Shah Hamadan/Kali Mandar, 1957

There are some photographs in Brian Brake’s 1957 Kashmir collection that I feel deserve individual attention.  This one because comparatively Babri and Hydrabad are simple.

The thought occurred to me a few years ago when I showed a few images on this blog to my Nani. Among these images was an old photograph of Mosque of Shah Hamadan and just for the fun of it I quizzed her if she knew which place it was.

From ‘The northern barrier of India: A popular account of the Jummoo and Kashmir territories’ (1877) by Frederic Drew
From ‘Pictorial tour round India’ (1906) by John Murdoch (1819-1904). 

Her answer was quick. With hands held in a namaskar she said, ‘ Kali Mandar’.

I knew the history of this place, both the oral and the written one, about the fights, about how this spot stood for both a mosque and a temple and probably a Buddhist shrine too, but this knowledge didn’t make me realize what this place would have meant for people who lived in Srinagar during a particular era. Most of the old western travelogues I read simply referred to it as the Mosque of Shah Hamadan. Discussed it’s architecture and importance is discussed. In one book, ‘Houseboating in Kashmir’ (1934), an angrez woman, Alberta Johnston Denis, probably finding ‘men only’ policy of the shrine incomprehensible wrote:

Shah Hamadan was holy, according to the Mohammedans of Kashmir; but whatever he may actually have been, in their loyalty to him, at least, they were intolerant. To this day, this is evidenced in the inscription, elaborately carved on the verandah over the entrance, which, translated, reads: “This is the tomb of Shah Hamadan, who was a great saint of God. Whoever does not believe this, may his eyes be blinded and if he still does not believe it, may he go to Hell.” 

In one of these books, I did read about Pandits who while going about their daily business, would pass along this place, stop at a particular spot where water could be seen oozing out and bow down and wash their hands and face. The pull of a hidden holy spring. A spring of strange stories, stories of Kali Nag, an ancient spring, that apparently sprang up just at the moment when Ram killed Ravan, a spring that kids are told holds broken bits of ancient sculptures, a dark spring they say turns you blind if you look into it. Stories of flying chappals and falling gods.

An interesting account on birth and survival of the spot is given by Pandit Anand Koul in his book ‘Archaeological Remains In Kashmir’ (1935):

Going up by boat, one’s attention is arrested farther on by a large building on the right bank between the 3rd and the 4th Bridges, which is called Shah-i-Hamamdan.
There is on this spot a spring, sacred to Kali. There was a Hindu temple over it which was built by Pravarasena II (110-70 A.D.) and was called Kali-Shri. The Mahall, in which it was situated, is still called Kalashpur, a corruption of Kali-Shri-pur. This temple was destroyed by Sultan Qutb-ud-Din (1373-94 A.D.) and, with its materials, he built a khanaqah. The later got burnt down twice and was rebuilt.
Soon after the conquest of Kashmir by Sikhs (1819) the Sikh Governor, Sardar Hari Singh, ordered the demolition of the mosque, saying that as it was a Hindu shrine, the Muhammadans should give up their possession of it. He deputed a military officer, named Phula Singh, with guns which were levelled towards the mosque from the Pathar Masjid Ghat, and everything was ready to blow it away. The Muhammadans then went to Pandit Bir Bal Dhar [a hero, a villian based on which Kashmir narrative you hold dear] who, having brought the Sikhs into Kashmir, was in great power, and requested him to intervene and save the mosque. He at once went to the Governor and told him that the Hindu shrine, though in the Muhammadans, was in a most protected condition and the removal of the mosque would be undersirable as it would simply lay it open to constant pollution by all sorts of people. There upon Sardar Hari Singh desisted from knocking it down.
On the wall fronting the river the Hindus have put a large ochre mark, and worship the goddess Kali there. 

The spot captured by Brian Brake in around 1957. A spot that is now claimed and hidden by a tree gone wild. Claimed by a grayness that now fills the recent photographs of Kashmir. A place very simply once claimed in speeches made in Indian parliament floor as proof of syncretic culture of Kashmir.

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Ganga Yamuna in Kashmir

Ganga Bank, Rishikesh. 2009

Yamuna Bank. Delhi.2012.


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Below some pages from ‘Vaishava Art and Iconography of Kashmir’ (1996) by Bansi Lal Malla

Ganga in niche on left, Avantisvamin temple, quadrangle porch, outer chamber, northern wall, Avantipur (Pulwama), Mid 9th cent. A.D., Bluish grey limestone.

 Yamuna in niche on right, Avantisvamin temple, quadrangle porch, outer chamber, southern wall, Avantipur (Pulwama), Mid 9th cent. A.D., Bluish grey limestone.

 Yamuna, Baramulla, 8th cent. A.D., Grey schist. S.P.S. Museum, Srinagar.

Ganga on left, antarala, main shrine, Martanda (Anantnag). First half of 8th cent. A.D., Sun temple, Martanda.

Yamuna, Dhumatbhal (Anantnag). 11th cent. A.D., Present location (?)


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Vitasta at Zero Bridge. 2010.

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Laksmi Narayana on Garuda, Zeithyar

Damaged image of Laksmi-Narayana, seated on Garuda, 9th cent. A.D., Zeithyar (Srinagar)
From ‘Vaishava Art and Iconography of Kashmir’ (1996) by Bansi Lal Malla

Below: Something I randomly clicked back in 2008 at Zeethyar because I found the setting interesting.

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Shiva temple at Naran Bagh near Shadipur

Guest post by Man Mohan Munshi Ji.


A small Shiva temple with adjoining room built at Naranbagh near Shadipur in memory of Late Resh Bhat Sahaib in 1994 Bilarmi corresponding to 1937 AD at the site of former temple of Sundribhavana. The temple is maintained by a Muslim Pujari who is too willing to show you round the temple and bring a bucket of water for offering to the Shivling in the temple.

The Shiva temple at Naran Bagh with the Muslim Pujari 

Shivling inside the temple

Memorial stone of Resh Bhat Sahaib

Footstep in front of the temple reads Janki Nath Sumbli [Rest is illegible]

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Vitastasindhusamgama, Shadipur

 Guest post by Man Mohan Munshi Ji. Towards the end I am adding an old photograph of the place and a bit about a Kashmiri proverb related to the place.

The present Vitasta -Sindhu -Samgama the conflunce of Jhelum and Sind rivers at Naranbagh near Shadipur.
The river in the left foreground with greyish coloured water is the Sind river and the other with the bluish green coloured water in the right background is the Jhelum. Suyya the able engineer of King Avantivarman by his skill shifted the position of Vitastasindhusamgama from Parihaspura Trigami area to its present location in the vicinity of Sundribhavana (Naran Bagh) by forcing the course of Vitasta north east wards by blocking its original course with embankments to reclaim the cultivable land from flood prone areas and marshes. A Vishnu temple by the name of Yogavasmin was also built by Suyya at the instance of Avantivarman.
The solitary Chinar standing in water in the immediate vicinity of the confluence is considered holy and compared to the holy fig tree at Triveni near Allahbad

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The Chinar tree at Shadipore in a photograph by Fred Bremner. 1905 

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Preyaghuch buni nah thadan nah lokan nah badan.


The chinar of preyag neither become taller, nor shorter, nor bigger.


A poor sickly child, who does not grow or become fat.


An explanation about the Chinar tree of prayag that can be found in the book ‘A Dictionary of Kashmiri Proverbs and Sayings’ by James Hinton Knowles (1885):

This chinar tree is in the middle of a little island just big enough to pitch your tent on, in the midst of the Jhelum river by the village Shadipur. The Hindus have consecrated the place, and a Brahman is to be seen twice every day paddling himself along in a little boat to the spot, to worship and to make his offerings.

This chinar tree at Shadipur  is believed to be the (sangam) confluence of rivers Indus (Sind) and Jhelum (Vitasta) and is called `Prayag’ by Kashmiri pandits – alluding to Prayag that is Allahabad where Yamuna and Ganga meet up. Kashmiri Pandits used to immerse the ashes and remains of their dead at this spot. 



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Previously: Kashmiri Proverbs borne of Chinar tree

Ruins of Parihaspura I Govardanadhara

Guest post by Man Mohan Munshi Ji. He writes:


The following six images pertain to the temple of Govardanahara, built and dedicated by Laltaditya Mukhpida of Karkota Dynasty in 8th century AD, one of the greatest Monarchs who ever ruled Kashmir. The great Monarch founded his capital at Parihaspura and built numerous temples of Vishnu, Shiva and Bhudha. He built Viharas, Agarharas and palaces at and around 
Parihaspura. According to Kalhana a silver image of Vishnu was installed in the Govardanahara temple. But the capital did not survive for long as the royal residence was removed by his son Vajradatya. The Vitastasindhusamgama which during Laldatiya existed between Parihaspura and Trigami (Trigom) karewas was shifted to its present location opposite Naranbagh by Soyya, the able engineer of King Avantivarman in 9th century who shifted the capital to Avantipura. Later the temples were vandalised during the Muslim rule during 14th-15th century.

Distant view of Govardanadhara temple

Closer view of the ruins only staircases  and plinth is left

Only  surviving  statues 

ASI  Notice Board

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To these images I am adding following notes:

Note on the ancient site by Pandit Anand Koul from his book ‘Archaeological Remains In Kashmir’ (1935) . [You can read the complete book here]: 

Ruins at Paraspur

The site of ancient Paraspur (Parihasapura) lies nearly 2 1/2 miles south-west from Shadipur. On leaving the boat one crosses some corn field and, after ascending a gradual slope and passing through Trigam, reaches the plateau on which the ancient mounds rise. This city, says Kalhana, was founded by Lalitaditya Muktapida (A.D. 701-37) one of the greatest sovereigns of Kashmir, and a brief account is given of the five large buildings he erected here viz.,(1) the temple of Mukta-keshva with a golden image of Vishnu, (2) the temple of Parihasa-keshava with a silver image of Vishnu.(3) the temple of Mahavaraha with its image of Vishnu clad in golden armour, (4) the temple of Govardhanadhara with a silver image and (5) the so-called Rajavihara with a large quadrangle.

Here was a colossal statue of Buddha in copper. The confluences of the Sindhu and Vitasta was at this place inn ancient times. It was a very renowned place in by-gone days. There are many ruins of ancient temples still found in and near it, e.g.(1) temple ruins at Paraspur, (2) well preserved foundation of the temple of Vainya-swamin on the Paraspur Udar, near Ekmanpur, and (3) ruins at Malikpur. Of the temples to the west of Divar village there remains only a confused mass of huge blocks. The quadrangle too is utterly ruined and traceable only by wall foundations and broken pillars, etc. The large dimensions of these temples are indicated by the fact that the peristyle of the one further to the west formed a square of about2 75 feet. and that of the other an oblong of 230 feet by 170 feet. There are other ruined temples at this place, but they are all in a state of destruction. On the top of the mound lies a block remarkable for its size, being 8 1/2 feet square and 4 1/2 feet in height which, to judge from the large circular hole cut in its centre, must evidently have formed the base of a high column, or of a colossal image. The character of the ruins at Divar agrees exactly with that of the shrines mentioned in Kalhana’s account.The shrine Vainya-swamin can be recognized with certainty in the ruined temple at Malikpur, one mile from the northern group of the Divar ruins. Sir Aurel Stein writes in the Rajatarangini about this place: –

“The vicissitudes, through which Parihaspura has passed after the reign of Lalitaditya, explain sufficiently the condition of utter decay exhibited by the Divar ruins. The royal residence, which Lalitaditya had placed at Parihasapura, was removed from there already by his son Vajraditya. The great change of the Vitasta, removed the junction of this river with the Sindhu from Parihasapura to the present Shadipur,nearly three miles away. This must have seriously impaired the importance of Parihasapura. Scarcely a century and a half after Lalitadiya’s death,King Shankaravarman (A.D. 883-901) used materials from Parihasapura for the construction of his new town and temples at Pattan. Some of the shrines, however, must have survived to a later period, as we find the Purohitas of Parihasapura referred to as an apparently influential body in the reign of Samgramaraja (A.D. 1003-28). Under King Harsha the colossal Buddha image of Parihasapura is mentioned among the few sacred statues which escaped being seized and melted down by that king. The silver image of Vishnu Parihasakeshava was subsequently carried away and broken up by King Harsha. The final destruction of the temple of Parihasapora is attributed to Sikandar But-Shikan (A.D. 1394-1416).Even up to the year 1727 A.D. the Paraspur plateau showed architectural fragments of great size, which have since been carried away as building materials.It is interesting to find that these ruins were yet at a comparatively so recent time generally attributed to Lalitaditya’s building”

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Aurel Stein made a spot visit to Paraspora in Sept. 1892. There he traced the actual ruins of the building describedin the Rajatarangini. These remains were situated near the village Sambal on a small plateau (Udar) between themarshes of Panznor and village Haratrath. Stein identidied five great buildings which Lalitaditya had erected at Parihaspura. These were identified as Parihasakeswa, Mukatakeswa, Mahavaraha, Govardhanadhara and Rajavihara.The first four were temples dedicated to worship of Vishnu and the last named was a Buddhist convent. However whenrevisiting the site in May 1896, Stein found many of the stones missing that existed in 1892. On inquiry heleared that these stones were taken away by the contractors engaged in building the new Tonga road to Srinagar.To prevent such callous damage that was being caused to these relics of past, Stein made a representation to theResident Sir Adelbert Talbot for urgent need of protecting the remains. The Resident supposted his petition andeffective steps were ordered by the Maharaja to prevent repetion of similar vandalism

~ via siraurelstein.org

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Note on the site from ‘Ancient Monuments of Kashmir’ (1933) by Ram Chandra Kak.[Read the complete book here at KOA]:


Plate LV

The karewas of Paraspor and Divar are situated at a distance of fourteen miles from Srinagar on the Baramula road. They were chosen by King Lalitaditya (c. A.D. 750) for the erection of a new capital city, and it is certain that, given a sufficient supply of drinking water, the high and dry Plateaus of Parihasapura have every advantage over the low, swampy Srinagar as a building site. Lalitaditya and his ministers seem to have vied with each other in embellishing the new city with magnificent edifices which were intended to be worthy alike of the king’s glory and the ministers’ affluence. The Plateau is studded with heaps of ruins of which a few have been excavated. Among these the most important are three Buddhist structures, a stupaj a monastery, and a chaitya. Their common features are the enormous size of the blocks of limestone used in their construction, the smoothness of their dressing, and the fineness of their joints. The immense pile at the north-eastern corner of the Plateau is the stupa (Plate LV) of Chankuna, the Turkoman (?) minister of Lalitaditya. Its superstructure has entirely disappeared, leaving behind a huge mass of scorched boulders which completely cover the top of the base. There is a large massive block in the middle of this debris, which has a circular hole in the middle, 5′ deep. It is probable that this stone belonged to the hti (finial) of the stupa, and that the hole is the mortice in which was embedded the lower end of the staff of the stone umbrellas which crowned the drum.
The base is 128′ 2″ square in plan, with offsets and a flight of steps on each side. Its mouldings are of the usual type, a round torus in the middle and a filleted torus as the cornice. The steps were flanked by plain rails and side walls which had pilasters in front decorated with carved figures of seated and standing atlantes. Some of these are in position, while others, which were lying about loose, have been transported to the Srinagar Museum. They are not grotesque creatures like those so commonly seen in Gandhara, but have the appearance of ordinary respectable gentlemen, whose placid features seem to indicate that the superincumbent weight sits lightly upon them. The top surface of each of the two plinths is broad and affords adequate space for circumambulation. Among the loose architectural stones lying scattered about the site are a few curious blocks in the south-eastern and south-western corners. They are round torus stones adorned with four slanting bands or fillets running round the body. As this type of torus moulding is not used in either of the bases, it is probable that it belonged to the string-course on the drum of the stupa. There are fragments of trefoiled arches also, which contained images of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas.

The large square structure to the south of the stupa is the rajavihara, or royal monastery. A flight of steps in the east wall gives access to one of its cells which served as a verandah. The monastery is a quadrangle of twenty-six cells enclosing a square courtyard which was originally paved with stone flags, some of which are extant. In front of the cells was a broad verandah, which was probably covered, the roof being supported by a colonnade which ran along the edge of the plinth. A flight of steps corresponding to the one mentioned above leads down to the courtyard. Exactly opposite to this, in the middle of the west wall, are three cells preceded by a vestibule, which is built on a plinth projected into the courtyard. It is probable that these were the apartments occupied by the abbot of the monastery. Near a corner of it is a large stone trough, which may have served as a water reservoir for bathing purposes. A couple of stone drains passing underneath cells Nos. 18 and 21 (if we begin counting from the cell to the south of the entrance chamber) carry off the rain and other surplus water from the courtyard. Externally the plinth is about 10′ high. In cell No. 25 (that is the one to the north of the entrance chamber) was found a small earthen jug which contained forty-four silver coins in excellent preservation. They belonged to the time of kings Vinayaditya, Vigraha, and Durlabha. They are now exhibited in the Numismatic Section of the Srinagar Museum. The monastery was repaired at a subsequent period. The repairs are plainly distinguishable in the exterior of the wall on the eastern and western sides.

The building next to it on the south side is the chaitya built by Lalitaditya. It stands on a double base of the usual type. A flight of steps on the east side leads to the entrance, which must originally have been covered by a large trefoil-arch, fragments of which are Iying about the site. This building possesses some of the most massive blocks of stone that have ever been used in Kashmiri temples, and which compare favourably with those used in ancient Egyptian buildings. The floor of the sanctum is a single block 14′ by 12′ 6″ by 5′ 2″.

The sanctum is 27′ square surrounded by a circumambulatory passage. It is probable that its ceiling was supported on four columns, the bases only of which survive at the four corners. The roof, which was probably supported on the massive stone walls of the pradakshina, may have been of the pyramidal type.

The courtyard is enclosed by a rubble-stone wall which has nothing remarkable about it. In front of the temple steps is the base of a column which probably supported the dhvaja, or banner, bearing the special emblem of the deity enshrined in the sanctuary.

The flank walls of the stair were adorned with atlantes similar to those of the stupa.

Near the chaitya is the foundation of a small building of the diaper-rubble style.

While this Plateau was reserved for the erection of Buddhist buildings only, the other two were exclusively appropriated by Hindus. Perhaps the arrangement was intentional, to avoid possible friction between the two powerful religious bodies. On the karewa locally known as Gordan there are ruins of a Hindu temple which are probably all that remain of Lalitaditya’s temple of Govardhanadhara. Crossing the ravine in which nestles the little village of Diwar- Yakmanpura, and ascending the Plateau opposite, are seen the immense ruins of two extraordinarily large temples – one of them has a peristyle larger than that of Martand – which may represent Lalitaditya’s favourite shrines of Parihasakesava and Muktakesava.

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Submerged ancient temple at Manasbal

Man Mohan Munshi Ji shares photograph of Submerged ancient temple at Manasaras (Manasbal). It is  an ancient spot recently re-discovered and re-claimed. About the place he says:


The temple is an ancient one but not much is known about its antiquity. Some time back it was reported in the print media that it was recently uncovered. I visited the place last month and found that a parapet and fence was built around it but the level of water has remained the same and water was oozing out from an underground spring.  I took a plunge inside the water logged temple and felt with my hands about one foot tall Shivling inside the temple.
I do not believe that the Manasbal temple was built under water. Probably the submergence of the temple was caused by (i) silting of the outlet of the lake near Sumbal, subsequent rising of the level of the lake or by (ii) the sinking of an underground cavern below the temple.

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To these photographs I am adding following old note:

“One of the most attractive places in the valley is the Manasbal lake. Being absolutely free from disturbance of any kind, and nestling in an oval basin surrounded on all sides by hills and uplands, the lake is an ideal abode for the happy lotus-eater, who dreams away his days reclining under the shady chinar, and passes his evenings in watching the long streaks of moonlight flitting across the mirror-like surface of the water. Naturally, such a delightful spot would not have been overlooked either by the devout Hindu or the nature- adoring Mughal. The former have left a small temple, now partially submerged during the greater part of the year. It is a very small structure, and only its two pyramidal roofs are visible in the driest seasons. The cornice of the lower roof, and the horizontal band which divides it from the upper storey, are decorated with series of dentils and metopes. Only the upper part of the pediment of the entrance is visible. It faces west.

~ Ancient Monuments of Kashmir (1933) by Ram Chandra Kak.[Read the complete book here at KOA]

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Note on the temple  by Pandit Anand Koul from his book ‘Archaeological Remains In Kashmir’ (1935) . [You can read the complete book here]:

Miniature Temple at Manasbal

At the south-east cornner of the lake of Manasbal is a miniature temple built of stone, standing in the water.
The temple appears to be a square of about six feet and has only one doorway to the west covered by a pyramidal pediment, which is divided into two portions by a horizontal return of the said mouldings as in the case of the Martanda colonnade. The upper portian is occupied by the head and shoulder of a figure holding a sort of staff in the left hand. The angles of the lower portion of the doorway pediment, below the horizontal moulding and above the trefoil, are occupied each with a naked figure leaning against the head of the trfoil, and holding up over the arch a sort of waving scarf which is passed on through the other hand.

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Ruins of Naran Nag

Man Mohan Munshi Ji is back after a month and a half  long tour of Kashmir Valley visiting remote inaccessible glens, valleys, mountain tops and holy places. He will be sharing his photographs from the tour here at this blog. First in this series is his photographs of Naran Nag. About the place he says:

A number of ruins of ancient temples exist at Narang Nag near Wangat locted by the side of Kankahini (Krenk Nadi) above the township of Kangan in Sind valley. It is believed that these temples were built by well to do Pilgrims as a thanks giving for successful yatra of Haramukh above Utrasaras (Gangabal).

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To these photographs I am adding a note on Naran Nag temple complex by Pandit Anand Koul from his book ‘Archaeological Remains In Kashmir’ (1935) . [You can read the complete book here]:

“Five miles to the east of Vangat (Vasishtbashrama) higer up in the Sindh Valley, there are some
ruined temples near the spring called Naran Nag, at the foot of the Bhutsher or Bhuteshvara spur of
the Haramukuta peaks. They are in two groups, situated at a distance of about 100 yards from each other.

The locality of these temple nearer Vangat is known by the name of Rajdhani, or metropolis.
This group consists of six buildings, all more or lss ruined, and the remains of an enclosing wall, measuring
176 feet by 130 feet, may still be traced, although there is no evidence of the form it originally had.
The largest temple of the group measures 24 feet square and has a projection on each of its four sides, measuring
3 feet by 15 1/2 feet 6 in. The main blovk is surmounted by a pyramidal roof of rubble formerly, no doubt, faced with stone; and
the gables which terminated the porch-like projections on all four sides, can still be traced. Ther are two entrances facing east
and west. Not far from the group is a platform, rectangular in shape, (100 feet by 67 feet) which appears to have been
the basement of some building or temple. A colonnade once existed all round it – numerous bases of pillars are to be seen in their
places on one of the longer sides of the rectangle, and several fragments of fluted columns are lying about, their average diameter being
two feet.

 About 20 yards to the north-east of the platform are the ruins of the second group of temples, eleven in number, with the remains of a gateway
in the centre about 22 feer wide, similar to that belonging to the first group. The principal one among them is 25 feet square with projections
on each face.

 A mass of stone measuring 22 feet by 7 feet shaped into a tank for water, exists on the south face of the principal temples.

 The whole group is encircled by the remains of a rectangular wall of which the foundation can be traced, together with several bases of pillars;
and at the N.W. corner is a large tank of stone, full of cold and clear water. The dome of the chief temple is of rubble masonry, but all the other
parts of the building are of sculptured stones.

 The chief peculiarities of these ruins are the number of temples contained withing the same enclosing wall, and the absence of symmetry in their
arrangement. There is a rock in the middle of the Kankanadi stream, half a mile from here, with a room cut into it which is sufficient to accommodate
four persons. In its centre there is a linga and there is also a niche in one wall.

 In antiquity these ruins are supposed to rank next to those on the Shankracharya hill. Major Cole assigned the age of these building to about the commencement of
the Christian era.

The worship of Shiva Bhutesha, the Lord of Beings, localised near the sacred mountain-lake of Haramukuta-Ganga, has played an important part in the ancient religion of
Kashmir. Sir Aurel Stein has been able to show the identity of these temples with the buildings which the Kashmir kings had, at the different periods, raised in honour of
Shiva Bhutesha and the neighouring lings of Shiva Jyeshtesha. The small tank above the ruins, which is now known as Naran Nag, is, according to him, identical with the Sodara
spring mentioned in connection with King Jalauka, son of Asoka, and king Samdhimat-Aryaraja (35 B.C.). A large store pith or seat, 15 feet long 8 feet broad and 6 feet high,
has been recently unearthed near Naran Nag. The eastern group clusters round a temple, which Sir Aurel Stein identifies with the Bhutesha shrine and which, according to Kalhana,
was situated close to that of Bhairava. The western group is, therefore, identical with the temple dedicated to Shiva Jyeshtesa. King Jalauka erected here a stone temple to
Shiva Bhutesha, and made donations to the shrine of Shiva Jyeshtesha.

King Narendraditya Khinnkhila (250-214 B.C.) consecrated shrines to Shiva Bhuteshvara here. If he is identical with Khinkhila, whose reign is known from a coin, he probably
belonged to the 5th or 6th century, so says Dr. Sten Konow. Lalitaditya Muktapida (700-36 A.D.) erected a temple for Shiva Jyeshtesha here, which Sir Aurel Stein thinks is the
is the existing principal shrine in the western group. Kalhana inform us that King Avantivarman (855-83 A.D.) visited this place and made a pedestal with silver conduit for bathing
at Bhutesha. He further relates how the temple was plundered in the days of Jyasimha in Kalhana’s time (1128-49, the date when the Rajatarangini was written). No important additions
were believed to have been made to the building there, and the conclusion one arrives at is that the central shrine of the western group belongs to the 8th century A.D., while others
are older.”


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Update: P. Parimoo Ji sends in photographs of the place shot around a year ago on 14th June 2011.

 He is intrigued by absence of GI Sheets in the recent photographs.
Man Mohan Munshi Ji adds:

“No sheets were not there during my visit to the place in August but entrances to some of the temples were blocked with wooden planks and crude stone masonry.”

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Bhairav of Bagh-i-Sundar Balla Chattabal

‘So, the temple! Is it going to fall to the left or to the right?’

We wondered. My grandfather couldn’t remember the way to his house. He didn’t recognize the chowk, the tang adda nor the left turn that led to the house that was once his. When we reached the house, he asked, ‘Is this the place?’
His memory had probably started to disintegrate the previous summer. Memories flowing in his blood were forming a clot in his cranium. In a condition like that, pulling the directions to a neighbourhood temple from memory was perhaps too much to expect. Yet, we engaged in a play. Many a games like these we had played together. The pace at which the bus was moving, everyone had to pick a side or miss having the darshan. Everyone in the bus looked left and then right and then left. I chose right. I knew the temple was to the right. It had to be.

One the the earliest memories of Kashmir I have is of a day, not a particular day, rather sum of many such days, one of those days when my grandfather would take me to the ghat to get monthly ration. On way to the river bank he would tell me about the weir. The weir on Jhelum was built around 1906, an engineering feat performed using British help, to maintain the water level of the river, to keep the river navigational and to keep an old river going. Back then I didn’t know all this. I didn’t realize rivers could die. But the sound of ‘Veer’ excited me. Veer had been part of Kashmiri language for decades now but when I heard the word ‘Veer, I asked him to explain what this Veer thing looked like. What is a Veer?

‘It’s a big wooden structure built across a river…’

One could simply say it’s a small dam like structure but as I heard and misheard and missed my grandfather’s explanation, the picture that my mind chose to draw was no simple dam. My mind took: from the pair of snakes in Medical insignia of Soura hospital, one snake and comity; from the cranky old wooden electric pole in our yard, it took a slippery and wet wooden pole and an uncertainty; from the rows of those giant taps that someone put alongside a railing of an old bridge on Jhelum and then left them all open as if by mistake, a fountainn-tap to pump oxygen (not water) into a thirsty river, it took sound and breath; and from the dying moments of a black and white television screen, it took its last slow murmur of life, a single beautiful dot of blinding whiteness in the center of a finite darkness. A picture emerged, my eyes could now see the Veer: it was an unreadable god, in the middle of a deep river a huge pole reaching for an overcast grey sky, wound around it, a giant dark serpent with inviting diamond twinkle for eyes. Can it call out to people? Can its voice be heard? Why it looked like Skeletor’s ‘Snake Mountain’!

‘That’s way to the Veer,‘ he pointed in a direction, ‘…will take you someday.’ I couldn’t  see anything. The vision faded. Or did it appear only later in a nightmare I had on a Sunday. This day must have been a Sunday.

‘Aren’t we going to go?’
‘Maybe later. First we will go get ration. Don’t you want to see the houseboats.’
‘Yes…’

I wanted to see it all. I wanted to run to the shore as soon as the whiff of the river reached me. But before going to the houseboat-shops, grandfather stopped. He stopped in front of a structure that looked like a storeroom. A storeroom with a locked door.

‘Is the shop closed? Will we have to agin come back tomorrow? What do they sell here?’

‘This is our Bhairav Mandar,’ my grandfather answered even as he offered a head-bent namaskar to the iron lock.

‘What’s inside?’

‘God.’

‘Why is it locked? Can we look inside?’

As he proceeded to circumvent the structure, I followed him, holding on to a corner of his kurta and on with my questions.

‘Which one?’
‘What?’
‘Which God?’
‘Bhairav’
Is Bhairav also Shankar?

He then started talking something about chappals.

In the bus, he repeated the old story: ‘They threw chappals into the hawan kund. The government put a lock on the temple and we were barred from praying there. Just like that. The matter went to the court. We agitated. I too fought the police. I think the matter is still in the court.’

He ended that sentence with a snort. For a moment all his memories seemed lucid again. The dispute over the Bhokhatiashwar Bhairov Nath Mandir of Chattabal arose in 1950s and peaked around 1973 when a mob attacked the temple premise which had been a center of cultural and religious activities for Pandits of Chattabal. Food Control department of the State government laid claim over the temple’s ghat. Pandit fought back the claim with a surprising resolve. They were out on streets facing police lathicharge. The matter reached the court which locked down the temple structure till a verdict was reached. But the verdict never arrived. In 1990, the families of people who took part in temple agitation were doubly afraid for their lives. There were old scores to be settled. As their temple was already locked, temporarily, they locked their houses too. The locks remained until 1992 when, in the aftermath of Babri Masjid Demolition, Bhairav temple, like many a Pandit houses, lost its lock, lost its door, windows, roof, the walls and the stones and anything valuable or un-valuable or invaluable inside. Does it make sense? Any of it. Talking about a temple in Chattabal and a temple in Ayodhya. Love may not tie humanity, but the violence already does. Does violence offer greater intimacy? Is Chappal a God too?

My grandfather didn’t take me to the weir that day. I never saw it. But I did try to find it, on my own many time. I was just starting to discover the place where I was born. I had started to walk out of the house alone, tracing the by-lanes, just to see where they led, to a bridge or a river, or a dead-end or a grocery, or a butcher’s shop. Out for running home errands, buying eggs, butter, milk or zamdod, followed by crows and eagles, cats and dogs, horses and tongas, I would sometimes take a new route, take a wrong turn, just to see how far I could go before that ‘lost’ feeling churns in stomach. On these walks, one of the boundaries of my daring adventures, Lachman Rekha of my kingdom, my point of ‘better-return-back-home’, was a bridge from which I could see the houseboats on the ghat. Somewhere near this bridge, to the left, was a shop that sold mint candies that looked like Digene pills, only, white and not pink. White like those white pebbles used to emboss Gurmukhi Omkar above the door of that Sardarji in Chanpore near Massi’s house.  Didn’t I always want to pluck those white dots out from that wall, just to confirm they were in fact not edible? Is Chappal a God too? Did I really ask Daddy that question? How after long walks with Nani on the dry river bed of Tawi in Jammu, on a river bed baked red in summer sun, I used to bring back to her those beautiful stones. She would ask us kids to look for a Kajwot, a perfect grinding stone, and we would run back to her carrying a stone with white stripes around it, a mark like a Brahmin’s yoni, a janau. ‘Ye ti Shivji‘, she would exclaim and send a little prayer. We would pocket the god. Few minutes later we would again run back to her to confirm if we had again found another god. The river bank only had too many gods and too few Kajwots to offer.  She would again say a prayer. Our pockets were too small and the world had too many stones. We would throw the stones in the river. While we looked for a perfect Kajwot, she would often talk about Doodhganga. We used to have these walks in Kashmir too, in Chanpore, on the dry bed of a river called ‘Milk Ganga’. They say in the old days a single stream of milky whiteness used to flow in the center of that muddy river. Hence the name.

‘Where could that shop selling white mint candies be? That was to the left of the bridge.’ I wondered and turned my head left to look for the shop.

‘There. To the right. There somewhere should be the temple. Yes, there it is. The ruins. All burnt.’

‘Where? Where?’

I had missed it. In the mad dash, I couldn’t see a thing. Facing right, staring as a fast passing train of trees, shacks, a muddy river, a dry river bed, a rolling polythene bag, empty crushed plastic bottles, metal of electric poles and wires, I could see. I couldn’t see the temple. I kept shooting the camera blindly, hoping to capture something, anything. The moment passed just as it came. Did I miss it? I believed I did. I wanted to see the place where my father used to accompany his father to buy cheap American IR-8 rice in 1906s. I wanted to see the temple. The boats. I wanted to see the veer.

‘I think it is settled.’

Grandfather exclaimed solemnly. After a brief pause he added, ‘This is how things are settled…conflicts resolved.’

A sad laughter escaped deep from his throat and turning away from the car window, he went back to reading a local Urdu newspaper from Kashmir.

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Kiramchi Temples, Udhampur

Some beautiful photographs of the old temple sent-in by Man Mohan Munshi Ji.
He writes about these monuments:  located north of Udhampur town resembling architecture of Orissa temples. Besides other views it is believed that the said temples were erected by artisans from eastern India who accompanied Lataditya Mukipida on his return journey after conquering Eastern India.

 

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