Dakshin Rai (, "King of the South") is a revered deity in the

Sundarbans Sundarbans (; pronounced ) is a mangrove forest area in the Ganges Delta formed by the confluence of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna Rivers in the Bay of Bengal. It spans the area from the Hooghly River in India's state of West Bengal ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

who rules over beasts and demons. He is regarded as the overall ruler of the Sundarbans. The deity is worshipped by all those who enter the Sundarban forests of West Bengal, for subsistence, irrespective of their caste, creed or religion.

Narrative

In the

Sealdah South lines Sealdah South section consists of a set of four lines which connect in Kolkata with its southern suburbs and with the entire South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, India. It is a part of the Kolkata Suburban Railway and is under the jurisd ...

, there is the station Dhapdhapi. A few miles away is a Dakshin Rai temple. The residents of the area worship this Tiger God. He once belonged to the area of the Sundarbans. His domain stretches from the south

Namkhana Namkhana is a village and a gram panchayat within the jurisdiction of the Namkhana police station in the Namkhana CD block in the Kakdwip subdivision of the South 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. History When the Tebh ...

Kakdwip Kakdwip () is a town of the South 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is situated on the eastern banks of the Hooghly River. It is the headquarters of the Kakdwip subdivision. History When the Tebhaga movement broke ou ...

the Bhagirathi- Hooghly River

Ganga The Ganges ( ; in India: Ganga, ; in Bangladesh: Padma, ). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international which goes through India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China." is a trans-boundary riv ...

in the west to the Ghatal Bakla district in the east as well as

Khulna Khulna (, ) is the third-largest city in Bangladesh, after Dhaka and Chittagong. It is the administrative centre of the Khulna District and the Khulna Division. It is the divisional centre of 10 districts of the division. Khulna is also the seco ...

Jessore District Jessore District, List of renamed places in Bangladesh, officially Jashore District (; ), is a Districts of Bangladesh, district in southwestern Bangladesh. It is bordered by India to the west, Khulna District, Khulna and Satkhira District, Satk ...

of Bangladesh. Every new moon (Amavasya), he is revered and appeased with animal sacrifices. Dakshin Rai also likes music and attracts musicians. The local tribes try their best to please the 'King of the South' by dancing and singing night after night. Dakshin Rai's father is Prabhakar ray (Danda Baksha muni) a

brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

and mother is Narayani. His father was the ruler of the Sundarban forests. He is depicted with large whiskers. His body is slender and has a shiny, yellow tinge decorated with tiger-like stripes. Drool drips from both sides of his mouth and he has a six-meter-long tail. Inhabitants of the Sundarbans pray to Dakshin Rai or

Bonbibi Bonbibi, is a legendary lady of the forest, dubbed as a guardian spirit of the forests and venerated by both the Hindu and the Muslim residents of the Sundarbans (the largest mangrove forest in the world spread across Southern Bangladesh and We ...

before venturing into the mangroves, as they believe this affords them protection. Natives of some tribes bind a mask with the face of Dakshin Rai to the back of their heads to confuse or scare an approaching tiger and ward off its attack.

References

{{Culture of West Bengal Culture of West Bengal Culture of Bangladesh Nature gods Sundarbans Legendary Indian people category:Deities of the Sundarbans