Maa Markama Temple located at Bissam Cuttack village of

Rayagada district Rayagada district is a district in the southern Odisha States and union territories of India, state in India. Rayagada became a separate district in October 1992. Its population consists mainly of Adivasi, tribes, primarily the Khonds and t ...

is a place of tourist interest. It is the only shrine (

Shakti Peethas The Shakta pithas, also called Shakti pithas or Sati pithas (, , ''seats of Shakti''), are significant shrines and pilgrimage destinations in Shaktism, the mother goddess denomination in Hinduism. The shrines are dedicated to various forms of Ad ...

) of

Devi ''Devī'' (; ) is the Sanskrit word for 'goddess'; the masculine form is Deva (Hinduism), ''deva''. ''Devi'' and ''deva'' mean 'heavenly, divine, anything of excellence', and are also gender-specific terms for a deity in Hinduism. The concept ...

Maa Markama and Maa Karkama in the

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 ...

n state 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 ...

. The temple of Maa Karkama (believed to be the sister of Maa Markama) is situated next to the temple of Maa Markama. The legend says that the Devi is being worshiped for centuries. However, the temple was constructed in the recent past. A junior college and a university college in Bissam Cuttack are named after Maa Markama. The temple is one of the places of tourist attractions in the Rayagada district.

Dussehra Vijayadashami (), more commonly known as Dassahra in Hindi, and also known as Dashāhra or Dashain in Bhojpuri, Maithili and Nepali, is a major Hindu festival celebrated every year at the end of Durga Puja and Navarahtri. It is observed o ...

and

chaitra Chaitra () is a month of the Hindu calendar. In the standard Hindu calendar and India's national civil calendar, Chaitra is the first month of the year. It is the last month in the Bengali calendar, where it is called Choitro. Chaitra or Cha ...

Paraba are celebrated every year at the temple. The nearest railhead is Chatikona, which is 7 km (4.34 miles) from Bissam Cuttack.

History

As per historical references, Kalahambir, the king of the SURYA dynasty (Suryavansi) ruled Bissam cuttack and Devi Maa Markama was the Ishtadevi of the royal family.The book entitled "''JAYA MAA MARKAMA''" on page 1 written by Shri Sriranga Nayak, retd. teacher and historian, Bissam Cuttack The ritual of human sacrifice was prevalent here and was stopped during British rule. Yet the ritual of buffalo sacrifice continued, which was stopped by the then Regional officer Shri Gadhadhar Mishro(01.07.1953-19.03.1955). The mention of Devi Maa Markama can also be found in the ''CHANDI PURANA'' of Sarala Dash and also in ''BATA ABAKASH'' of Matta Balarama Dash. The Devi has been mentioned as Utkaleeya (Oriya for "of Odisha") jogini in mythological books. Several legends say that Devi Markama helped the King of Bissam Cuttack during a war by mesmerizing the enemy soldiers.

References

Devi temples in India Hindu temples in Rayagada district {{Odisha-hindu-temple-stub