Odisha has four sacred regions named after the four Ayudhas or weapons of Vishnu: Shankh or Conch, Chakra or Wheel, Gada or Mace and Padma or Lotus Flower. Puri is Shankh Kshetra, Konark is the Padma Kshetra, Bhubaneshwar is the Chakra Kshetra and Jajpur – the ancient capital of Odisha is the Gada or Mace Kshetra.
While the first three are very popular with tourists and pilgrims, Jajpur remains a hidden gem. It is the seat of Biraja Devi Shaktipeetha – one of the 18 mentioned by Adi Shankaracharya in his Stotra. The temple is also famous for Nabhi Gaya, which makes it a place for rituals for the departed, just like you do in Gaya.
This ancient capital is located on the banks of river Baitarni. There are many big and small temples on its banks, and annual fairs are held here. The region of Odisha took many names like Utkal, Kalinga, Toshali, Odra etc., and different dynasties ruled from here, but Jajpur remained a capital city for the longest time. King Yayati-I, who lived in the 11th CE, is attributed to the region’s golden era. Subha Stambha, a pillar erected by him, is a memento of his times.
You can see Jagannath Temples, Varaha temple and a unique Saptamatrika temple on the banks of Baitarni. Varaha temple has unique deities like Yagya Varaha and Shwet Varaha, along with Lakshmi and Jagannath. Many small temples surround the bigger ones.
You can walk around the fairly large Kusuma Sarovar or visit the Rakshkali temple, where you can see an ancient Varahi Murti.
Jajpur is home to popular Ratnagiri and Udayagiri monasteries that give us a glimpse of the times when Buddhism flourished between the early centuries of the common era to about 12th CE. Ratnagiri has viharas with many beautiful votive stupas and a site museum. Inscriptions and sculptures of Buddha and Boddhistvas excavated from here are on display. Vihara here has ornate doors inside which you can see many Buddha figures and parts of some giant figures.
Udayagiri is spread out in a vast area, with Mahastupa as its main attraction. Various sculptures are scattered around the site. For me, the most fascinating part was a stone stepwell connected to an underground spring. Our ancestors knew water management so well.
Chinese traveller Huan Tsang tells us that both these monasteries were a part of Pushpagiri University which has been identified as located at Langudi, not too far from these monasteries. Chhatia Bata temple located between Jajpur and Cuttak is dedicated to the Kalki avatar of Vishnu and has some lovely legends associated with it. I remember the yummy Peda that you get outside this temple.
Jajpur is home to stone carvers who still carve lovely sculptures by hand. Tussar silk weavers are a big attraction for Sari lovers. Terracotta artisans and golden grass weavers create lovely souvenirs to take back. Overall, Jajpur is a quaint destination, yet to be discovered by travellers. It has a lot to offer to those interested in history, art, crafts, spirituality and ancient India.
The author of the article Anuradha Goyal is a Student & explorer for life and founder at IndiTales.
