The travels of Bengalis in the past
Sumana Dam
(Continued from the last part)
Manikaran is a sacred site established by the Kullu king Jagatsingh. There are two kunds (pools) in Manikaran. The lower kund contains water up to about two hands deep with a slight current, while the upper kund has water up to one hand deep. Both kunds are extremely hot, and touching the water can burn the hand. There is always smoke rising from these pools, making the area dark. Raw food items placed in the kunds cook perfectly. Many people cook rice, khichdi, kheer, bread, dal, etc., in these kunds.
Previously, this site was a place of worship for various deities, including Parvati. During the time of worship, a jewel from Parvati's earring fell here. Shiva then sent the Dakini Yoginis to retrieve the jewel. One Yogini went to Patala and found the jewel on the head of the serpent king. The serpent king, seeing her, became angry, saying that it was forbidden for women to come during meditation. After hearing everything from the Yogini, the serpent king placed the jewel at the tip of his nose and blew it upwards. This blowing caused two hot streams to emerge, and the place was named Manikaran.
To the east, at Brahmanal, Brahma meditated. From Brahmanal, if one climbs and looks towards the northeast, the snow-capped Mount Kailash can be seen. On that mountain's peak is a beautiful temple. Climbing 12 krosh (units of distance) from Brahmanal leads to Manasarovar. The path is very difficult due to constant snowfall. The beautiful temple there does not seem to be human-made. The author mentions Kailash and Manasarovar, but neither can be seen from here. From this place, only the Harindar mountain is visible, indicating a possible error in the author's information.
In Manikaran, the pilgrimage sites include Brahmanal, Tridhara, Lakshmikund, Ramchandraji's temple, and Ramkund. At this pilgrimage site, there are five temples established by the Kullu king: Lakshminarayan, Raghunathji, Narsingh, Ramchandraji, and Muralidhar. On the return journey, they visited the temple of Bijlishwar Mahadev. This deity's linga is said to break into pieces every twelve years due to lightning strikes. Then, a new linga is created by joining those pieces together.
From Baman Kothi, they crossed the Beas River via a wooden bridge and arrived in the Kullu city of King Gyan Singh. It is a beautiful city in the mountains with all kinds of amenities. Both Hindus and Muslims reside here, and the company has an office and police station in the fort. There is also a royal palace and temples of Ramsita and Narsingh. There is a temple of Parashurama here, whose door opens every 12 years during the month of Shravan.
They then traveled through various places in Himachal Pradesh, including Bejur (Bajoura), Kumand, and Jaru. There is a severe shortage of water here. They traveled six krosh in the mountainous region without any water. Even when resources were gathered after much effort, wood was not always available. If wood was found, storms and hail would cause water to drip through cracks in the makeshift roof. Despite these difficulties, they continued their journey through Footakh, Heerabag, and Vangahal to Baijnath. At Baijnath, there is a Shiva temple on the mountain and the Kheer Ganga below it, 150 stairs down. Baijnath houses temples of Baidyanath, Siddhinath, Kedarnath, Indreshwar, Ganpateshwar, Kashi Vishveshwar, Ravaneshwar, Bhooteshwar, and Mahakal – the nine eternal Shiva deities. Various shops and markets are present here.
From Baijnath, they went to Bavarnya (Bhaurna), Parol (Parour), and Dharamsala, finally reaching Bhagsu. Bhagsu has a company shelter and office. The route from Jammu and Kashmir to Kangra Fort is closely guarded by the company. Despite the snow, a good city has developed here.
On the way to Kangra, they met the remarkable sage Master Ram Baba, who was over 100 years old but appeared to be no more than fifty. He could cure leprosy and epilepsy with just a touch. They then reached Nagrota (Nagrota Bhagwan), which is four krosh away from the Kangra Devi temple. The goddess here is named Brajeshwari. It is believed that Sati's breast fell here. After Maharaja Ranjit Singh of Punjab conquered Kangra, he built a new temple over the old one. This stone temple is adorned with gold, and the goddess's idol is made of silver. The original idol is a spherical stone, decorated with flowers and sandalwood. The temple priests collect money from pilgrims as offerings. Two krosh uphill from the temple is Kangra Fort, which houses Ambika Devi and Kal Bhairav as protectors. West of the fort are Patala Ganga and then the Jayanti mountain. On top of the mountain are temples of Jayanti Devi and Taleshwar Shiva. This place is called Kapal Peeth. Kangra city has declined because all the company's offices and markets have moved to Bhagsu. There are now some British soldiers in the fort. King Sansar Chand, with his family, was defeated by the British and is imprisoned in the Nendor Mountains. One krosh away from the fort is the confluence of Ban Ganga and Patala Ganga, which has 360 pilgrimage sites.
From Kangra, they went through the mountain tunnel path of Ganesh Ghat. The company has created tunnels by blasting mountains with dynamite. Thus, they returned to Jwalamukhi via Ranitalab and Rampura. They then visited the Chintapurni Devi temple (Chintapurni Temple, Himachal Pradesh), a temple of Bhagwati Chhinnamasta Devi. From there, they proceeded to Hoshiarpur, visiting the Rajeshwari temple.
From Hoshiarpur, they traveled through Jejo, Santokgarh, Barmpur, and Kotgram to the Naina Devi temple (Himachal Pradesh). During the Navaratri festival, many people gather here. From the priests' quarters, 406 steps lead up to the Naina Devi temple. There is a dharmshala (rest house) here. Initially, one sees the goddess's footprints and two tiger statues, then the temple. Besides, there are idols of Shiva Kali, Lakshminarayan, and Batuk Bhairav. The goddess is called Naina Devi because Sati's eye fell here. The goddess has eight arms, and there is a tiger statue in front. Half a krosh below the temple, in a tunnel, is Batuk Bhairav in secrecy. Worship must be performed in this tunnel. The priests' daughters beg for money from pilgrims in the guise of the goddess, and the priests' boys also ask for money.
They reached Santokgarh after traveling through Kotgram and Barmpur. This is the fort of Raja Ramsingh Zameendar. After that, they arrived at Hoshiarpur via Jejo and Manpur. Hoshiarpur has a magistrate's office, army shelter, post office, church, and bungalows for the British. The fair of Guru Nanak is held here.
The author then crossed the Sutlej (Satluj) River by boat from Haryana (Haryana, Punjab) and Phagwara (Phagwara, Punjab) to reach Ludhiana. There, there are offices of judges, magistrates, and collectors. Next, he went to Ambala, a large city with a huge army cantonment, many shops, and many Bengalis. From there, he reached the Kabul Gate of Delhi, passing through Sahabad, Pipli, Karnal, Panipat, and Samhan in Haryana.
(To be continued)
In this episode, the period of the diary is from 5th Chaitra 1262 (19th March 1856) to 15th Baishakh 1263 (28th April 1856).
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