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| Dhabaleswar Temple, Cuttack. TripAdvisor |
Dhabaleswar Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva is in a remote island within the river Mahanadi on a hill top called Dabalagiri in Dhauli at a distance of 27 km from the city of Cuttack. Charmed by the serene nature of the terrain and the temple atop the hill in the middle of greenery and the river, a lot of people from nearby places visit this place on the weekends for relaxation and religious experience.
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| Dhabaleswar Temple, CuttackNuaOdisha |
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| Dhabaleswartemple, the igol of Shiva. Pinterest |
With rare exceptions, Hindu temples are often associated with some kind of legend or sthala purana that has relevance in today's mundane world. How did the place get the name Dhabaleswar
(Dhabala or White + Easwar or God )?
Once a villager from a neighboring place with a black bull calf was mistaken by the local villagers for a thief. The stranger with a back bull calf finally found a safe haven in the sanctum of a Shiva's temple. The villagers who chased the thief heard the calf 's cry in the temple and were waiting outside the temple to catch the thief. Fear-stricken, the stranger sincerely prayed to god to save him from real danger. Lord Shiva, realising his predicament, took the guise of a monk/sanyasi appeared before the angry crowd with a white calf to clear their cause of agitation. On seeing the white calf and confirming the man in the sanctum was not a thief, the crowd dispersed. Soon, Sanyasi also disappeared and this made the stranger realize the god himself saved his life and honor. He immediately repented and as an ancient wheeze says, "Confession is the right step to reformation", the stranger told the crowd what had happened and tendered his apology to them. Then on, since Lord Shiva turned the black calf into a white one, he is referred to as Dhabaleswara. White in Sanskrit and Oriya is referred to as dhabala.
Like many Shiva temples, the major festivals are Shivaratri, Pausha purnima, Dola purnima, and Kartika Purnima and are celebrated with devotion and dedication.
There are shrines around the main one dedicated to Ganesha, Kartikeya and eight armed Durga Unlike other Kalinga temples, where Shiva's consort Parvati is adorned in a niche, there is a Durga idol in this temple. There is a separate shrine for the Goddess Dhabaleswari in this temple. There are idols of Narayanan and Laksmi in this temple.
Tit-Bits:
01. The temple architecture seems to be of recent origin, but evidences suggest that the temple was built around 10th century AD. Through ages, considering the location, the temple was subjected to periodic damages due to natural calamities after renovation.
02. Emperor Ashoka fought a fierce battle against the King of Kalinga. Ashoka came out victorious after killing more than 250,000 people. Emperor Ashoka was in no mood to celebrate his victory at the cost of thousands of lives. Being a man with scruples, love and peace became his mantras and later he became an ardent follower of Lord Buddha.
03. A Buddhist shrine was built on the hilltop in 1972 by the Japan Buddha Sangh.
04. Dhabaleswar temple is located on the other side of the famous Shanti Stupa.
05.The temple annually attracts more than 15 lakh and during panchuka, or the auspicious first five days of the month of Kartika, and bada osha ( auspicious occasion for fasting) more than 10 lakh devotees come to the shrine foe prayer and receiving blessings.
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| Dhabaleswartemple, odisha, Mulpix com. |
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| Suspension bridge to the island. pravin Bhushan's Travel Blog! |
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Ref:
https://www.telegraphindia.com/1111107/jsp/orissa/story_14713878.jsp
http://travel#sulekha#com/dhabaleswar-island#htm Lord Shiva,who made one black bullock into white one
http://www#orissatourism#gov#in/new/wsdhabal#html Dhabaleshwara,the living god of Cuttack
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