Brief
Kal Bhairab Temple is a Hindu temple which is dedicated to the God Shiva. The temple is famous for the giant Shivalinga. Shivalinga is a 28-feet tall Shiva statue. No other statue in the world is assumed to be as big as it. Hindu Lord Shiva known as Kal Bhairab is the main attraction here, but Goddess Kali is also been worshiped. The location of statue of Kali is on the right side of the Kal Bhairab and the statue of the Goddess Saraswati on the left. The temple is a major pilgrimage place for Shaivites in Bangladesh.
The temple dates back to the 19th century. It is said that approximately 200 years ago a sculptor named Durgacharan Acharjee saw a dream which motivated and influenced him to make preparations to build the statue from soil. Noor Muhammad, the famous landlord of Sarail donated the land to build this temple.
Before the Brahmanbaria city was established, Medda was the market located beside the famous Titas river. This market is almost 300 years old. Durgacharan first built this statue by the bank of the river with soil. Regular prayers were held by the local fans until 1971.
During the Bangladesh Liberation War the Pakistani soldiers damaged and looted a lot of Hindu temples in Bangladesh. This temple was one of the damaged temples. The soldiers damaged the parts of this statue using dynamite. Later the statue was made again. It took four years to build this statue again but it reached the height of 24 feet. The current statue is made of stone.
Both regular and annual prayers are held here. People from different regions come to visit this temple. This place is also referred as one of the tourist attractions of the Brahmanbaria district. There are management committees to look after the temple. The giant statue of the Shiva is mostly locked for maintenance issues. The Government of Bangladesh looks after the charges for maintenance.
Where to Stay
Some places of may consider staying in Brahmanbaria have been listed below for your assistance:
1. Nasirnagar Dak Bungalow
Address: Dak Bungalow Ghat, Nasirnagar, Brahmanbaria
Contact: 01743930663
2. Zilla Parishad Dak Bungalow
Address: Upazilla Parishad chattar, Shorail, Brahmanbaria
Contact: 0178178394
3. Hotel Ujanvati and Resort
Address: Ashuganj Sonarampur, near the ashuganj Police Station
Contact: 01711561158
4. Hotel Chandrima
Address: Station road, Brahmanbaria
Contact: 01720655842
5. Hotel Unichiya
Address: Station Road, Brahmanbaria
Contact: 01712529983
6. Hotel Rahman
Address: South Kali Bari Junction, Ghorkon road, Brahmanbaria
Contact: 01670-906113
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[name] => Jora Kali Temple of Muktagacha
[post_id] => 22247
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/jora-kali-temple-muktagacha/
[thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/P_20151014_134059_1_p-169x300.jpg
[post_content] => Sri Sri Anondomoyi (শ্রী শ্রী আনন্দময়ী) Kali temple is located at the nucleus of Muktagacha Upazila. This temple is dedicated to Nirmola Debi (নির্মলা দেবী), Mother of Maharaja Shoshikanto Acharya (শশীকান্ত আচার্য). A traveler may get confused by the name of this temple as it comes with different words in websites and it's place. In websites, it is known as Sri Sri Anondomoyi (শ্রী শ্রী আনন্দময়ী) Kali temple where as in place, it’s named as Sri Sri Shiva Moheshwar (শ্রী শ্রী শিব মহেশ্বর) Temple and locally it is known as Jora kali Temple of Muktagacha.
Whatsoever the name is, ORB Team came to know from different places and later visited this attraction physically to reveal it's history. It was established in the year 1820 by the patronize of Shoshikanto Acharya (one of the great Zamindars of Muktagacha). Basically this two adjacent temple is a great example of mirror structure in Bengal. It has three arch shaped doorways at the front side. From the surface level, it is almost 1o meter high with so many decoration in its wall. The structural design of this temple is look like the other Moth (মঠ) structure in Bengal.
There is a large pond in the temple premises and it was dug at the time of establishment. Maharaja Shoshikanto Acharya donated his many assets for the daily expenses of worshipping in the temple. Among those lands significant areas are in Muktagacha Upazila, Gabtoli and Khamar Bazar area. Though none of those assets now owned by the temple.
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[name] => Joy Kali Temple
[post_id] => 10073
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/joy-kali-temple/
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[post_content] =>
The Joy kali Temple of Dhaka, is situated in a place between Thathari (ঠাটারি) Bazar and Wari. The road was named after this temple itself. Now, literally it is 24 Joy Kali Temple street. Joy Kali Temple is a Hindu temple devoted to Goddess Kali Ma for worshipping. People of Hindu religion of every age come to this temple to worship Goddess Kali. The statue of Goddess Kali is of great significance to the Hindus. The visitors and committee members of this temple gather money for occasions, where sweets are later distributed among them which is called 'Prasad'.
History:
This temple is about 400 years old, established in the Bengali year 1001. During the reign of the Nawabs, Dewan of Nawabs Tulsi Narayan Ghosh and Nabh Narayan Ghosh established this temple with the inspection of Bancharam Saint. At that time they established twenty-one statues of Shiva, Kali, Lakshmi narayan, three Shalgram Chakra, Bandurga etc. A few beautiful monuments like Pancharatna, Nabratna, temple of Shiva, guest house, were built in the house of Joy Kali. Even market named Nawabpur Joy Kali bazar, and a market situated at the south of Kaliganj hut was dedicated to Joy Kali Devi.
Present condition:
The first caretaker of this Joy Kali Devi was Bancharam Saint, the third caretaker was Panachenand, who suffered a decline, so the responsibility to serve the Devi got into the hands of Bhraman Tanyar. Later the landlords of that time seized some of the land of this temple. Starting from that time the temple started to erode, due to lack of maintenance and shortage of money. This temple was damaged during the strike of 1990’s. The temple was renovated later on by Goddess Kali’s followers. Now the temple is much smaller than it was when it was first established. The temple was burgled and valuables looted by thieves in 2010.
Architectural significance:
Inside the boundary of this temple there is basically two temples. One of the temples is of Kali Devi, the other one, which has a dome, is of Shiv. The dome was made out of plaster and is visible from outside. Locals of that area refer to this dome as the Joy Kali Temple. The front of the temple complex is a busy stop for human haulers that go into old Dhaka. The temple has tiles on the walls all around, and the floor is made out of mosaic. There are pictures of Hindu Gods and Goddesses printed on the tiled walls of the temple. The entrance to the temple is welcomed by a logo made of stainless steel saying 'Om'- which is a Hindu divine symbol. In front of the Kali Devi statue is a bell hanging from above, it is a ritual to ring the bell after entering the temple and before leaving.
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[name] => Joy Kalibari Temple
[post_id] => 18211
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/joy-kalibari-temple-2/
[thumb_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Joy-Kalibari-Temple9-300x225.jpg
[post_content] =>
Joy Kalibari Temple, one of the oldest temples in Natore, is located in Natore Sadar Upazila at Lalbazar area. This temple is approximately 300 years old, was built around the beginning of 18th century by Dayaram (দয়ারাম) Roy (1680-1760), the great and influential Dewan of Queen Bhabani (1716-1795) of Natore and the establisher of Dighapatia Royal Family. This temple has 2 buildings. Alongside the main building, in the right, there is a Shiv Mandir. Every weekend, people from all over the district come to this historical and beautiful temple to worship and pay their respects. There are various religious occasions like Durga Puja, Kali Puja etc. which are being celebrated here every year with much pomp and splendor.
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[name] => Bodeshari Temple
[post_id] => 2988
[post_link] => http://offroadbangladesh.com/places/bodeshari-temple/
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[post_content] => The Hindu temple "Bodeshari" is situated in Boda sub district at Borososhi council at Devibod Deshari Mouja at the area of 2.78 acre. Among 18 Purans, Skandha is one of those. In 88 Kashi of that Puran, it is said that the king made a worship.
The King Volanath was the son in law of Shib kind Dakkha. The king Dakkha never accepted Shib as his son-in-law because of his carelessness about his life. In that worship, all were invited but his son-in-law Devi durga (Parvati/Mahamaya) Shib was not invited.
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