One of the 52 major Shakti Peethas is situated at Bhardhaman district near Katwa in West Bengal, India. The holy place is dedicated to a divine power "Goddess Durga", who is worshipped by a large number of Hindu devotees. It is believed that Devi Sati's 'Left Arm' fell here. Alternatively, a legendary Siddha peetha of a divine power is worshipped as a supreme power of Durga Shakti"Goddess Bahula" (lavish) by the millions of devotees from all over the country, who visit this prehistoric divine temple every year. MYTHS: STORY OF BEHULA MANASAMANGAL: 
devi manasa,godess of snakes The story of Manasamangal begins with the conflict of the merchant Chandradhar or Chand Sadagar with Manasa and ends with Chandradhar becoming an ardent devotee of Manasa. Chandradhar is a worshipper of Shiva, but Manasa hopes that she can win over Chand to her worship. But, far from worshipping her, Chand refuses to even recognize her as a deity. Manasa takes revenge upon Chand by destroying seven of his ships at sea and killing his seven sons. Behula continues to fascinate the Bengali mind, both in Bangladesh and West Bengal. She is often seen as the archetypal Bengali woman, full of love and courage. This image of Behula is reflected in one of the poems of Jibananda Das. Behula was the daughter-in law of Chand Sadagar of Champaknagar.According to myth, two beautiful "apsara's of the kingdom of heaven, Usha and Aniruddha were cursed by Gods as per the plan of Goddess Manasa and sent to earth as Behula and Lakshinder- Behula as the only daughter of Say bene and Lakshinder as the seventh son of Chand sadagar. Chand sadagar was a great devotee of Shiva and for certain reasons he hated Manasa. But Manasa had to get "Anjali" by Chand sadagar's right hand- the Bhaktasreshto to get position of Goddess in the heaven.However, Chand sadagar promised to himself that he will never give anjali to Manasa by the hand he uses to give anjali to Lord Shiva. To get an anjali from Chand, Manasa took away his six sons.They died from poisonous snake bites and manasa had absolute power over all snakes. These deaths infuriated Chand sadagar even more and he vowed to save his last son, lakhinder, in any way possible. Chand found a girl,Behula, whose destiny spoke that she will never be a widow. Chand got his seventh son, Lakshinder married with Behula. Chand also had an iron-palace built without any hole so that not a single snake could enter the house. Bishyakarma made it for the wedding night of Behula-Lakshinder. But due to the request of Manasa, Bishyakarma kept a hole in the palace. The night came and Manasa sent her Kalnagini, the most poisonous snake, to the iron palace. Behula fell asleep due to a spell Manasa cast on her. When Kalnagini was going to bite Lakshinder, she saw that Behula had committed no sin for which she might be given such a harsh punishment. So kalnagini, with the help of the lower end of her body smeared the parting of Behula's hair with the oil of the lamp, which was a sin according to the Hindu mythology. After she bit Lakshinder, Lakshinder shouted aloud. Behula woke up and saw kalnagini going out of the room. In anger, she threw the jaanti towards kalnagini and the lower part of the snake's body was cut off. kalnagini was not eager to bite Lakshinder; Manasa forced her to do so. To get back her husband's life from the Gods in the heavens, Behula sailed with her husband in a raft towards Heaven. She faced many dangers during her incredibly long and difficult journey in the rivers. After reaching Heaven, she pleased all the Gods with her beautiful and enchanting dancing and got the Gods to promise to give back her husband's life on the condition that Chand would give anjali to Manasa. Desperate to save his son's life, finally Chand gave in and gave the anjali by the left hand. Consequentlty Manasa got the position of Goddess in heaven and gave back the life of all the six sons of Chand. Behula is regarded as the epitome of loving and loyal wife in the Bengali culture. History: An awe-inspiring power of the Universe - "Bahula shakti peetha" is one of the historic places in India, where the divine power is worshipped as a Devi Shakti by Hindu devotees and daily offered with sweets and fruits in the morning. According to the Hindu mythology, it is whispered that Devi Sati's "Left Arm" fell here. The main idols of this legendary divine place are Devi as "Bahula" (lavish) and Lord Shiva as "Bhiruk" (sarvasiddhidayak), worshipped here. The holy place is dedicated to Maa Durga and Lord Shiva. Festivals and Fairs: The most important religious festivals celebrated at the holy place are '"Durga puja" is held with other special rituals and yagna, "Kali puja" (in Ashwin), "Maha Shivaratri" and "Navaratri". Additionally, the most important fairs are held ' Shivratri fair and Navaratri fair. Other significant adjacent places: Here, several other momentous places are situated near holy temple ' Konkaleshwari Kali mandir (dedicated to Goddess Kali), Sharine of Sarvamangala and Shivlingam temple (dedicated to Lord Shiva). Temple timing: From 6 am to 10 pm daily. a vedio of behula temple [YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RznmGvPOhy4=&feature=player_detailpage[/YOUTUBE] |