Bhaskareswara Temple in Bhubaneswar is one of the most unusual shrines of the city, built around a colossal linga about nine feet high and twelve feet around. Scholars think the linga was originally a shaft of an Ashokan pillar. The temple stands on a high platform on the Tankapani road and is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India. It has a pidha-style tower, and an image of Lingaraja is taken to it in a festival on Magha Saptami.
quick facts
- district
Khordha
- best time to visit
Magha Saptami, in January or February, when the movable image of Lingaraja is brought to the temple.
- dress code
Ethnic or traditional dress is customary.
know before you go
do
- Remove footwear before entering the temple compound
- Keep your voice low inside the shrine
- Follow the guidance of the temple servitors
- Make room for devotees who are praying
avoid
- Do not climb on the structures or touch the carvings
- Do not litter the compound or the tank
- Do not block the doorways while others wait to worship
how to reach
The temple stands on the left side of the Tankapani road leading from Ravi Talkies chowk towards the river Daya in Bhubaneswar, and is reached by road.
address: Tankapani Road, Bhubaneswar, Khordha district, Odisha
history and significance
why it matters
The temple is unusual and much debated because of its enormous linga, which scholars link to the Mauryan period. A lion capital and a Buddhist stupa railing pillar found nearby add weight to the idea that an Ashokan pillar stood in the area.
The festival that brings the movable image of Lingaraja to Bhaskareswara is read as evidence of the temple's former importance in the Ekamra sacred landscape.
history
The Ekamra Purana tells a legend that the sun god Surya had Vishvakarma build the temple about 1500 fathoms from the Kirtivasa, that is Lingaraja, temple. This is a tradition and not a documented founding.
On architecture, Donaldson, comparing the temple with Madhukesvara and Bhimesvara at Mukhalingam, suggests it was built soon after the Gangas established their supremacy at Bhubaneswar. An ASI documentation record dates it to the 12th century, the Ganga period, on architectural grounds. No inscription is recorded. Many scholars hold that the linga was originally an Ashokan pillar that was broken or split, reused as a linga, and that the lion capital was discarded and buried. This is a scholarly interpretation, not settled fact.
what to see
The linga is about 9 feet high and 12 feet in circumference. It stands on a platform about 11 feet high and 48 feet square, with doorways on all four sides leading to the base of the linga.
The bada is of the pancha-ratha plan except on the west, where it is tri-ratha. It has a two-storey jangha with a madhya-bandhana. The raha niches are doubled, and the side deities are Kartikeya, Parvati and Ganesha. The tower is a pidha-style structure but more curved than usual, with rekha-style finial elements including beki, amalaka, khapuri and kalasa.
rituals and festivals
On Magha Saptami, in January or February, a festival takes the movable image of Lingaraja to Bhaskareswara. An ASI survey record also lists jagara, Sankranti, Sitalasasthi and Dolapurnima among the rituals observed.
nearby
- Lingaraja Temple, the source of the Magha Saptami procession
other temples nearby7
questions visitors ask
Why is the linga so large?
It is about 9 feet high and 12 feet around. Many scholars think it was originally a shaft of an Ashokan pillar, later reused as a linga. This is a scholarly view, not settled fact.
What is the link between Bhaskareswara and Lingaraja?
On Magha Saptami a festival takes the movable image of Lingaraja to Bhaskareswara, which is seen as evidence of the temple's past importance.
When was the temple built?
No inscription is recorded. Donaldson places it soon after the Gangas gained supremacy at Bhubaneswar, and an ASI documentation record gives the 12th century, the Ganga period.