Bhubaneswar is known for its many temples and Nikunja Bihari Temple is certainly one of the most prominent ones. Situated at the Kuakhai river bank, the 100-year-old shrine is a Krishna temple with ancient origins.
Given that there are millions of devotees of Lord Krishna in the state, the temple attracts thousands during Janmashtami. The temple is a simple Pidha Deula. Upon entering the complex, the main temple with the huge Krishna idol is on the right. One can also spot a few dilapidated statues and stone blocks lying scattered and the rooms for the priest are on the other side.
The temple lies on the approach way to the recently inaugurated Mahatma Gandhi Setu and is a seat of devotion, pilgrimage and culture. Although the temple attracts visitors throughout the year, maximum footfall can be witnessed during Janmashtami. Visitors can enter the temple at any time of the day.
The temple is the common property of the Vaishnavites of Balianta areas and is being looked after by the Sri Sri Nikunja Bihari Deba Parichalana Committee. Inside the premises, Lord Hanuman is to right. There is also a big structure of Krishna lifting the Govardhan Hill. The main idol of Krishna is seated inside the temple along with the gopis.
The present structure dates back to 1919 but the place is steeped in history. Sridhar Dash, the present priest of the temple, says, “During 1880s, the place was known as ‘Kunja Bana’ and used to regularly get flooded during the monsoons. A travelling sadhu from the North named Dhulia Baba, while on his way to Puri had stopped at the place and remained there for several years.
Initially, the place was a garden owned by the zamindars, where many trees were planted to keep the villages safe during floods. The hermit used to sit on a stone and eat sand from the bank of the Kuakhai river. One day, the baba and the stone disappeared leaving behind a big hole at the spot. The locals believe Dhulia Baba merged with the soil. Later, the locals built a samadhi for him. After a few days, a big white ant mound appeared at the spot. Even today, locals worship the mound to fulfill their wishes.”
“Dinabandhu Sahoo, a local salt trader started collecting stones to build a temple at the place and coincidentally, a fisherman in the Tankapani area found a Krishna idol in 1913 while he was fishing. The then police-in-charge of Balianta area, Narayana Saranghi on receiving the news informed the local zamindar. The zamindar took the idol from the fisherman and placed it near a banyan tree since the construction of the temple was incomplete. Upon completion of the construction of the temple in 1919, the idol was established inside. People believe Lord Krishna was doing ‘raas’ in Kunja Bana, which is why he is known as Nikunja Bihari. And that’s the reason the temple only has an idol of Lord Krishna along with his gopis and no idol of Radha,” Sridhar adds.
Niranjan Pradhan, a local devotee says, “The locals celebrate all the festivals of Lord Krishna throughout the year. Krishna Janmashtami is celebrated in a big every year. More than 50,000 people gather during the festival. The premises also have other temples of Lord Hanuman, Shiva, Rama and Parvati. The temple committee also arranges religious preaching and Ramnavami every year. Dola Melana is an important festival of the temple. More than 20 Dola bimanas from different areas of Bhubaneswar come to this place with big processions.”
SOYONG, OP
