Lalmai Mandir

The place is famous for the annual fair held in the month of Phalgun according to the Bengali Calendar. The fair takes place at the foot of the Mainak Hill and lasts for 13 days. Thousands of Hindus participate here from all over Bangladesh.

Adinath Temple is located on the summit of the Mainak Hill on Maheshkhali Island off the coast of Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, is dedicated to the Hindu God, Shiva, who is worshiped as Adinath.

The Adinath temple clearly shows in its construction the association of the Natha community. The temple is 6 m high and measures 10.5 m × 9.75 m; the inner walls are 1.05 m thick, while outer walls are 0.60 m thick. There are three parts; the northern part, which is older, contains two square rooms (3.35 m each side) for worship – the eastern one has the image of Adinatha Banalinga Shiva and the western one has the image of eight-armed Durga (Idol).

There is no authentic proof to connect Gorakhghata or the temple with Goraksanatha, the guru of the Natha community. It may be that one of the disciples of Goraksanatha may have named the ghat at Maheshkhali after the guru. Natha philosophy evolved out of the long association of the Saivites with the Buddhists and in the 10th-11th centuries emerged Tantric Shastras. Adinatha (variants Matsyendranatha or Minanatha) emerged through this process of evolution. Nathism represents the folk religion of Bengal based on mantra-tantra and asceticism.

The entrance is bow-shaped, while the entrances on the northern and southern sides have been closed with brickwork. There are two windows, one on the east and the other on the west side. The two rooms are covered with domes on pendentives. The finials on top are decorated with lotus, kalasa and chakra. The tops of the octagonal pillars have kalasa and twined scrolls. The top of the arch on the western side has floral and the eastern one has trixul decoration. There are two niches on the southern wall. The second and third parts of the temple are recent additions.

Author: Muhammad Abdul Baten

আদিনাথ মন্দির কক্সবাজার জেলার মহেশখালী উপজেলায় অবস্থিত। আদিনাথ মন্দিরটি কক্সবাজার জেলার মহেশখালী দ্বীপের মাইনাক পাহাড়ের উপরে অবস্থিত। এই মন্দিরে হিন্দু দেবতা শিবকে আদিনাথ হিসেবে পূজা করা হয়।

প্রতিবছর বাংলা ফাল্গুন মাসে এখানে মাইনাক পাহাড়ের পাদদেশে ১৩ দিনব্যাপি মেলা অনুষ্ঠিত হয়। বাংলাদেশের বিভিন্ন স্থান থেকে আগত হিন্দু পুন্যারথীরা মেলায় অংশ নিয়ে থাকেন।

Sonarong (means golden color) is a lovely village at Tongibari Upazila of Munshiganj district. This village belong a beautiful "Moth(মঠ)"(a place for praying by Hindu religious people) which is known as "Sonarong Jora Moth" (সোনারং জোড়া মঠ) ("twin moth"). It is used to call twin moth/temple, because it has two towers side by side. It may be around 150 feet high from the ground. There is a large pond just in front of the Moth. This moth is not functioning now a days. Interviewing local people we came to know that, there are no praying activities take place in this moth. Every side of the moth is covered with trees and that gave a lovely golden and green color's illusional view of the moth.

The larger moth was made for "Shiva"(Hindu God), and made during 1843, and the smaller one for "Kali"(Hindu Goddess), and made during 1886. It was built by a Hindu merchant named "Rupchand" (রূপচাঁদ) From stone inscriptions fixed over the temple’s entrance.

The two towers of the moth are not equal sized. One is much larger than another one. The larger tower has hundreds of holes at the top of it, and each hole is occupied by parrots. Visitors may observe hundreds of parrots from the place, and they are making sweet sound together all the day long. During the breeding season, the top of the moth become green for the numerous numbers of parrots. Both the towers of the moth are ornamented nicely with different types of leafs motif and blind alcoves.

Architectural Features:

Two temples stand side by side on a single masonry platform surrounded by a moat on three sides and an access path on the eastern side.The western temple, loftier than the eastern one, is about 15m high over the square sanctum, and measures 5.35m x 5.35m and has a 1.90m wide veranda. A low hemispherical dome covers the square sanctuary, over which rises an octagonal sikhara(শিখর) crowned by the usual pinnacle with kalasa (কলস) finials. This terminates in a trident fixed with an iron rod. The outer surface of the sikhara is decorated with a semi-circular arched pattern in plaster, which is repeated on all sides. The entire sikhara is dotted with three pigeonholes under each arch pattern. The main sanctuary has two archways, one each on the south and west sides, flanked by arched panels on both sides,and a pattern of three arches on the other two sides. The western entrance consists of a two-centered arch. The top of the archway is decorated with a frieze of blind merlons. In front of the sanctum, the veranda is covered with a flat roof supported on columns, It has three arched openings on the south, one each on its east and west side.

It is one of the important historical & archaeological places in Munshiganj District. Very recently,renovation work is on go,undoubtedly a good initiative to protect this site from further destruction.

A huge number of moth (মঠ) has been found all over the places in Munshiganj District. Shyamsiddhir Moth is one of the old moth, which is located in Shyamsiddhi village, to the west of Sreenagar Bazar under Sreenagar upazila in Munshiganj district. A Bangla inscription fixed over the doorway in the south side implies that it was constructed by one Shambhunath Majumder in 1243 BS/ Shakabda 1758 (1836 AD). The math is named after by its location.

The building is square in plan, measuring 6m externally, and the walls are 1m thick. This brick built math stands on a 1.20m high platform, and is about 20m high. The moth is divided into three stages. The lower square part is the main shrine. On its south side there is an entrance with pointed arch, flanked by a rectangular panel on its either side; while each of the other three sides contains three rectangular panels in plaster, of which the central one is bigger than the flanking ones. Over the lintel level, all four sides are relieved with two semi-circular arches - one above the other - set within a rectangular frame under a large semi-circular arch. A sun emblem in plaster is depicted in the small arches.

The entire surface of the walls were originally plastered, but now have fallen at places. The shrine is covered by a dome, over which the base of the tapering shikhara (spire) is transformed into an octagonal shape at its second stage. Internally, the dome is supported on half-domed squinches and multi-cusped corner arches, while the side walls are relived with ornamented arched panels. Above these arched panels and corner arches medallions are depicted. The interior of the dome is ornamented with two bands of floral motives at the base.

At the octagonal second stage there are eight pilasters on the eight corners. The large rectangular area in each side is decorated with large window panels with closed shutters. Above the window panel runs panels containing a group of serpent hoods and floral leaf pattern alternately around the eight sides. Above each of the eight sides there is a curved chala decoration, from which the uppermost stage of the math rises in a tapering mass. The shikhara was once crowned with kalasa finial, but is now missing, although the iron trishul (trident) is still standing.

It is a typical single shikhara type of math with a series of repeated curved vertical mouldings, similar to the sonarang twin temples.

Ma Bhaban Mandir is a very traditional temple located 20 km away from Sherpur Upazila. It’s small in size and has some trees planted outside.