railway Station

Siuri

Nearest Airport

Kolkata

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