Bhagabati

Bhagabati of Banapur, in Khurda district, is Durga worshipped as Mahishasuramardini, the slayer of the buffalo demon. The presiding image is an eight-armed goddess with the head of the demon Mahisasura. The temple stands in Bhagavati Sahi in Banapur town and is counted among the best-known Shakti pithas of Odisha. Banapur was once the capital of the Sailodbhava dynasty. Durga Puja is the main festival of the temple, celebrated at Dussehra.

Her worship follows the Shakta tradition of Durga as Mahishasuramardini, whose slaying of the buffalo demon Mahisasura is told in the Devi Mahatmya. At Banapur she is called Bhagabati, a title that means the goddess.