Bahula Shakti Peeth

Bahula Shakti Peeth is among the 51 Shakti Peeth of Maa Sati. It is said that, the left arm of maa Sati fell here, when lord Vishnu in order to relieve lord Shiva from grief of losing his wife Sati, used his ‘Sudarshan Chakra’ to incise maa Sati Body. Then, at the place of fall of left arm, this temple was constructed. Bahula shakti Peeth is situated in Bhardhaman district near Katwa in West Bengal, India. Here the idol of maa Sati is called as ‘Bahula’ and the lord Shiva is worshipped as ‘Bhiruk’. Meaning of Bahula is lavish and it is worshipped by millions of peoples here.

Temple is having simple, yet adorable art and architecture. Unlike other temple, those who have large dome at their top, here this temple does not have that much. And just a simple dome comes at the top. On the other hand, temple is situated in a remote area and thus that’s what brings calmness all around here. The ringing of bell in morning and evening can be heard clearly from far distance. The scent of ‘agarbatis’ is just adorable and the flame of ‘diya’ which is used for worshipping or doing ‘aarti’ of maa sati is adorable. In front of the temple there is large courtyard and the flooring is done by the red stone.

History of Bahula Shakti Peeth

This temple was made in the 18th century. History to this place dates back in the time when it is said that the Left arm of Maa Sati fell to this place. Best information about the origin and the formation of this temple, people can be taken from with local people. Religious books, Purans etc are worth trying to find out the history about the Shakti Peeth.

Festivals in Bahula temple

1. Navratri that falls two times in a year- one in the month of March or April and other in the September or October month depending on the Hindu calendar, is among the major festival here. Navratri are celebrated for over 9 days, with some people not eating any type of food that is derived from the soil for these nine days. Special ceremonies and rituals are carried during these days.
2. Durga Puja or Kali Puja is a major event here and celebrated in the month of September or October as per the Hindu calendar.
3. People (Almost every day) offers their offering to the god in form of fruit, milk, homemade sweets etc.
4. Another festival that is celebrated with great enthusiasm is the ‘Shivaratri’ and during this day, people keep fast, pour milk on the Shiv Lingam and offers ‘Bail’ (A type of fruit) to the god idol.

Where to stay

Accommodation near the Shakti Peeth is available at cheaper rate and do not fluctuate as per the festive season. Although you won’t find any international hotel chain here, but still there are handful of hotels available here for staying. Here we have given names of some hotels that are quite famous in the vicinity and it will short your search for finding hotels there. Maithan Tourist Lodge, City Tower Hotel, Hotel Sarada Shardhanjali, HotelSarit, Hotel Versity, M.C.D Guest House, Salimar Lodge, Hotel Manohar Inn, Deul Park Eco Resort are some of the good accommodation spaces here. The range of rooms may very from Rs 400 to Rs 2000. Beware of the touts who promise to give you fair deal at a lower prices.

Shopping around Bahula temple

1. Religious Paraphernalia can be bought from the shops that are located just outside the temple.
2. People buy all sorts of things like gems, traditional dress, musical instruments etc from here and handicraft products are quite buzz in this part of country.
3. Sitabhog and mihidana are some of the famous sweets here and one must give it a try when coming here.
4. Bargaining for the items is really necessary here as shopkeepers tend to ask higher price for the good that you want to purchase. A little knowledge about the prices of the basic things in this country will help travelers a lot.

Other places that can be visited nearby

Here is the list of some of the places that you might want to visit:

• Town Hall, Deer Park, Christ Church, Damodar River, Bijoy Toron, Sanskriti Lokomancha, Sikh Gurudwara, Tomb of Sher Afgan, Pir-Baharam, Kankaleswari Kali,Krishnasayar.
• Also near to the vicinity of the temple, Konkaleshwari Kali mandir (dedicated to Goddess Kali), Sharine of Sarvamangala and Shivlingam temple are other star attraction.
• Damodar river Banks are quite good place to have a close contact with the nature.

How to reach the Bahula temple

1. Direct trains are available to Bardhawan railway station and you get trains from every part of the country.
2. Still the road transport is the major one and they are couple of bus services available till here.
3. Several deluxe bus services are available to Katwa and they are worth trying, if you are not getting reservation in the train.
4. Nearest airport is in the Bardhawan, and national flights from adjoining cities are available till here. International airport is in the Kolkata.
5. Take necessary steps to protect yourself from sunburn etc, because in the summer season, temperature shoots up to 40+ degrees in this part of the country.