Ranipur Jharial in Balangir, Orissa

If you have passion for historical monuments having with some religious value, take a trip to Ranipur-Jharial, the twin village in Balangir district that houses some rare temples and structures. The 9^th century Indralath temple made off bricks, the Chausathi Yogini shrine, the Someswar Mahadev temple and the large Yantras, carved on the rock are the main attraction of this archeological site in the Bangomunda block and Titlagarh subdivision. Around 200 temples of different dimension are found here. A report by Himanshu Guru.

Background

Ranipur Jharial is mentioned as ‘Soma Tirtha’ in scriptures. Perhaps it takes the name from the Someshwar Mahadev temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, found on the rocks of this historical site. As per historians, the Somavanshi Keshari kings built many temples here that can be dated back to the 9th/10th century AD, however some other Historians assign date of the structures to 8th century A.D. Yet, at the top of all, it is unquestionably a place having with the ancient structures of historical and religious importance.

Exterior view of the 64 Yogini temple in Ranipur Jharial

The Chausathi Yogini shrine

Interior view of the 64 Yogini temple

The Chausathi Yogini shrine found in this site is a rock structure in round shape where idols of 64 Hindu deities, known as yoginis are witnessed. Actually we noticed there 62 idols. The shrine also has a rock statue with a perch in the middle, which is claimed as the idol of Lord Brahma. Unlike temples of other deities Brahma shrine is rarely found.




 
Indralath Brick temple

Indralath (Brick) temple

The unique structure, Indralath temple is one of the tallest ancient brick temples in the country. Height of this temple is 80 feet including the platform made off sand stone. While the ancient pinnacle of this temple is destroyed, the temple is more or less intact. The innermost sanctum of this temple houses a recently installed Linga and images of Lord Vishnu, Kartikeya and Uma-Maheshwara and Narasingha are also witnessed here.

Someshwar Mahadev temple

Someshwar Mahadev temple

The Someshwar temple here has images of Goddess Durga, a bull (transporter of Lord Shiva), and a Dwarapala. On the lintel of the entrance to the innermost room (Garbhagriha) Gajalaxmi is also seen besides the Shivalinga. On the entrance wall a deity possibly a Buddha or a Siddha in dhyana-mudra is found.

The Yantras

The Yantras

Yantras are a religious drawing which is believed to be the abode of the Gods and Goddesses and thus have much importance in worship. We know about Shree Yantra, Kuber Yantra etc. which are drawn on 2 inch square shape and placed at the worship place in a house. But here in Ranipur one can witness gigantic yantras carved on the rocks which is a rare scene. Some people claim these drawings related to Tantra.

How to Approach

Ranipur Jharial is located in the Bangomunda block at a distance of 110 kilometers from the district headquarter of Balangir district. It is 25 kms from Titilagarh, the nearest town. Nearest railway stations are Titilagarh Junction and Balangir to approach this destination. In road ways either come from Titilagarh or come from Balangir through Patnagarh, Kantabanji, Bangomunda and then a left turn at the ‘Golei chowk’ of Bangomunda. Then after travelling 2 kms take the kacha road of 8 km to reach the destination. Hired vehicles are available at Balangir and Titilagarh. For information and guidance one can call my friend Rashmiranjan Putel, a media personnel (Ph. +91 9938596595) of Bangomunda.

Facilities

Boating in water park in Ranipur Jharial

Hired Boating facility in the nearby river is recently launched in Ranipur Jharial where one can take a ride in the blue water to have a glimpse of the number of temples on the rocks from the water body. A park has also been built that houses few animals too. However, there is no hotels or eatery right at the destination and one should plan (for a to and fro journey) accordingly.




Best time to visit


Ranipur Jharial can be visited across the year. However, as such the temperature of Balangir district rises to a considerable extent during summer and the structures are purely on rock without any flora and fauna, visiting this place in summer may earn lot of difficulties due to the extreme heat. Thus, visit to this place during tough days of summer are not recommended.