Sky touch sculpture
of Lord Mahabali Hanuman is located at Dantewada town in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh.
It is located about 87 kms from Jagdalpur tehsil and 383 kms from the state
capital city Raipur. Dantewada (or Dantewara) is the administrative headquarters
of Dantewada district (or Dakshin/South Bastar district) which is blessed
with beautiful tall and long series of hills with full of thick green saal and
teak forests.
The town is
named after the Goddess Danteshwari, the presiding deity of the Danteshwari
temple located in the town. The Goddess is worshipped as an incarnation
of Shakti (Parvati) and the temple is held to be one of the 52 sacred Shakti
Peethas in India.
According to
a prevalent myth in connection with Danteshwari, due to an insult committed by
her father Prajapati Daksha towards her consort Lord Shiva during the Yajna,
Goddess Sati (Parvati) got frustrated and committed self-immolation in the fire
pit of Yajna. Raged by the death of Sati, Lord Shiva destroyed the
Yajna of Daksha and with the dead body of Sati in his hands
started to do 'Taandav'. Lord Vishnu cut the dead body of Goddess Sati into
pieces with his Sudarshan to make Lord Shiva free from the grief caused by the
death of Sati. Parts of the dead body of Goddess Sati (Shakti) were scattered
to 52 (fifty-two) different places, which were consecrated as Shakti Peethas by
different names in India. It is believed that a daanth or tooth of Sati had
fallen in Dantewada hence Danteshwari Shaktipith was established.
The
Danteshwari temple was built in the 14th century by the Chalukya Kings
in south Indian style of temple architecture. The idol of Danteshwari Mai is
chiseled out of black stone. The temple is divided into four parts such as
Garbh Griha, Maha Mandap, Mukhya Mandap and Sabha Mandap. Garbha Griha and Maha
Mandap were constructed with stone pieces. There is a Garuda Pillar
in front of entrance of the temple. The temple itself is located in a spacious
courtyard surrounded by massive walls. The shikhara is adorned with sculptural finery.
Situated
in Dantewada, south-west of Jagdalpur, at the confluence of the holy
rivers Shankini and Dhankini, both the rivers have different colors, this more
than 600 years old temple is one of the ancient heritage sites of India and is
a representation of the religio-socio-cultural history of the Bastar region.
Little is known about this shrine to much of India. The vast temple complex
today is truly a standing monument to centuries of history and tradition. With
its rich architectural & sculptural wealth and its vibrant festival
traditions, Danteshwari Mai temple serves as the most important spiritual
center for devotees of other region of the country.
Other places
of Interest :-
(1) Big
Shiva Lingam shape Lingeshwar temple, Bacheli (Dantewada)
(2) Dantewada
beautiful Park
(3) Tall
statue of Lord Shiva
(4) Shesh
Shaiya biggest statue of Lord Vishnu with Devi Lakshmi in Ksheer Sagar.
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