WEEKEND GET AWAY TO HISTORIC AKALIPUR

Akalipur can be an ideal place for a small weekend trip which at the same time has the glamour of outing but with an edge of ancient social culture adorned with folklores and with a kaleidoscopic religious history. It is better to drive till Tarapeeth which is approximately 285 KM away from Kolkata and make a night stay in any of the decent hotels. Akalipur is 38/40 KM away from Tarapith and can be reached within a span of 45 minutes from Tarapeeth.

We had started driving from Kolkata and reached Tarapeeth via Durgapur Express way which is a magnificent and well-maintained thoroughfare and as such the distance of 285 KM does not tire the travelers. 

  

Lunch can be had at Panagarh crossing. But, if one is interested to have a cozy lunch at a secluded place, then a Resort named RIK situated about 7 KM inside/interior from the Panagarh Crossing (More) can be a good choice and more than the worth of the 7+7=14 KM extra ride.

We had made a night halt at Tarapeeth on the date on which we had started our journey and on the very next morning we had started for Akalipur. Very little is known in urban life regarding the folklores and the historic temple of Maa Akali at Akalipur. My sole intention was to unearth various folklores and to have a taste of history of Akalipur which lies asleep within the long forgotten sleepy hollows of Time. 

 The road we followed is obviously the Durgapore Expressway and it goes without saying that till Panagarh More, the journey is swift and pacy. My Xylo easily cruised along at about 100 to 120 kmph, and the road itself was enviously smooth and large distance got covered in no time. So much so that before reaching Panagarh we took a detour through a nearby village and captured some amazing rural scenes and the villages in this side of the State seemed to be quite well to do and for the first time in my life I did not have to feel sorry for the villagers and these people truly seemed to be contended folks, basking in the warmth and glory of their own freshly tilled soil. 

In this detour itself I got to see the season's first full bloom of water lilies. Although the water lilies, unlike Lotus, prefer to grow on shallow mires and bogs and not in ponds at all, but this bloom of water lilies actually soothed the eyes.... be it mire, bog or a pond.

 

 Goddess (Maa) Akali: Regarding the origin of and the history to the temple and the Deity, two consistent folklores could be gathered; some having strong back up in history whereas some originated from strong gut feelings and from the literary narratives of the bards. The temple of Maa Akali at Akalipur was erected by Maharaja Nanda Kumar, the then Diwan of a subdivision of Bengal and a close confederate of Warren Hastings in the year 1887. 

According to the Bengali Calendar, the corresponding date of erection of the temple was 11^th Magh, 1178. The Temple is situated on the bank of Brahamani River, so that the front of the main entrance of the temple faces the River. 

 The temple is a structural enigma as the shape of the temple does not resemble to any other temples prevalent in the Indian architecture. It has an octagonal shape. The eight corners of the said temple symbolize eight Yogas of Hinduism. 

In the courtyard of the temple, there is a peculiar tree wherein three different plants; Banyan, Ashwathha and Tamarind share one main trunk and in the structure of one tree, three different plants co-exist since the time immemorial.

The Deity of Maa Akali is believed to be the Kuladevi of the controversial king Jarasandha who was the king of Magadha at Bihar. The folk lore goes that thereafter same Deity of Maa Akali had reached the hands of King of Kashi, Chaita Singha and was worshipped by the religious King of Kashi. 

When   the palace of Maharaja of Kashi, Chaita Singha was looted and plundered by Warren Hastings, the Deity of Maa Akali was recovered by Maharaja Nanda Kumar who was the then Diwan of Hooghly. History hints that such recovery of Maharaja Nanda Kumar was possible mainly due to his friendship with Warren Hastings, the then Governor of Government of Bengal  whose friendship later turned sour and resulted in the historic trial and untimely death of Maharaja Nanda Kumar.

Another myth regarding the temple and Deity, which also does regular rounds in the corridors  and courtyards of Akalipur, as informed by Nitai Bhattacharya, a shop owner in the temple premises is that  when Maharaja Nanda Kumar had recovered  the Deity of Maa Akali and was desirous of erecting the instant temple, the Kulo Purohits of the Diwan 

of Hooghly had repeatedly discouraged Maharaja Nanda Kumar on the supposed ground that the Deity is not to be worshipped by any “Grihi” (a family man) but has to be worshipped  by such a person who has renounced worldly life, especially by Kapalik/Tantrik. But the daring Maharaja, took no notice of such warnings and proceeded with his resolve to build the Temple. As destiny would have it, when the temple was built, it was struck by lightning and Ishan corner of the temple was cracked open. Although the crack was plastered in the recent time in 2003-04, it is still visible and can be witnessed by all and sundry. 

But Maharaja Nanda Kumar was not discouraged by such incidence and he continued with the Puja of the Deity. As per the folklores, thereafter, in the eve of one such Puja, the wife of Maharaja Nanda Kumar fell down in the temple and had cut her forehead on the offering plates of the Deity, made of Knasha (bell metal). The folklores add on that even when such incident could not stop Maharaja Nanda Kumar from worshipping the Deity, then came the historic trial of Maharaja Nanda Kumar which resulted in his untimely death. Thereafter the family of Maharaja Nanda Kumar appointed Purohits to make offerings to the Deity and had stopped performing the rites of Puja themselves. 

I must accept that these folklores which I collected from the fragmented stories of the villagers had neither any back up in history nor could it be corroborated from any authentic source. The Puja offering still goes on in full splendor and people from neighboring village and town, they often come down with offerings. Regular Bhog is offered to Maa Akali at about 2 P.M.

Another important feature of the Temple is that the construction could not have been completed by Maharaja Nanda Kumar during his life time and as such there was no roof constructed above the octagonal structure.  The roof was constructed later on with the effort of Sri Kiranmay Nando, the then Hon’ble Minister of Fisheries, West Bengal.

Another interesting feature that one gets to see is that the temple bears engravings of Snakes at the top of each doors and at the very pinnacle of the temple structure a snake with raised hood can be located.  Even the Deity of Maa Akali is adorned with Snakes which are used as jewelries . The Devi Herself is seated over a huge Snake and at the top of the head of the Devi, a Snake is entangled forming Her Crown. Sri Debasish Bandopadhyay who has been serving as Priest and who has also his hereditary legacy at the temple of  Kalikapur informs us that Maa Akali is another form of Maa Kali, but unlike Ma Kali, Maa Akali has two hands and does not stand on Lord Shiva but sits over a huge serpent  and is clad in clothes adorned with ornaments made of Snakes.

 Sri Bandopadhyay further informs that the form of Maa  Kali is also known as “Sristi o Sanghar Murti”, as She  destroys with Her Kharga and re-creates with Her Hand holding the severed human head, which is also known as Beeja-Hawsto; the severed  human heads symbolize  the seed of new beginning “Beej”. 

According to Sri Bandopadhyay, unlike Maa Kali, Maa Akali is that form of The Devi, which was conceptualized by ‘Sadhaka’s to be seen after the Era of Sanghar and Sristi, signifying Maa Kali’s  normal form. Sri Bandopadhyay, further adds that in this form Devi does not require the other two hands for Sristi and Sanhar as it is the later form of Devi and therefore, Maa Akali has only two hands which are meant for protection and granting wishes of Her Children.

As I have already narrated earlier that the Devi is seated on a huge serpent, and unlike Maa Kali, Maa Akali is clad in clothes and adorned with ornaments made of snakes. Sri Bandopadhyay explains, since in the form of Maa Kali, the Goddess is creating the world, she is portrayed naked, as nakedness symbolizes Mother Nature with all Her Fertility. Large coiled snakes on which Maa Akali sits symbolizes ‘Muladhar’ or ‘Kulo Kundalini’, which according to the Hindu Philosophy is a sleeping or dormant knowledge. Again the Snakes forming crown of the Devi with his raising hoods suggests and symbolizes “Jagroto Kulo Kundalini”, that is to say, that state when the Supreme Knowledge has already risen from its slumber. Hence The Devi symbolizes the event of “Jagaran of Kulo Kundalini”; the event of attainment of supreme knowledge. Since the concept of this attainment of supreme knowledge is itself  sacred and also a secret concept and as also it is believed that Kulo Kundalini lies above one’s genitals but  below the last bone of the spinal cord , Maa Akali is also known as Gujhya Kali.  

 To sum up, I must suggest that it is an awesome place to visit, especially at winter and can be made a very coveted spot for all the folk tale hungry travelers, in search of new places and fascinating history. The place is both ideal for solitary travelers and for families.