Ananta Vasudeva Temple ("Temple of the
Infinite Vāsudeva
Vāsudeva (; ), later incorporated as Vāsudeva-Krishna (, "Krishna, son of Vasudeva Anakadundubhi, Vasudeva"),"While the earliest piece of evidence do not yet use the name Krsna...." in At the time of the Heliodorus pillar dedication to Vāsu ...
",
Odia:ଅନନ୍ତ ବାସୁଦେବ ମନ୍ଦିର) is a
Hindu temple
A Hindu temple, also known as Mandir, Devasthanam, Pura, or Kovil, is a sacred place where Hindus worship and show their devotion to Hindu deities, deities through worship, sacrifice, and prayers. It is considered the house of the god to who ...
dedicated to
Krishna
Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...
, an ''
avatar
Avatar (, ; ) is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means . It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearance" is sometimes u ...
'' of
Vishnu
Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...
located in
Bhubaneswar
Bhubaneswar () is the capital and the largest city of the States and territories of India, Indian state of Odisha. It is located in the Khordha district. The suburban region, especially the old town, was historically often depicted as ''Chakra ...
, the state capital of
Odisha
Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...
,
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 ...
. The temple was constructed in the thirteenth century, and the complete
murtis of Krishna,
Balarama
Balarama (, ) is a Hindu god, and the elder brother of Krishna. He is particularly significant in the Jagannath tradition, as one of the triad deities. He is also known as Haladhara, Halayudha, Baladeva, Balabhadra, and Sankarshana.
The fir ...
and
Subhadra
Subhadra (, ) is a character in the ancient Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. She is a princess from the Yadava clan and the sister of Krishna and Balarama. Subhadra married Arjuna, one of the Pandava brothers and had a son named Abhimanyu.
Sub ...
are worshipped there. The temple dates back to the period of Chandrika Devi, the daughter of
Anangabhima III, during the reign of the king Bhanudeva. A commemorative inscription that marked the foundation of the temple can be found in the
British Museum
The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...
's collection.
Legend
It appears that the original image of
Vishnu
Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...
was worshipped on the spot where the great temple of Ananta Vasudeva was built in the 13th century CE. Thus in the 13th century, Queen Chandrika of
Eastern Ganga dynasty
The Eastern Ganga dynasty (also known as Purba Gangas, Rudhi Gangas or Prachya Gangas) were a large medieval era Indian royal Hindu dynasty that reigned from Kalinga from as early as the 5th century to the mid 20th century. Eastern Gangas rul ...
was prompted to construct a new temple - the temple of Ananta Vasudeva in this place. There must have been an old temple where this Vishnu image was installed. The
Maratha
The Marathi people (; Marathi: , ''Marāṭhī lōk'') or Marathis (Marathi: मराठी, ''Marāṭhī'') are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are native to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-A ...
s, who extended their empire up to river
Mahanadi
The Mahanadi River is a major river in East Central India. It drains an area of around and has a total length of . Mahanadi is also known for the Hirakud Dam which was the first major multipurpose river valley project after India's independenc ...
, were responsible for renovating the Vishnu temple at
Bhubaneswar
Bhubaneswar () is the capital and the largest city of the States and territories of India, Indian state of Odisha. It is located in the Khordha district. The suburban region, especially the old town, was historically often depicted as ''Chakra ...
in the late 17th century.
Architecture
In form, the temple resembles the
Lingaraj temple, but includes ''
Vaishnavite
Vaishnavism () ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu denominations, Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole Para Brahman, supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, that is, ''Mahavishnu''. It is one of the majo ...
'' (
Vishnu
Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...
related) sculptures. The temple has longitudinal bands of miniature ''
shikhara
''Shikhara'' (IAST: '), a Sanskrit word translating literally to "mountain peak", refers to the rising tower in the Hindu temple architecture of North India, and also often used in Jain temples. A ''shikhara'' over the ''garbhagriha'' chamber ...
s'' (shrines), exactly like those in Lingaraj temple, with the minor difference that the number of the ''
shikhara
''Shikhara'' (IAST: '), a Sanskrit word translating literally to "mountain peak", refers to the rising tower in the Hindu temple architecture of North India, and also often used in Jain temples. A ''shikhara'' over the ''garbhagriha'' chamber ...
s'' forming one longitudinal band in its case is only three. The sculpture in the exterior walls varies in character in each temple in Bhubaneswar. Most of the female sculptures in the temple walls are overly ornamented and lack originality
The sanctum has the icons of Krishna, Balarama, and Subhadra. Balarama stands under a seven-hooded serpent, Subhadra holds pot of jewels and a lotus in her two hands, keeping her left foot over another jewel pot, while Krishna holds a
mace, ''
chakra
A chakra (; ; ) is one of the various focal points used in a variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra, part of the inner traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism.
The concept of the chakra arose in Hinduism. B ...
'',
lotus, and a
conch
Conch ( , , ) is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-sized sea snails. Conch shells typically have a high Spire (mollusc), spire and a noticeable siphonal canal (in other words, the shell comes to a noticeable point on both ...
.
Difference from Jagannath Temple, Puri
The idols found in the ''
garbhagrha ''(sanctum sanctorum) of the temple have complete structure unlike the images of the
Jagannath Temple, Puri
The Jagannath Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Jagannath, a form of Vishnu in Hinduism. It is located in Puri in the state of Odisha, situated on the eastern coast of India. As per temple records, King Indradyumna of Avanti bu ...
. Here the ''shrimurtis'' (idols) are made of black granite stone, rather than wood, as seen in the Puri temple. For this temple only, the city gains its name as ''Chakra kshetra'' (circular place), whereas
Puri
Puri, also known as Jagannath Puri, () is a coastal city and a Nagar Palika, municipality in the state of Odisha in eastern India. It is the district headquarters of Puri district and is situated on the Bay of Bengal, south of the state ca ...
is named ''Shankha kshetra'' (conch-shaped place).
Gallery
File:View of Ananta Vasudeva Temple from Bindusagar - July 2007.jpg, View of Ananta Vasudeva Temple from Bindusagar
File:Ananta vasudeva temple 2.jpg, View of Ananta Vasudeva Temple in 1869
File:Mahaprasad in ananta vasudeva.jpg, Mahaprasad in Ananta Vasudeva temple
File:Ananta Basudeba Temple, Bhubaneswar 18.jpg, Lion statue in the ''singhadwara''
File:Ananta Basudeba Temple, Bhubaneswar 17.jpg, A small broken shrine in the premises
File:Ananta Basudeba Temple, Bhubaneswar 19.jpg, First stone inscription installed in the outer wall
File:Ananta Basudeba Temple, Bhubaneswar 20.jpg, ''Bimana'' or ''Deula''
File:Ananta Basudeba Temple, Bhubaneswar 21.jpg, ''Jagamohana''
File:Abadha and Prasada in earthen pots in Ananta Basudeba Temple, Bhubaneswar.jpg, Abadha and Prasada offered to the deities
File:Temple Kitchen of Ananta Basudeba Temple, Bhubaneswar 02.jpg, The temple kitchen of the Ananta Basudeba temple in Bhubaneswar, Odisha
File:Temple Kitchen of Ananta Basudeba Temple, Bhubaneswar 01.jpg, The temple kitchen of the Ananta Basudeba temple in Bhubaneswar, Odisha
File:Ananta Basudeba Temple, Bhubaneswar - Varaha niche 08 (cropped).jpg, Varaha
Varaha (, , "boar") is the avatar of the Hinduism, Hindu god Vishnu, in the form of a wild boar, boar. Varaha is generally listed as third in the Dashavatara, the ten principal avatars of Vishnu.
In legend, when the demon Hiranyaksha steals ...
as a parshvadevata in a niche
Community Service
Many temples in India do community service in the form of serving food, medical assistance, cultural activities, etc.
Serving food on special occasions is done by almost all the temples and is known as
Prasad.
Around one hundred temples in Bhubaneswar serve food to the people in and around the temple area free or at a nominal cost. It helps in preserving traditional Odia recipes. These recipes are automatically introduced to the newer generation as well as to the visiting people from outside the state and India.The taste of the prasad is unique and delicious. It helps to maintain a connection with the ancient roots besides feeding thousands of devotees with dignity and devotion.
[Times of India, Sunday,22nd December 2024]
References
{{Hindu temples in Odisha
Purana temples of Vishnu
Hindu temples in Bhubaneswar
Jagannath temples
Archaeological monuments in Odisha
13th-century Hindu temples
13th-century establishments in India
13th-century religious buildings and structures in India