Orissa Dairies: 64 Yogini Temple & Local Palm Leaf Art by NALIN AGARWAL

Location: Hirapur village, Khorda Distt.
Nearest Towns: Bhubaneswar.
Distances: 16Kms from Bhubaneswar
Getting there: Bhubaneswar towards Puri, left turn into the village after crossing Dhauli. One can book an auto or taxi to and fro from Bhubaneswar.
Trip Length: 3 Hrs
Best Time to Visit: September to March (preferably mornings to be able to attend the morning puja)
Worst Time to Visit: Peak Summer
Permission: None Required
Things to look for: 64 Yogini temple and local palm leaf art
Things to carry: Bottle of water, some snacks, extra memory card for camera (you are bound to take many photos).
Rating: 3.5 / 5

Fact file:
Simple circular enclosures without a roof are an unusual phenomenon among the religious shrines in India. In addition, the circular walls of these enclosures have niches that enshrine sixty-four female images known as Yoginis. These shrines are referred to as the Chausath (sixty-four) Yogini temples, and the cult associated with them is known as the Yogini cult, forbidden archaeological sites of India. All told, nine Yogini temples have been discovered so far in Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Orissa has two of these outstanding temples located at Hirapur, a deltoid village just outside Bhubaneswar, and another at Ranipur Jharial in the western strip of Bolangir district.

Of all the Yogini temples of India, the Hirapur Temple is the best preserved forbidden archaeological site. Located over the vast plains of the Mahanadi delta, on the bank of the sacred Bhargavi River, Hirapur is a small picturesque village, set amidst a peaceful environment, just outside the modern bustling town of Bhubaneswar. The Yogini Temple, otherwise known as the Mahamaya Temple, situated near the village entrance has an ambience that is quite charged. The temple conveys an impression of the overwhelming power of its sixty-four Yoginis. Mahamaya, the presiding deity of the temple is found adorned with red cloth and vermilion. The deity is still worshipped by the local villagers.

The Hirapur Temple is the smallest of the Yogini temples in India. The temple is a circular structure, 30 feet in diameter, which is built of coarse sandstone and has barely 8 feet high walls containing 64 niches to house the sculptures of Yoginis or Dakinis (2 feet in height). These 64 deities carved from fine-grained gray chlorite are goddess with voluptuous figures or animal faces and shrunken skulls give the 64 Yogini Shrines its name. These goddesses in turn serve Goddess Kali (Bhairavi). The Yogini cult, an offshoot of tantric practices in India during the 9th -13th century, believed that by worshipping the 64 goddesses and the Goddess Bhairavi, they would be able to channel the destructive energies of these deities to acquire positive supernatural powers for themselves including the ability to shape shift and become invisible.

The deities are derived from the village deity such as Ramchandi, Shyamkali, Harachandi, Tarini, Viraja, Bhagavati, Durgamata, Sarala, Bhadrakali, Kamakhya, Bhabani, and Mangala who are revered by the local villagers. Together in numerical groupings of 8 especially 64, they unleash there significant powers that can create and destroy mankind.

The Journey:

Inspired by my previous visit, and the pleasant weather, a friend of mine tagged along with me this time to explore the much talked about Yogini temple. Also, as it was my first chance to get started with my new baby ….Canon 1000D, I was very excited about the trip. Considering that it was just 16kms away, we took our own sweet time, had lunch and then made a move for the place on my bike. We reached the place around 2 in the afternoon, with an overcast sky; it was a great weather for making an excursion. The place was beautifully located within the village with a big pond on one side and farms all the way.

At the entrance of the complex was a small but a beautiful temple on the left with a statue of Gopinath. Similar to other temples I have seen here, it was painted in vibrant shades of orange, red and blue with an idol of Nandi facing the door of the temple.

A little up ahead was the Yogini Temple. At the first sight of it, we could simply think of it like a circular stage or a platform of stones being only a little over 7-8 ft in height. Moving close we could see the idols on the outer walls of the temple, as well as two idols standing carved at the narrow entrance. We stooped to enter inside the temple through the small gate. The temple inside had a perfect circular wall and without a roof. We could not help but notice and admire the beautifully carved idols of the Yoginis on the wall one beside the other.
Closely observing, each one of them looked as if they were made of metal, so neat was their finishing considering it is a temple belonging to 9-13th century. It was a transformation into another world altogether, with an open sky above and surrounded by idols which were considered extremely powerful in the tantric cult religion. Each idol was clearly distinguished from the other by the mounts, postures and head structures. A guide explained each of the 64 idols and their names, some of which I remember are Narmada on an elephant, Mananda on lotus, Padmavati on snake etc. Some of the idols were damaged and fractured, and are considered to be the act of an angry king. At the centre of the temple was an elevated platform with four pillars, which was explained to be the place for the execution of sacrifices.
The two idols at the entrance were Kala and Mahakala. However, being very poor at mythology, I could not truly appreciate the religious or the spiritual significance of the presence of various idols there, but for sure I felt the entire setup to be overwhelming.


After taking photographs of the temple, and some special pics of my friend who needed them to be posted for his matrimonial page ….we made our exit from the temple complex. My friend got into a conversation with a local villager there while I was busy taking photographs, and that’s when I realized the villager had taken my friend to his home nearby. I followed them into the house. That guy and his wife were actually artists who painted and drew on palm leaves and sold them for a living and wanted to show/sell them to us.

Here they showed us the various pieces of art they had made. A quick look into their house I could see various idols of Lord Jagannath and other art pieces. In fact, as a demonstration, the woman even showed us how they make the drawings on the palm leaf. With a heavy, big nail like tool she quickly drew some invisible stuff on the leaf. Then she rubbed some kohl on that area and voila, the drawing appeared. Within seconds, she had made a real neat pair of hands and a face. As an appreciation to their art and efforts, we both bought small drawings from them.

A personal word here, please do not bargain much with them or artists like them anywhere. They make their living with this art and it is only because of the support they get, various art forms are still alive & getting carried forward to future generations. Please make sure you are promoting the art & the artists not the traders.

We made a final bow towards the temple, hopped on the bike and headed back towards our cribs.

More pictures from this trip can be found here Picasa Album

--Nalin Agarwal

YOGINI

Yogini is the feminine form corresponding to the masculine yogi. Yoginis are known to possess a steadfast mind, which they cultivate through the disciplined pursuit of transcendence, an idea that is central to the practice of yoga. Tantric scholars have described yoginis as independent, outspoken women with graceful spirits, without whom yoga would fail to achieve its full, fruitful purpose.

Though the leaders of the modern Yoga-asana & meditation tradition have often been male, the vast majority of modern practitioners are female, including many who have attained mastery through the primary Yoga of the embodied Shakti life mysteries of the life cycle and mothering. Only the female can awaken the muladhara chakra (the seat of the Kundalini-shakti) via fertility and sexuality; the male must use kriya Yoga.

In the Hindu tradition, mother is first guru (teacher) and in the Yoga tradition, proper respect of Yoginis is a necessary part of the path to liberation. A Yogini is the sacred feminine force made incarnate: the goddesses of mythology (Lakshmi, Durga, Kali) as well as the ordinary human woman who is enlightened, both having exuberant passion, spiritual powers and deep insight, capable of giving birth to saints, peacemakers, and Yogis.

In the Tibetan Buddhism and Bön tradition, a female practitioner is known as a ngagma (see ngagpa), and in the Drikung Kagyu school of Buddhism, togdenma (Tenzin Palmo). These married tantric practitioners are required to devote significant time to retreat and spiritual practice. Ngagma are particularly known for performing birth rituals, weddings, funerals, divinations, and pacification of spiritual disruptions. Some ngagma are comparable in practice to the Mahasidda yoginis of Indian Buddhism.

Yogini as tantrika

According to the Hatha-Yoga-Pradipika text, a yogini is more specifically a woman initiate who can preserve her own genital ejaculate (rajas) and contain the male semen (bindu) by means of the practice of the vajroli-mudra, also practiced in reverse by advanced yogis.

The Sixty-Four Yogini temples

There are four major extant sixty four yogini temples in India, two of them are in Orissa and the other two are in Madhya Pradesh. One of the most impressive yogini temples in Orissa is the 9th century CE hypaethral Chausathi yogini (sixty-four yogini) temple located at Hirapur in Khurda district, 15 km south of Bhubaneshwar. Another hypaethral sixty-four yogini temple in Orissa is the Chausathi yogini pitha in Ranipur-Jharial, near Titilagarh in Balangir district. Presently only 62 images are found in this temple.

Two notable Yogini temples in Madhya Pradesh are the 9th century CE Chaunsath yogini temple to the southwest of the western group of temples in Khajuraho, near Chhatarpur in Chhatarpur District and the 10th century CE Chaunsath yogini mandir in Bhedaghat, near Jabalpur in Jabalpur district.

The iconographies of the Yogini images in four Yogini temples are not uniform. In Hirapur yogini temple, all Yogini images are with their vahanas (vehicles) and in standing posture. In Ranipur-Jharial temple the yogini images are in dancing posture. In Bhedaghat temple Yogini images are seated in Lalitasana.


Association with Matrikas

Often the Matrikas are confused with the Yoginis which may be sixty-four or eighty-one. In Sanskrit literature the Yoginis have been represented as the attendants or various manifestations of Durga engaged in fighting with the demons Shumbha and Nishumbha, and the principal Yoginis are identified with the Matrikas.[16] Other Yoginis are described as born from one or more Matrikas. The derivation of 64 Yogini from 8 Matrikas became a tradition. By mid- 11th century, the connection between Yoginis and Matrikas had become common lore. The Mandala (circle) and chakra of Yoginis were used alternatively. The 81 Yoginis evolve from a group of nine Matrikas, instead of seven or eight. The Saptamatrika (Brahmi, Maheshvari, Kaumari, Vaishnavi, Varahi, Indrani (Aindri) and Chamundi) joined by Candika and Mahalakshmi form the nine Matrika cluster. Each Matrika is considered to be a Yogini and is associate with eight other Yoginis resulting in the troupe of 81 (nine times nine).


Source: Wikipedia

Compiled by Roopa Sreedhar

Dakini

Dakini

A dakini (Sanskrit: डाकिणी ḍākinī; Tibetan: khandro; Wylie:mkha'-'gro-ma;TP:Kandroma; Chinese language: 空行女) is a tantric deity described as a female embodiment of enlightened energy. In the Tibetan language, dakini is rendered Khandroma which means 'she who traverses the sky' or 'she who moves in space'. Sometimes the term is translated poetically as 'sky dancer' or 'sky walker'.

The dakini, in all her varied forms, is an important figure in Tibetan Buddhism. She is so central to the requirements for a practitioner to attain full enlightenment as a Buddha that she appears in a tantric formulation of the Buddhist Three Jewels refuge formula known as the Three Roots. Most commonly she appears as the protector, alongside a guru and yidam, but Judith Simmer-Brown points out that:

The dakini, in her various guises, serves as each of the Three Roots. She may be a human guru, a vajra master who transmits the Vajrayana teachings to her disciples and joins them in samaya commitments. The wisdom dakini may be a yidam, a meditational deity; female deity yogas such as Vajrayogini are common in Tibetan Buddhism. Or she may be a protector; the wisdom dakinis have special power and responsibility to protect the integrity of oral transmissions.

Iconography

According to Campbell, "Iconographic representations tend to show the dakini as a young, naked figure in a dancing posture, often holding a skullcup (kapala) filled with menstrual blood or the elixir of life in one hand, and a curved knife (kartika) in the other. She may wear a garland of human skulls, with a trident staff leaning against her shoulder. Her hair is usually wild and hanging down her back, and her face often wrathful in expression, as she dances on top of a corpse, which represents her complete mastery over ego and ignorance.

Although dakini figures appear in Hinduism and in the Bön tradition, dakinis are particularly prevalent in Vajrayana Buddhism and have been particularly conceived in Tibetan Buddhism where the dakini, generally of volatile or wrathful temperament, act somewhat as a muse (or inspirational thoughtform) for spiritual practice. Dakinis are energetic beings in female form, evocative of the movement of energy in space. In this context, the sky or space indicates shunyata, the insubstantiality of all phenomena, which is, at the same time, the pure potentiality for all possible manifestations.

Dakinis, being associated with energy in all its functions, are linked with the revelation of the Anuttara Yoga Tantras or Higher Tantras, which represent the path of transformation. Here, the energy of negative emotions or kleshas, called poisons, are transformed into the luminous energy of enlightened awareness or gnosis (jnana) yielding rigpa.

When considered as a stage on the Vajrayana Path, the dakini is the last of the stages: the first is the guru, which corresponds to the initial realization of the true condition of reality, as this is introduced by the guru in the empowerment, if the disciple obtains what the Inner Tantras call peyi yeshe (dpe yi ye shes); the second is the devata, which corresponds to the Contemplation insofar as the devata is the method we use for developing the state discovered in the initial realization of the true condition of reality; the third and last is the dakini insofar as the dakini is the source of the activities of realization. In Dzogchen (rdzogs chen) these three correspond to tawa (lta ba), gompa (sgom pa) and chöpa (spyod pa): the first is the direct Vision of the true nature of reality rather than an intellectual view of reality, as is the case with the term in other vehicles; the second is the continuity of this Vision in sessions of Contemplation; and the third is the continuity of this Vision in the everyday activities, and the use of imperfection for making the Vision uninterrupted. Qua base, the dakinis are the energies of life; qua Path, they are the activities of advanced practitioners; qua Fruit, they are the actionless activities of realized Masters.

According to tradition, a Dakini gave a black hat to the third Karmapa, Rangjung Dorje (1284 - 1339), when he was three years old.[4] The Black Crown became the emblem of the oldest reincarnating Tibetan lineage.
[edit] Classes of Dakini
Senge Dongma.

Judith Simmer-Brown, based on teachings she received from Tibetan lamas, identifies four main classes of dakini. These follow the Twilight Language tradition of esotericism in referring to secret, inner, outer and outer-outer classes of dakinis. The secret class of dakini is Prajnaparamita (Tibetan yum chenmo) or voidness, the empty nature of reality according to Mahayana doctrine. The inner class of dakini is the dakini of the mandala, a meditational deity (Tibetan:yidam) and fully-enlightened Buddha who helps the practitioner recognise their own Buddhahood. The outer dakini is the physical form of the dakini, attained through Completion Stage Tantra practices such as the Six Yogas of Naropa that work with the subtle winds of the subtle body so that the practitioner's body is compatible with an enlightened mind. The outer-outer dakini is a dakini in human form. She is a yogini, or Tantric practitioner in her own right but may also be a karmamudra, or consort, of a yogi or mahasiddha.

Dakinis can also be classified according to the Trikaya, or three bodies of a Buddha. The dharmakaya dakini, which is Samantabhadri, represents the dharmadhatu where all phenomena appear. The sambhogakaya dakinis are the yidams used as meditational deities for tantric practice. The nirmanakaya dakinis are human women born with special potentialities, these are realized yogini, the consorts of the gurus, or even all women in general as they may be classified into the five Buddha-families.


Source: Wikipedia

Compiled by Roopa Sreedhar

Orissa Dairies: Hot water springs & Hatkeshwar temple by Nalin Agarwal

Location: Baghmari village, Khorda Distt.
Nearest Towns: Bhubaneswar.
Distances: 42Kms from Bhubaneswar
Getting there: Bhubaneswar towards Khorda (NH5), turn into khorda town and keep left from new bus stand. Baghamari is well connected with Govt and Private Buses from Bhubaneswar and you can find Buses within one hour interval for Nayagarh.
Trip Length: 3 Hrs
Best Time to Visit: October to Feb
Worst Time to Visit: Peak Summer & Peak Monsoons
Permission: None Required
Things to look for: Hatkeshwar temple and Hot water springs
Things to carry: Bottle of water, some snacks.
Rating: * out of *****

Factfile:
Situated in the Khurda district of Orissa, 42 Kilometers from the capital city, Atri is one of the most popular hot water sulfur springs in Orissa. The Atri sulfur spring is situated in the middle of paddy fields, and a distinct odor of sulfur surrounds the entire surroundings. The water at the Atri hot water spring maintains a steady temperature of 55 degree centigrade all through out the day. The waters from the spring are reserved in an artificial lake for the use of the people.


With a depth of around 15 feet and a circumference of 10 feet, the reservoir collects enough water to supply all the people visiting the place. The crystal clear water of the Atri sulfur spring is believed to have medical properties that have curative powers. According to the local people the Atri sulfur spring can even cure the infertility of women.


The Atri sulfur spring is located in a picturesque setting and the path leading to the spring is lined with banyan, neem and peepul trees. The tourism department of Orissa has constructed a bathing complex besides the spring which allows the pilgrims to take hot water bath indoors. Besides having healing powers the hot water of the Atri spring is famous for rejuvenating ones body and soul. Very near the Atri sulfur spring is located the Shrine of Lord Hatakeswar which is also a popular tourist spot. The place acquires a festive look on the days of Sivaratri and festival of Makar Sakranti.



The Journey:

After wasting numerous weekends spending indoors lazin off or watchin movies I finally decided to give myself a break. Starting after a big gap I needed somewhere close, somewhere easy to warm myself up before I went into bigger expedites once again. So there I was sitting online looking for places in the near vicinity. Of all the options thrown, I chose a lesser visited place known for an old temple (Hatkeshwar Temple) and a not so famous Sulfur hot water spring. Total travel distance was approximated to 42kms and about an hour to reach there. Neither wikimapia nor google maps were of any help to check the route, nonetheless the area was known so the plan was final. Unfortunately my friends were still coming out from the inertia and the hangover from the night…so if I had to travel…it had to be by myself. Still anyways…

I started easy at 11 in the morning towards town of Khurda on NH5. The weather was perfect, cloudy, very light drizzle at times, great road … I couldn’t have had chosen a better day for this trip.



After cruising for 24Kms on the national highway from Khandgiri square, I turned right to enter the roads of town. One could easily miss the turnings as there were no signboards, and from the boards or hoardings of shops etc, it was difficult to make out the area since they were all in OriyaJ. That’s when the friendly local crowd comes to the rescue, after seeking the directions from the local in my broken two-three word local vocab, I was able to figure the way out. It was mostly straight roads with complete greenery around, green farms on both the sides and an overcast sky up and ahead of me.

These roads through the town with a couple of turns brought me to the temple. It was a beautiful temple with the colourful arch and statues at the entrance. Amidst the quiet farms and serene surroundings the temple was really peaceful. After offering my prayers and taking some pics I made a move towards the hot sulphur springs.


A mile ahead from the temple was the “Atri-Hot Springs”. I entered into the complex with a measly entry charge of Rs.2 J (inflation sure didn’t hit here !!). In the centre of the complex was the well. Walking towards it I could get the same pungent smell that we used to shove at the noses from the test tubes to irritate the girls in the chemistry lab …yes it was sulphur J. Peeping inside the well I could get the whiffs of bubbling hydrogen sulphide emanating from the hot water.

In the meanwhile a priest (or he pretended to be one) had hurried over to me bringing along a small cup tied from a rope which he hurled into the well and took out some water for me to experience, giving the gyaan of 55 degrees temperature etc. He finally left me at peace once he was handed over a currency note. It was a well maintained well, looking around I saw some bathing pools which supposedly had the same sulfur water to cure various ailments. Being touted as having medicinal properties I did wanted to have a go and take a dip in the same.

As I walked towards the 4 of them, there was Fifth pond with the title as ‘Maansik Kuan (Literal English translation – Mental Pond J). At the sight of that I was so sad that I should have brought some of my friends with me…mebbe a dip here would have helped them gain some mental stability J. Sigh…they should have come along !!! Moving further towards the 4 small pools, my enthusiasm was however dampened by the sight those pools were in.

Local villagers were busy having a proper soapy bath while some were busy washing clothes. Nearing the ponds I couldn’t se the inside of the pool because of the deeply murky water.
Considering that I am in the pink of my health I thought I can make a pass at having a dip in this water J maybe laters when I would need some medicinal treatments ill come back again..till then this can wait. Apart from this the complex there had a small park with a couple of swings and see-saws where some kids were having a good time.


Being promoted as a tourist destination under Orissa tourism I would say that this place has not received any attention at all. The main attraction, the hot water spring is safe in that well, but those pools which should have been an interesting pull for tourists shabbily or rather not maintained at all. Overall my score for this place would be 1 out of 5. Not a place that you may feel sad about in case you’re not able to make a visit here.


Finally the lazy me started to take over me slowly and I headed back straight for my home..where my cozy comfortable bed was waiting for me. Not a very rewarding trip but the weather and the surroundings surely made it worth remembering.

More pics from this trip can be found here: Picasa Album



--Nalin Agarwal
TAG INDIA Discoverer for Orissa