Today we are talking about the famous place of west Bengal is Bishnupur temples. This place especially famous for terracotta art, at the end of the winter after the Sundarbans trip, we were visited at Bishnupur. This place is under the Bankura district. Winter is the best time to visit that place due to intense heat arise In summer.
At 14th February 2020 we began our journey in Rupshi Bengal express towards Bishnupur. We were reached at Bishnupr station After the 3 hours train journey. We booked our hotel in advanced, the hotel is 20 minutes apart from the station. The hotel name is “Udyan Lodge”, it’s a nice place.
The museum and ashram of Sarada Ma is opposite to hotel. The location of the hotel is likeable. We took our breakfast at the hotel and out for the sight scene. We spent some time at Sarada Ma ashram. We can cover the whole sight scene of Bishnupur almost 3 hours so we took rest. The car was provided by the hotel authority so after having lunch we started our journey for sigh scene. Before we told about the history of Bishnupur then will talk about the sight scene story.
First, we visit at Yogeshchandra Museum in old Bishnupur. This is designed by different sculpture monument.
Birth of the museum
The Bankura District Museum or the AcharyaJagadish Chandra Purakriti Bhavan was inaugurated in 1951 and is now under the control of the Directorate of Archaeology and Museums, Ministry of Information and Culture, Government of West Bengal.
This small museum gives a good perspective of Bishnupur, which is famous for its Terracotta temples. A visitor to this museum will also get to know other aspects of arts and culture which originated in Bishnupur. All over its a A small museum but enough to make you aware of the heritage of Bishnupur.
Our main focus on visiting the famous Bishnupur temple. The distances between the temples are very short. The terracotta design and color of red soil etc, the whole vibes of the environment has enhanced the beauty of the place.
The rasmancha is the temple which was 1st visited.
The Rasmancha is a historical building located at Bishnupur, Bankura district, West Bengal, India. It was commissioned by Mallabhum King HambirMallaDev (BirHambir) in 1600 CE.[1] Length and breadth of this temple is 24.5 meter and the height is 12.5 meter. The base or altar of the temple is made of laterite stone and the upper part is made with bricks. The upper structure looks like a pyramid. Middle part resembles Bengali huts and the arches of the lower part resemble Islamic architecture. Rasmancha is the oldest brick temple and the only temple of its kind in the whole country.
Rasmancha is no more a temple today, it has now been converted into a protected monument by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which is making sincere maintenance efforts on this masterpiece.
After visited Rasmancha, we had visited our second place namely Madanmohan Temple
A small but very beautiful temple.
Madan Mohan Temple was built in 1694. He is in excellent condition.
Here you can enjoy terracotta friezes with the finest carvings depicting events from the life of Krishna for a long time. a larger and older temple of the same genre as the others but well worth a visit. well maintained lawns and some nice intricate carvings. Its rich decorations and designs surpass the ShyamRai and KeshtaRai temples. There are impressive scenes from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Puranas carved on the temple walls.
Our next destination was Radheshyam temple. The architecture of all temple is the same . This is another beautiful terracotta temple old and taken over by ASI for maintenance. It is huge in size, Malla Ruler ChaitanyaSingha built this temple of Radha and Shyam in 1758. Square on plan, this ekratna south-facing laterite temple stands within a large courtyard.
Next, the place was the Main gate of the old fort. Historical place. Nice place but it should be more maintained. Roads should also not good and should be more maintained. This entrance gate is called the Gardarja, which literally means the door of the fort.
Another next place was, Jor-Bangla temple also called KeshtaRai Temple, has a typical architecture that is found in the southern part of Bengal. One of them serves as a porch and the other, which is behind the former, serves as a shrine. The curved roof of this pair of huts is surmounted by a ‘char-chalasikhara’. The temple was built by Malla King Raghunath Singha (pronunciation: sing-ho) in c.1655. The structure resembles two traditional ‘Do-chala’ village huts put together side by side.i have liked most because of this structure.
This is maintained by Archaeological Survey of India and is a must visit place within the town of Bishnupur.
It has very intricate carvings on the temple which is beautifully made indicating the stories of Mahabharatha n Ramayana.
Lovely architecture.Such intricate work on the body of the temple, portraying different cultures of India. We hired a guide who explained and told us a lot of things which we wouldn’t know otherwise. The ticket to the temple is the same one you buy for Rasmancha. Temple is opened till 5 pm in the evening. It’s surrounded by a landscaped and well-maintained garden.
Lalbadh is one of our destinations which are near to our hotel.
A lake at the edge of the town Bishnupur, just in front of Sarbamangalamandir. This lake is named for LalBai who has an affair with the king RaghunathSingha II. The queen drawnedLalBai in this lake. But the lake is just awesome.
Nice place visit at morning or in the evening . Spend some time here.
We left last 2 places are “Chinnamastar Temple” and “Dalmadal Kaman”
A nice temple in Bishnupur, Neat & Clean temple. There is a small market of terracotta work & handicrafts in the area. Dalmadalkaman is kept nearby. One of the famous temples in Bishnupur. Chhinamasta mandir is a temple of an avatar of goddess kaali.. there is a shiv temple beside the main Chhinnamasta temple in the same premises. The place is really a peaceful place and water supply is also available.
The Mythical cannon
Yes, this is really mythical cannon. As per local belief, Lord Madan Mohan used to actually fire the cannons in the battles. The cannon is bang adjacent to the Chhinnamasta Temple. A real huge cannon, one of the icons of Bishnupur town. This was built by a Malla King in the 17th Century to protect his kingdom from invaders. The cannon is 3.8 Mtr long. More than 12 MT in weight and made with a cost of more than Rs. 1.25 lacs at that time.
Day 2
After having breakfast we went to Kamarpukur. Almost taking 3hours from Bishnupur to Kamarpukur. We were advanced booking at Godadhar lodge.
Kamarpukur
Ramkrishna mission is located at in front Kamarpukur so we have visited that place, then we were check-in the hotel.
We went Jayrambati at 3 pm, 8km distance from here.
The first place we visited at Jayarambati that is temple of Sarada Ma.
A religious most quite place ever seen. Good for meditations. Must experience the delicious lunch costing only 40 to 50. The Prasad is served from 11.30 a.m. This place to be visited by devotees.Very peaceful area with very well maintained and unique units. Parking of vehicles is a small problem. Actually this is the birthplace of MOTHER of the WORLD, SRISRIMAA SARADA DEVI, who is the all in all of the world-famous RAMAKRISHNA MATH & RAMAKRISHNA MISSION. The flower garden was very beautiful.
Our next place was Sihor, some of Hindu and Shiv temple is located there. The ancestors of Ramakrishna are lived in the place. They were told the history of Ramakrishna. Some of Sarada ma’s used product also put in that place. A nice experienced had gathered.
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The last temple visited which is Mrinmaye temple. The cannons from this temple mark the onset of Durga Puja in many parts of Bishnupur. It does not look that old because of the painting which is done every year. There is a tree outside the branches of which are entwined in an interesting way to look like an image of Ganesha.
Many sight scenes have located in Kamarpukur, so you can take a local guide and cover that place. We will provide the link below.
https://www.tripadvisor.in/Attractions-g2287538-Activities-Kamarpukur_Hooghly_District_West_Bengal.html
The Goghat station 8km away from Kamarpukur. As our plan, we took a Howrah Goghat train from Goghat station. This is a nice tour 3days 2night.
Tour Summary :
Date – 14/02/2020-16/02/2020
Tour Members : 3
Kolkata to Bisnupur Tour plan :
Day 1 : Kolkata to bisnupur by train. Bisnupur Sightscene.
Day 2 : Bisnupur to Kamarpukur. Kamarpukur Sightscene.
Day 3 : Kamarpukur to Kolkata by Train.
Bishnupur hotels information :
Udayan Lodge Address : Bishnupur College Rd, Opp Ramananda College, Bishnupur, West Bengal 122722
Phone: 03244 252 243
For more details visit : Bishnupur tourism website. W : https://www.bishnupurtourism.com/
Some more info :
Things to Do and Don’ts :-
1. Explore BisHnupur, the terrakota temples.
2. Explore Joyrambati, Sarada Maa temple and others hindu temple.
Do not mess the ocean with plastic bags.
The best time to visit Bisnupur is considered between December to February as the weather is pleasant.
You can also visit our full album : Click here.
Now its Your turn, what is your travel experiences on this place?
Thanks
Team Exploretours
My name is Supriya Kumar Mitra. It is the diary of travel experiences of some passionate travelers. We are sharing our tour experience in this site. As the name Exploretours is a blog on everything that leads to travel. To us, tour is not memory or images its connect to nature.. This website is dedicated for those who love to travel..
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Loved the pictures and the simple write up!