Bharati Matha Temple, Orissa

It is a temple of the Hindu God Shiva. This is one of the oldest temples in Bhubaneswar. The temple is a Hindu monastery with three stories which was built in the 11th century A.D. It is currently used for living Matha purposes and earlier it was used as a Hindu pilgrimage centre. Bharati Matha Temple is a temple of the Hindu God Siva. This is one of the oldest temples in Bhubaneswar (The Temple city of India), a well-known heritage place and capital of the State of Orissa. The temple is a Hindu monastery with three stories which was built in the 11th century A.D. It is currently used for living Matha purposes and earlier it was used as a Hindu pilgrimage centre.

Bharati Matha is located in the Badheibanka Chowk, Old Town Bhubaneswar. One can approach the Matha on the left side of Ratha road leading from Lingaraja to Ramesvara Goswami is the present Mahanta of the Matha. It is one of the oldest Hindu monasteries of Bhubaneswar.

The Matha is surrounded by Ratha road in east, Jamesvara Patna road in south, private buildings in north and Bhrukutesvara temple in west.

Bharati Matha Temple, Orissa

Temple History
Architecture
How To Reach The Temple
Daily Poojas And Festivals
Additional Information

This temple was built around the 11th Century AD. The Matha Mahantas, who lived their lives for the development of Hindu religion, lived around this time and these people were respected as Gods by the general public. These Mahantas had the power of knowing when and where they would die and as their end comes near, they appoint successors to take their legacy forward. Once, they are done with their commitments, on that particular day, they go and sit in a particular place and enter into deep meditation and eventually their lives go away from their bodies. The public bury them in that same place and within 15 days, construct a small Shiva temple with a Yoni Pitha around it. In a similar way, 9 small temples were constructed and came to be known as Bharati Mata Burial temples I to IX.

The Bharati Matha is not an exception from the Kalinga style architecture commonly seen in Bhubaneshwar. The technique used to build the temple is masonry type. The height of the monument measure 26 metres. The Temple is facing toward the western side and is made up of coarse grey sandstone. It is a three storied structure and measures at height of 11.50 metres. The Bharati Matha Temple is square in shape occupying and area of 26 square metres. The temple is built on an elevated platform of 1.50 metres with seven mouldings. There are three living rooms measuring 6.15 by 3.45 metres.

The temple is surrounded by a wall having a height of 2.52 metres. The temple is simple with no extreme decorations but has Doorjamb with a length of 8.84 metres and 0.35 metres thick. It has a height of 1.70 metres. The wall of the temple encloses a courtyard but the temple is not well maintained. There is an urgent need for restoration as these historical monuments form a pride from the past.

By Road:The Bharati Matha Temple is situated at Bhubaneswar in Orissa state of India. Bhubaneshwar is well connected to other major cities of the country via regular buses. This temple can be driven down from some of the major cities like Bhubaneswar (20min drive), Cuttack (around 30 to 35 min drive), Konark (1 hour drive) and Puri (around one hour drive).

By Rail: It is well connected through nearest Bhubaneshwar railway station
to major cities railway stations like Delhi, Agra, Mumbai, Chennai, Ajmer, Pali, Jaipur, Ahmedabad.

By Air: The nearest Airport is Bhubaneswar Airport which is well connected with regular domestic flights to Delhi, Mumbai.

Temple remains open from 6am to 9pm. During this period major rituals of Lord Shiva are performed. Mahashiva Ratri is celebrated at a grand scale in this temple. Apart from daily worship of the primary deity there are other ceremonies that go on in the temple like the marriages, thread ceremonies, and name giving and also engagements. Carrying out such rituals in the presence of the Divinity fulfils a person’s dream and receives immense blessings from the Lord. One of the festivals celebrated is the Durga puja which is the biggest festival for the Hindus. Durga Puja is celebrated for a span of ten days from ekadashi till dashami. Dhasami is the end of the grand festival and is considered an auspicious day receiving a lots of joy and blessings. Other festivals carried out are the Karthika purnima and Prathamastami.

The famous, archaeologically brilliant Lingaraj temple is very near to the Bharati Mata Burial temple. Tourists can also visit the Astasambhu Siva temples that are 8 temples of Lord Siva. These look beautiful because their architecture is so uniform and all the 8 temples look extremely similar.

The months March to May are very hot; therefore devotees should not visit this temple at this time. It rains heavily during the months June to August in Orissa and there is also the Rath Yatra that happens during July or Aug. Hence, devotees should not visit this place during that time because of inclement weather and huge crowds. The months September to November are apt for visiting this temple, because the weather is pleasant and devotees can enjoy the calmness of the temple in the best way possible.