Just one day from Kolkata is all it takes to reach the last resting place of a once-living god
A busy work schedule lately has ensured that my vacations were limited this year. Feeling restless to travel somewhere, I zeroed in on a unique place from Hindu mythology in the neighbouring state of Odisha – and just a few hour’s train ride from Kolkata.
So, Friday after work, I headed straight for Howrah station to catch the 10:35 pm Howrah-Puri Superfast Express. The next morning at 05:00 am I deboarded at Bhubaneshwar junction, once the capital of the kingdom of Kalinga from the Mahabharat era. A taxi took me to Kantilo village, just a two-hour drive (82 Km) from Bhubaneshwar.
The moment I entered the place, I was seeped in mythology recounting the last moments of Shri Krishna as stated in the great epic Mahabharat. The quaint village on the banks of the Mahanadi River is famous for its brassware. Village artisans here craft brass kitchen utensils which are in high demand.
The highlight of the place, however, is the ever-flowing Mahanadi river and a unique Krishna temple – the Nilamadhav. A literal translation of the name signifies ‘blue (neel) Krishna (madhav)’ but dig a little deeper and ask the local or the priests here to learn about the fascinating story of what happened that led to Krishna’s death and thereafter.
The story unfolds from when Arjun, Mahabharat’s hero, had just learnt about Krishna’s death at Bhalka, near Dwarka, Gujarat struck by the arrow of a hunter king. He rushes to attend Krishna’s last rites on the pyre. As Krishna’s mortal body was consumed by the flames, Arjun approached the pyre to recover Krishna’s navel from it, as per hindu tradition.
He did get the naval, but was surprised to see it. The bright blue object was like a big brilliant gemstone, unlike the navel of any human being. Tradition calls for immersion of the navel in the river. Arjun immersed the ashes in the holy Yamuna river but held on to the blue object and rode towards east.
On advice from the then king of Kalinga, the object was hidden in a desolate temple in the deep jungles far away from the capital. Arjun returns after his quest was completed. The king had cactus surround the temple so no one could get there. And this is the origin story of the village Kantilo (thorny).
Later, King Biprada of Kalinga kingdom came to know about this unique gemstone and had it recovered. At the time he received orders to construct a temple for Lord Jagannath (a semi-tribal god believed to a also Krishna) in his dreams. He started the tradition of having this unique object placed inside the wooden idols of Lord Jagannath, his brother Balaram and sister Subhadra.
At the Puri temple, every year as the wooden Jagannath idols are replaced, a special ritual is performed to transfer this object from the old idol in to the new – probably symbolic of the hindu belief that the soul is eternal and changes its body several times.
Today, the Neelmadhav temple, build like a replica of the Puri temple stands as a symbol of Vaishnav devotion and as a place witness to Krishna’s navel. Early morning hours are the best time to visit this temple and soak into the history and natural beauty of this place on the banks of Mahanadi where three rivers confluence.
An hour or two at the temple later head back to Bhubaneshwar and catch up on some tea and munchy snacks in the rural shops here. Next I head on to the Udaygiri and Khandagiri caves, which were home to jain monks under the tutelage of King Kharavel from the first century AD.
The Buddhist Shanti Stupa on the peak of the Dhavalgiri hills will catch your attention even from a distance. The hill overlooks the Daya river valley which was once the Kalinga battleground of emperor Ashoka. After this battle Ashoka famously adopted the Buddhist faith. From here I headed back to Bhubaneshwar.
After purchasing a few printed shirts from the local bazaar near Kedar gauri temple in Bhubaneshwar I headed to the railway station to rendezvous with the 2:50 pm Vande Bharat Express to Howrah. At 8 pm I reached Howrah and from here a metro train ride from under the Hooghly river brought me back home on Saturday night.
After resting the Sunday catching up with office on Monday was just a breeze as I managed a short vacation without using any of my leaves.
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