Odisha Temples

Maa Mangala Temple is located in Kakatpur in Puri in the Indian state of Orissa. Kakatpur is a small village in Puri District and is situated at a distance of 50 kms from Puri. There are large number of devotees who visit the temple each month. This temple is associated with Puri Lord Jagannath temple.

During the renovation of the deities which is known as Navakalebara, the old deities are buried at a dedicated place in the Jagannath temple and the new idols are shaped for Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra. The idols are also made from a very sacred wood which is the Daru Brahma. Nobody knows from where to find the sacred wood to create the new idols, so as per the tradition the priests of Lord Jagannath temple come to Kakatpur Mangala to pray the Goddess to help them to find the sacred wood. The priests sleep in front of the Goddess with their face down and then Goddess Mangala come in their dream and tell the exact location of the three sacred trees for the three deities.

Maa Mangala Temple is built in typical Kalinga style and is a major pilgrimage for devotees of Shakti cult. Pilgrims frequently visit the temple seeking boons from Maa Mangala. Kakatpur Mangala Temple is also known as Sarba Mangala Mandir and it is one of the most celebrated shakti peeth in Puri. This temple is also sometimes called as the Bata Mangala Temple.

Maa Mangala Temple Timings

Maa Mangala Temple remains open on all days of the week. The timings of the temple are from 9:30 AM to 1:30 PM in the morning and from 4:30 PM to 7:30 PM in the evening. In case of special occasions or festivals, the timings might differ.

Maa Mangala Temple History

• There is a famous story behind the evolution of the name of the deity as ‘Kakatpur’ Mangala and believed by the local people. Goddess Mangala kept herself hidden under the deep water of river Prachi. Once a boatman was sailing his boat across river Prachi. At that time the river was outpouring and flooded so he was unable to sail his boat to the middle of the river.
• Goddess Mangala came in his dream and asked him to recover her from the water and to establish her in nearby Mangalapur village. The boatman dived into the water and able to find the deity from the bed of the river. Then as per the direction of the Goddess he established the figure of the deity in a temple in Mangalapur village.
• After this the boatman saw a black crow dived into the water and did not come out of the water for hours and days, the crow detained inside the water of river Prachi exactly in the same place from where he recovered the figure of Goddess Mangala.
• In Oriya language the word crow means ‘kaka’ and the word detain means ‘atka.’ Thus, the village is known as ‘Kakatpur’ and the goddess is named as Kakatpur Mangala.
• That time i.e 500 years ago the then local Jamindar Roychudamoni family made the mandir at Kakatpur with all the Sebak arrangement. This Mandir was built by Panchanan Mitra (Roychudamoni) on 1548 AD. This goddess is very famous with all the qualities of peace, power, happiness, love, purity, knowledge & truth.

Significance of the Maa Mangala Temple

• Pilgrims and devotees visiting the temple seek boons from Maa Mangala. There is a bed made of solid stone on which it is said Maa Mangala rests after touring the entire universe everyday. As if to attest to this, the bed looks worn out in just the same way it would if it were in use for centuries.
• The ‘Bhaktas’ who really want to acquire knowledge on lord Jagannath and Goddess Maa Sarba Mangala must read the book which is written by Raghunandan Panda, Sebak of Maa Sarba Mangala. He was a teacher and belongs to Kakatpur. He has spent almost 25 years from his busy schedule in doing research on Kakatpur Mangala. He has shared all his experience in the form of his book which will enlighten the whole story. The book is available only in Kakatpur.

Maa Mangala Temple Rituals

Mangala is Arupa (formless) and has become Sarupa (took form). Throughout the year, and days the ‘Niti’ ‘Puja’ is being done in ritualistic manner. ‘Prasadams’ are available for the devotees. Many patients come to remain in “Dharana” in prostrate form to get themselves cured.

Festivals celebrated at the Maa Mangala Temple

Jhamu Yatra: Jhamu Yatra is the most popular festival of Goddess Mangala which falls on the first Tuesday of the Vaisakh every year. On this occasion devotees collect water from river Prachi and pray to get her blessings. Then with the mud pot, filled with water, on their shoulder, they are able to walk on the surface of burning fire spread on a long channel on bare feet. Due to their faith on Goddess Mangala and her blessings on them, the devotee are unhurt and uninjured while performing such a risky custom. Every year thousands of devotees come to Kakatpur to celebrate the Jhamu festival.

Maa Mangala Temple has a close relation with Lord Jagannath Temple of Puri during the Navakalebara (Renovation of the Deities) festival. The new idols are created from a sacred wood known as “Daru”. As per the tradition the priests of Lord Jagannath temple come to Kakatpur Mangala to pray the Goddess to help them to find the sacred wood. The priests visit the goddess and offer her the things brought for the Banajaga Yatra and then Goddess at night shows the direction of the sacred wood or daru in their dreams. This custom has been performed from years together without any deviation. This shows the power and energy of Goddess Mangala and her blessings for her devotees.

Dhanu Yatra: It is a popular drama festival held at Bargarh of Western Odisha. The play is the enactment of the story of Lord Krishna and his demon uncle King Kansa. It features the Lord’s visiting Mathura for witnessing the ceremony of “Bow” or “Dhanu” organized by evil Kansa. The play continues for 7 to 11 days and attracts large number of viewers. Dhanu Yatra is celebrated for eleven days of the month from the 5th day of the bright fortnight till the full moon day.  The festive mood of people made them enact the victory of Lord Krishna, the embodiment of truth, justice and righteousness over Kansa who personifies arrogance and wickedness. The epic play was just a symbolic representation of Indians victory over unfair British rule.

How to reach: Road, Rail and Air

By Air: Nearest airport from this temple is the Bhubaneshwar airport which is 65 Km from this place. Bhubaneswar is connected by air with flights to major Indian cities like New Delhi, Calcutta, Visakhapatnam, Ranchi, Chennai and Mumbai etc. All major domestic airlines like Air Deccan, Jetlite, Kingfisher, Indian Airlines have daily flights to/from Bhubaneswar. The nearest International Airport is at Calcutta (Kolkata).

Travellers flying from Europe or America (east): The best way to reach Puri is to fly either to Calcutta (Kolkata), Mumbai (Bombay) or Delhi and then fly to Bhubaneshwar. Travellers flying from Australia or California could fly directly to Chennai (Madras) or Calcutta (Kolkata) and then fly to Bhubaneshwar.

By Rail: Puri is the nearest railway station from the temple. Puri is a terminus on the East Coast Railway having direct express and super fast train links with New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Okha, Ahmedabad, Tirupati etc. Some important trains are Kolkata (Howrah) Puri Howrah Express, Jagannath Express; New Delhi; Purushottam Express. Khurda Road Station, 44 km, from Puri is convenient rail head for train to Chennai and Western India.

Some of the important trains from New Delhi

1) Purshottam Express Leaves New Delhi on Day 1 and arrives at Puri on Day 3 (the distance is about 1866 kms) journey Time approx 31 hours.

2) Puri Express Leaves New Delhi on Day 1 and arrives at Puri on Day 2 (the distance is about 1794 kms) journey Time approx 30 hours.

3) Neelachal Express Leaves New Delhi on Day 1 and arrives at Puri on Day 2 (the distance is about 1910 kms) journey Time approx 35 hours.

By Road:  Kakatpur Mangala Temple is 50 Km from Puri. The bus stand near the Gundicha Temple provides connections to Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, service every 10-15 minutes. Minibuses to Konark leave every 20-30 minutes and also from Jatiababa Chhak. There are direct buses for Kolkata and Visakhapatnam. Puri is linked with Bhubaneswar by state highway no.8 and Bhubaneshwar is situated along the National Highway no.5 connecting Chennai and Kolkata. The best way to go from Bhubaneswar to Puri is on one of the State Govt. buses, mini buses and tourist buses leaving from Bhubaneswar main bus stand.

Where to stay

There are many good hotels and resorts available near Maa Mangala Temple for the accommodation.

• Lotus Resort: Near Ramachandi Temple,Konark-Puri Marine Drive Road, 752111 – Konark
• Sun Temple Hotel: Near Bus Stand, Konark, 752111 – Konark
• The Pearl: River Side Retreat Puri konark Marine Dr Rd, 752002
• Nature Camp Konark Retreat: Khalakata Patna, Ramchand
• Marwadi Hotel and Lodge: Konark, konark marine drive puri
• Surya Inn: Near Canara Bank, Near Canara Bank
• Lotus resort Ramchand Beach: Konark Puri Marine Drive
• OYO Homes Konark Sun Temple: Near Sun Temple

Where to eat

There are numbers of local dhabas (food-joints) serving vegetarian and non-vegetarians food. Apart from relishing the local delicacies, fish fry prepared in Bengali-style is highly suggested. Apart of Indian cuisines, continental and chinese dishes are also available at an affordable rate.

• Santi Restaurant: Shanti Restaurant & Bar, Unit-2, Ashok Nagar, Bhubaneshwar
• Sun Temple Restaurant: SH 13, Khelar, Orissa
• Madhuban: Toshali Sands Ethnic Village Resort, Konark Marine Drive
• Peace Restaurant: Chakratirtha Road, Puri, Odisha
• Bamboo: C T Road, Puri, Odisha, 752002
• The Gajapati: Chakratirtha Road, Puri, Odisha
• Wildgrass Restaurant: VIP Rd, Puri, Odisha 752001
• Chung Wah Restaurant: VIP Road, Puri, Odisha, 752001

Nearby Temples

Shri Jagannath Temple: The origin of the sacred shrine of Jagannath goes back to the pre-Vedic period and Purusottam Kshetra, the sacred abode of Sri Jagannath, has been described in various Sanskrit works, such as the ‘Padma Parana’, ‘Narada Purana’, ‘Matsya Parana’, etc. There is a  monumental and magnificent Shrine at Shri Purusottam-Kshetra (Puri, Orissa) one of the four major Dhamas of India. The cult of Jagannath came to be regarded as the religion of masses ‘Gana Dharma’. That means Jagannath cult is a unique cult. Indian culture has reached its culmination in the unique culture of Lord Jagannath. It is more than a cult — an all-embracing synthesis of cults. It has combined diverse faiths, cultures, creeds and ideologies.  He is also known as Jagabandhu. He is the friend, philosopher, guide and the anchor of the purest thoughts of the people of the entire Universe.

Shree Lokanath Temple: Lokanath Temple is ranked next to Shri Jagannath Temple.  This  temple  is  at  a  distance of  about  two  kilometers to  the  west  of  the  Shri Jagannath Temple. Lord  “Siva”  and  “Mata  Parvati”  are  the  main  deities of  the  temple. The unique feature is that the shivalinga is always under water which substantiates the legend that Goddess Ganga flows through the top of the shivalinga as a stream.  Lord   Rama constructed    the temple in “Tretaya Yuga”.

Konark Sun Temple: Konark is one of the well known tourist attractions of Orissa. Konark houses a colossal temple dedicated to the Sun God. Konark is one of the most famous tourist destinations in India from the spiritual standpoint and boasts of one of the best known architectural specimen. The tourists coming to Konark also visit the Chandrabhaga Beach, one of the most exotic beaches in Odisha. The konark city is also known world over for its fairs and festivals. Millions of devotees gather here to take a holy dip in this river on the occasion as this dip is believed to be a sure cure for all illnesses.

Panchalingeshwar Temple: Panchalingeswar Temple is situated on the hilltop of the Eastern Ghats in Panchalingeshwar, Nilagiri, Baleswar district. It’s a beautiful place for picnic, darshan of Shiva Linga and breath some fresh air from the real nature.  The five round “Shiva Linga” are worshipped as Panchalingeswar (Pancha means five in Odia).