Travels of Bengalis in the past
---- Sumana Dam
After "Tirtha Mangal," Jadunath Sarbadhikari's "Tirtha Bhromon", the travel literature found in Bengali is written in prose and in the form of diaries. The travelogue's author, Jadunath Sarbadhikari (1805–1871), began his journey on 11th Falgun 1260 (23 February 1854 AD) from his house in Radhanagar, located in the current Khanakul. He returned home after the journey on 9th Agrahayan, 1263 (November 18, 1857). During this time India was under the British East India Company. This travel account is from the period before the Indian railways. Indian railways started in 1854 AD, running from Bombay to Thane and Kalyan; and from Howrah to Hooghly. At that time, there were no railway connections in other parts of the country. Unlike the poet Bijayram of "Tirtha Mangal," who had resources from zamindar Krishna Chandra, the current author had none of such support. He undertook this journey mainly on foot, with his own efforts and limited funds. He wrote a diary for his relatives, which was later published as "Tirtha Bhromon" by the Bangio Sahitya Parisad Mondir, edited by Nagendra Nath Basu.
Before his pilgrimage, the author suffered greatly from dyspepsia. To recover his health, he decided to travel to the West. The doctor also advised him to travel on foot to the West or North. Initially, he was interested in traveling to Vrindavan. At the start of the journey, he carried 30 rupees with him. Many from his household tried to dissuade him from this journey. Before the pilgrimage, he performed Brahmin-Kayastha feasts, shraddha, and observances.
He set out from Radhanagar near Khanakul with Ishwar Chandra Kaori, Nakul Chandra Basu, Ramdhan Singh as his companions and Vishwanath Tanti as a porter. Ishwar Chandra’s elder brother, Gorachand Kaori, had traveled to Gaya three years earlier. Early in the journey, Vishwanath Tanti succumbed to pox. Jadunath Sarbadhikari reached Gaurhati (Gaurhati, Khanakul) from Radhaballavpur via Jahannabad (now Arambagh) and Kalipur (across the Dwarkeshwar River).
The next day, he stayed in Kotulpur (Kotulpur, Bankura). From Kotulpur, he went to Balsee (Balsee, Bankura) to see Lakshminarayan Shila. The author writes about the socio-economic aspects of this place and mentions how priests of pilgrimage sites deceive people. Then he traveled through Patrasayer to the village of Sonamukhi (current Sonamukhi, Bankura), through the forest, where various wild animals like bears were present. Sonamukhi was the residence of the Gadhadhar Shiromani the famous Shrimat Bhagavat storyteller of Burdwan's king. His financial support helped establish the settlement in the forest. His home has a temple shaped like Mount Govardhan. Leaving Sonamukhi, he crossed the Ichlar Khal (now extinct?) and further, reached the Shri Ram Pur Ghat on the Damodar River. Continuing, he found a pucca road near Gopalpur (near Bishnupur). This road extends from Burdwan to Delhi (now the Burdwan-Bishnupur Road). Along the road, there were resting places called "chatti," with shops on both sides. These shops had large rooms for travelers to stay, and one did not need to pay for the rooms but had to pay for firewood. Rice and lentils were bought from these shops, while vegetables, fish, oil, and milk were sold by vendors. There were also laundrymen and barbers available at the chatti. There was good drinking water from wells or ponds for travelers. Police posts and stations were also present.
Next came Andal (West Burdwan). A short distance from Andal was Madhuban, a dense forest of Mahua trees. Then, there was Fayedpur, followed by Bogra (near Raniganj station). Here, Govind Pandit worked as a Deputy Collector in 24 Parganas. For the convenience of travelers, he created beautiful gardens, including a pond and water system along the road. From Bogra, he traveled to Niyamatpur (Neyamatpur, West Burdwan). This route was safe due to the presence of mounted guards.
Now, he encountered a red earth hill, with the Barakar River to the west. On the eastern bank were two Shiva temples of Raja Harishchandra, a 12th-century king of the Panchkot dynasty. Stone statues of cows and pigs stood in front and behind the temple. Niyamatpur was the capital of Raja Harishchandra, located not far from the Panchkot fort. Crossing the Barakar River on foot, he reached the other side at Nrisechhati. There were about 40 large rooms for travelers. After crossing this chatti, he reached Chas Chatti (Chas, Jharkhand) and then Govindpur Chatti (Govindpur, Jharkhand). This chatti was part of the Magadh kingdom, known for its vast territory up to the Barakar. The author mentions that the people here speak a mix of Hindi and Bengali. The mountainous route led to Rajganj (Jharkhand), where there was a bungalow for the British.
After climbing and crossing northward, he reached Topchanchi Chatti, which perhaps reminded him of Magadh’s Jarasandha. He saw the Parasnath Hill along this path. It was the largest hill, filled with fruits, flowers, vines, trees, and wild animals. At the hill's summit was the Parasnath temple, a Jain pilgrimage site, where the deity of the Sravaks (Jains) is worshipped. On the full moon of Falgun, a fair is held at the base of the hill in the Mahua forest, and there is an Agrawala dharamshala there. There is also a Pushkarini and flower garden on top of the hill. Descending from Parasnath Hill, he passed near the fort of Jarasandha to Dumrichatti (Dumri, Jharkhand), surrounded by mountains. There, he stayed after bathing in the spring water. Then he reached Bogodar Chatti (Bogodar, Jharkhand), followed by Barkatta Chatti and Atka Chatti. There was a post office for sending letters, and the author sent a letter to Kolkata.
He then traveled through the hilly chattis of Barasot (Jharkhand), Barahi (Jharkhand), and Chouparan, arriving at the dangerous jungle of Velua (Velwa, Jharkhand). This area had mountain bandits who attacked travelers and stole everything. There were horse stations along the route for changing horses. He then arrived at Bara Chatti (Bara, Jharkhand).
After crossing the Kushla River (?) he reached Bodh Gaya (now Bihar), where Gayasur had engaged in a battle with Lord Vishnu. Here, there is the Dharma Rajan temple. Alexander Cunningham, Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India, built the Mahabodhi Temple in 1878. Prior to this, Buddhist architecture was all underground. Hence, Jadunath Sarbadhikari did not mention any Buddhist religious sites. The author notes that there was a Mohant in Bodh Gaya at that time, and many kings were his disciples. They had received donations, land, and vast gardens. Those who perform shraddha do so at Bodh Gaya before visiting Gaya. The Gaya pandit people come here to take travelers to their destinations. On reaching Brahmayoni Hill, each person had to pay one rupee as a flag donation.
In Gaya, he performed shaving, bathing in the Falgu River, offering Tarpan, and visiting Vishnupad, Gayaeshwari Devi, the temple established by Ahilyabai, and performed Pindadan at Vishnupad. He describes various types of shraddha, the glory of Gaya, sixteen shrines of Pindadan, and the eight sacred places. He also wrote about Preta Shila, Ram Shila, Ram Gaya, Sitakunda, Gaya Kup, Dhautapad, and Bhim Gaya. He noted that while the Falgu River's water flow is not visible, it appears when dug up and is drinkable. He observed small fish playing in the water obtained from sand excavation. He mentions that only Hindus are allowed into the Vishnu temple in Gaya. About the Gaya pandit community and the Gaya people, he describes them as wealthy, unscrupulous, and greedy. With money sent by his son, he settled his debts and prepared for his journey to Kashi. Except for Shambhu Kaori, the other two companions returned home.
In Gaya city, there were about ten thousand houses at that time. Muslims lived outside the city. To the north of the city was Sahibganj, where the market had shops selling brass and bell-metal items, blankets, carpets, clothes, various goods, bamboo items, sticks, iron goods, shoes, etc. There was also a jail with walls 11 feet high, and offices for magistrates, collectors, deputy magistrates, sadar alah, sadar amin, munsef, and judges. There were post offices, opium warehouses (where opium worth more than a crore rupees was imported), a Bengali babu as the government doctor, and a military encampment. The city had police patrols. All markets had puri, kachori, laddoo, and sweets. High-quality stoneware brought from Gayeshwari Hill was also sold there.
( To be continued)
In this episode, the diary period is from 11th Falgun 1260 (24th February 1854) to 6th Chaitra 1260 (20th March 1854).
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