Tarapith is a town and Hindu pilgrimage site located in

Rampurhat subdivision Rampurhat subdivision is an administrative subdivision of Birbhum district in the state of West Bengal, India. Overview The northern portion of Rampurhat subdivision is part of the Nalhati Plains, a sub-micro physiographic region, and the south ...

Birbhum district Birbhum district () is an administrative unit in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the northernmost district of Burdwan division—one of the five administrative divisions of West Bengal. The district headquarters is in Suri. Other impo ...

of 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

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

. The town is particularly known for the

Tarapith Temple Tarapith Temple is a 13th century Hindu temple in Tarapith, Birbhum, West Bengal in India, dedicated to the Hindu goddess Tara (Mahavidya), Tara,the second mahavidya among the Mahavidya, Mahavidyas in Hinduism. It is one of the 51 ''Sati Pithas ...

and its adjoining Hindu

crematory A crematorium, crematory or cremation center is a venue for the cremation of the dead. Modern crematoria contain at least one cremator (also known as a crematory, retort or cremation chamber), a purpose-built furnace. In some countries a cremat ...

ground. The tantric

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

is dedicated to the goddess Tara. Tarapith is also famous for Tantric saint

Bamakhepa Bamakhyapa (; 1837–1911Kinsely, p. 111), born Bamacharan Chattopadhyay, was an Indian Hindu saint who resided in Tarapith and whose shrine is also located in the vicinity of the Tarapith Temple in Birbhum. He was born at Atla village in ...

, who worshipped in the temple and resided in the

cremation ground A shmashana outside an Indian village A shmashana () is a Hindu crematory ground, where dead bodies are brought to be burnt on a pyre. It is usually located near a river or body of water on the outskirts of a village or town; as they are usually ...

s. His

ashram An ashram (, ) is a spiritual hermitage or a monastery in Indian religions, not including Buddhism. Etymology The Sanskrit noun is a thematic nominal derivative from the root 'toil' (< Dwarka River The Dwarka River (also called Babla) is a tributary of Bhagirathi. Course The Dwaraka originates in Santhal Parganas in Jharkhand, flows through Deucha, and then through Mayureswar and Rampurhat police station areas of Birbhum district. It fin ...

in West Bengal. Situated in the Tarapith Police Station circle, it is surrounded by the green paddy fields on the flood plains. It looks like a typical Bengali village with thatched roof huts and fish tanks.Dalrymple, pp. 210-211 The town is located 6 km from Rampurhat Sub-Division in the Birbhum district. "Rampurhat" and "Tarapith Road" are the nearest Railway stations.

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External links

Tarapith
'' WBTDCL'' {{Temple towns in West Bengal Cities and towns in Birbhum district Birbhum district Hindu temples in West Bengal Pilgrimage in India Hindu temples in Birbhum district