Bara Ahnik Mandir () is a Hindu temple of the

Puthia Temple Complex The Puthia Temple Complex consists of a cluster of notable old Hindu temples in Puthia Upazila, Rajshahi District, Bangladesh. Located 23 km to the east of Rajshahi city, it has the largest number of historic temples in Bangladesh.McAdam, M ...

Puthia Upazila Puthia Upazila () is an Upazila of Rajshahi District in the Division of Rajshahi Division, Rajshahi, Bangladesh. Geography Puthia is located at . It has 52,922 households and total area 192.63 km2. This is a historical & traditional place in ...

Rajshahi Division Rajshahi Division () is one of the eight first-level administrative divisions of Bangladesh. It has an area of and a population at the 2022 Census of 20,353,119. Rajshahi Division consists of 8 districts, 70 upazilas (the next lower administrat ...

, Bangladesh. It stands next to Chauchala Chhota Govinda Mandir and faces east. It was built by the Rajas of Puthia. It follows a mixed form of

Bengal temple architecture Bengal temple architecture also known as Malla dynasty architecture is about temple styles developed and used in Bengal, particularly the ''chala'', ''ratna'' and ''dalan'' temples. Background According to David J. McCutchion, historically the ...

with a central '' Do Chala'' flanked with two '' Char Chala'' structures on both sides. The only other of known existence of something similar type in

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 ...

being Rajaram Mandir in

Faridpur District Faridpur District () is a district in south-central Bangladesh. It is a part of Dhaka Division. It is bounded by the Padma River to the northeast. The district was named for its headquarters, the city of Faridpur, Bangladesh, Faridpur, which its ...

Location

Puthia town where the temple is located is accessible by road, 32 km away from

Rajshahi Rajshahi (, ) is a metropolis, metropolitan city and a major Urban area, urban, administrative, commercial and educational centre of Bangladesh. It is also the administrative seat of the eponymous Rajshahi Division, division and Rajshahi Distr ...

town which is also a railhead. Rajshahi is located on the Dhaka Rajashahi Highway. The temple is located in a temple complex situated west of the Shyam Sagar lake. The walled complex complete with a garden also houses Chauchala Chhota Govinda Mandir and Gopal Mandir.

Features

The temple is located facing the Char Ani Rajbari on the west bank of the Shyamsagar lake. The prominent feature is a triple archway in the centre, with an open platform. The temple "consists of three chambers, '' Do Chala'' in the center and attached two '' Char Chala'' in its north and south side", hence it is also called ''tri-mandir'' (three temples); dochala (two roof), meaning two roofs, and char-chala (four roofs) or chau-chala are either square or rectangular in shape with roof in the form of a hut with four sloping parts. The central ''do chala'' has a triple arched entrance and each of the two ''char chala'' section have a single arch entrance. It has a highly adorned front (eastern) facade with terracotta plaques and some of them are stated to be in dilapidated condition.

Gallery

File:Big Annik Temple 3.jpg, alt=Bara Anhik Temple, The road to the Bara Ahnik temple File:Interior of Bara Ahnik Mandir, Puthia.jpg, alt=Bara Anhik Mandir, The inner part of the temple File:Terracotta of Bara Ahnik Mandir, Puthia.jpg, alt=Bara Anhik Temple, Decoration of earthen plates on the temple File:Bara Anhik Mandir Rear.jpg, alt=Bara Anhik Mandir, The back of the temple

References

Puthia Temple Complex 18th-century Hindu temples Hindu temples in Rajshahi district Archaeological sites in Rajshahi District {{Bangladesh-struct-stub

Location

Features

Gallery

See also

References