Bhadrak

Maa Bhadrakali Temple

Temples, heritage and monuments

The famous temple of Goddess Bhadrakali is located in the outskirts of the revenue village Aharapada, which is at a distance of 8 km from Bhadrak town in the southwest direction. One has to go via Santhia and Utarabahini in the South-west direction of Kacheri Chhaka of Bhadrak town to reach the shrine. The popular belief is that the name of the town has been derived from the name of the deity.

According to legends, originally Bhadrakali was worshiped inside a cave in the Meghasana hill of Mayurbhanja district by a sage named Tapasa Russi. After the death of the sage, one of his pupils, namely Bhadranatha, brought the goddess to Bhuyamahalla of Bhadrak.

To protect the goddess from the wrath of the Muslim invader, namely Kalapahada, the Bhuyans brought the Goddess to the present place, i.e., Aharapada, on the bank of the river Salandi.

The last Independent King of Odisha, Gajapati Mukunda Dev, established the statue of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra at Bhadrakali pitha.

There are a number of folktales and historical opinions regarding the goddess, “Maa Bhadrakali” and the “Pitha”. Despite the same, the Pitha has been a place which has always attracted devotees from all over the state and the country, be it for worship by the commoners or by the Tantra Sadhakas (Tantriks).

The statue of the Goddess is of black granite and is seated in lotus posture on a Lion. As per the nomenclature of the goddess, one tends to believe that it is the goddess Kali who is being worshiped in this Bhadrakali Pitha. However, since the deity is seated on a lion, one school of thought has opined that the goddess can be no other than the goddess Durga.