In the month of December 2008, I’d gone to Amguri to attend a seminar at the local Amguri College. After our presentations there were over, my friend Sikhamoni Konwar and I decided to visit the Jagadhatri temple at Kalugaon. I’d heard that the temple was adorned with beautiful sculptures. Kalugaon is around 15 kilometres from the historic town of Sivasagar on the Dhodar Ali (road) that leads to Sonari. After enquiring about the location of the temple we were informed by the villagers that it is popularly known as the Barpatra Dol. In fact, there were two temples known as the Barpatra Dol, the second being located at Kenduguri. When Siva Singha became the Ahom monarch he was advised by the astrologers not to occupy the throne due to ill omens. So he established his Queen Phuleswari Kunwari as the Regent or Bar Raja.

Phuleswari had earlier been a temple dancer and patronized temple building on a large scale, not only in the area around Sivasagar, the erstwhile Ahom capital Rangpur, but also in Guwahati. Her rule also witnessed the ascendancy of her younger brother Harinath. He was appointed as the Barpatra Gohain, a minister of cabinet rank along with the Burha Gohain, Bar Gohain, Bar Barua and Bar Phukan, collectively known as the Patra Mantrin. Originally from Chinatali, he migrated to Kalugaon and established his estate in the area. To the west of his estate he excavated a tank, the Lakhi Sagar Pukhuri and built two temples upon its shore. As the Barpatra Gohain had built the temple, i.e. it was constructed under his orders, people refer to the Jagadhatri temple as the Barpatra Dol.

Two temples stand on the shore of the vast tank called the Lakhi Sagar Pukhuri. The name sagar is apt as this tank is indeed a vast one, similar to many other tanks excavated by Ahom monarchs in and around Sivasagar. The larger of the two temples is known as the Jagadhatri Dol while the other is also called the Siva Dol, although the local villagers refer to it as the Visnu Dol. While the latter is in a good state of preservation, the former is overgrown by vegetation. In fact, the entire area surrounding the temple is full of dense vegetation.

With the help of two villagers, Sarat Dutta and Akbar Ali, who acted as our guides, we made our way to the temple as they cut a way through with a machete. Due to the growth of foliage, the mandapa that precedes the garbha griha or main shrine of the Jagadhatri Dol is totally hidden from view. It is a rectangular structure with a dochala or curved roof found in many shrines of the Ahom period. Besides the usual entrance at the front, it had two additional arched entrances on either side, while an inner passage led to the antarala culminating in the main shrine.

There was no image in the temple. Instead we found the skull and bones of a cow inside, probably brought in by some fox. Our guides advised us not to tarry as they claimed that the temple was the haunt of a madman who tried to scare away visitors. In spite of the weight of the vegetation above, the roof of the temple was still intact. However, the roof of the mandapa, built of the flat square bricks typical of the Ahom period seemed on the verge of collapsing.

The main shrine is octagonal, like most temples built by the Ahom kings. The entire outer surface of this brick temple is adorned with arched niches containing beautiful stone sculptures. While many of the sculptures have fallen victim to the vagaries of nature, we counted forty-six intact sculptures. The majority of the sculptures are of a religious nature. They depict gods and goddesses of the Hindu pantheon.

We found numerous sculptures of Visnu in different postures. In one, he is seated on a lotus, playing on the saranga, while elsewhere he has a snake canopy over his head. There were also sculptures of Siva riding on Nandi, his bull. Other gods and goddesses depicted include Indra on his elephant Airavat, Gajalakshmi, Agni, Dattatreya, Kartikkeya on a beautiful peacock, Mahisasuramardini Durga, the folk goddess Sitala and Rati, the goddess of passion, seated on a parrot, who is the consort of Kamadeva, the Indian cupid. The swayamvara of Draupadi is beautifully depicted in a sculpture that shows Arjuna the Pandava shooting at the target by looking at its reflection in the water below. There is also a sculpture of a couple seated upon an elephant. It may be a depiction of Indra and Sachi or simply that of a bride and groom with attendants. It was customary among the nobility in the Ahom period to use an elephant, while commoners used the humble bullock cart.

The visit to the Jagadhatri temple was indeed an enriching experience as it gave us a glimpse into our collective heritage, a heritage that literally appeared to be in danger of being lost forever, considering the present state of the temple.

We were surprised to see the marks of repairing on some of the sculptures, as we had not realized that it was a protected monument. Upon enquiry we learnt that the Directorate of Archaeology, Government of Assam, had initially tried to conserve the monument. However, there arose a dispute with a villager regarding ownership of the land concerned. So for the last ten years the case is being tried in court. In the meantime, we are in danger of losing part of our cultural heritage, for if no immediate action is taken to remedy the situation, there will soon be no monument left to protect.
[The writer is Reader, Department of History, Gauhati University.]

Dr Paromita Das