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| Janki Mandir |
Jai Siya Ram!
If you really mean it, its
time to visit Siya Mata’s town.
Welcome to Janakpurdham, Nepal.
Situated in the contiguous
terai region of Nepal, it is just 20 kms from the borders of India with
Jaynagar being on the Indian side. Part of the Dhanusa District with a
population of 8 lakhs, the majority here are the madhesis whose origin can be
traced to the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. The predominant
language is these parts is Maithili, an officially recognized language even in
India!
Most ancient texts mention it
as Mithila. Janakpur it was called after the King Janaka, father of Janaki ie.,
Sita Mata. Most people think this was the place where Sita was born which may
not be correct as King Janaka was not Sita Mata’s biological father. She was
apparently found in a furrow in a field by a farmer who brought the infant Sita
to Janaka’s court. The King, magnanimous that he was, brought up this abandoned
little soul like his own daughter. The rest, as we all are aware, is a mix of
mythology and history.
Talking about history, the
place finds reference from the Rig Veda to the Ramayana. Besides Hindus, this
town may be of interest to Buddhists and Jains as well since it is mentioned
that Gautama Buddha and and Vardamana Mahavira, the 24th and final Tirthankara
has lived here.
With so much religion and
mythology, it is but natural that visitors to this small town have gone on
record saying that there is this unmistakable deep, deep sense of devotion in
the air which is unlike most other places.
Religious and mythological
significance means a perennial flow of the faithful making it an important contributor
to the region’s development with Janakpurdham having its own airport and
railway station, the latter being the only one in Nepal!
As tourists with a leaning
towards religion and history, the places mentioned below may be immensely
interesting to you. Despite its lineage and profound history, it seem a place
frequented mostly by the devout. Tour operators in Pune despite being in
numbers, prefer to offer packages to more exotic places round the globe. It is
then left to operators like Raghukul Holidays of Pune to cater to their
clients’ requirements, which we understand they do with utmost care and
caution, given their experience and sense of purpose.
Janki Mandir
It is quite obvious that the
most important place in Janakpur shall be a temple dedicated to Sita Mata. And
given her status in Hindu Mythology, equally obvious is that it WILL be GRAND.
GRANDEUR with ELEGANCE is what comes across at first sight. And what surprises
most is that it is built in a Mughal style of those days ie 1912. A two-storied
structure with its white marble arches, domes, turrets and screens, it is a
profusion of marble.
You find women in plenty here
draped in their best. Evenings are the most electric as the place gets lit up
and people arrive in droves.
The second most obvious place
would be a Ram Mandir which is close by. It is the oldest of temples here
having been built in 1882. The architecture is in the classic oriental pagoda
style. Nearby this temple is the Dhanush Sagar, a ritual bathing tank, the
largest in Janakpur.
Ram Bibah Mandir
A third rather obvious place
and part of the Janaki Mandir, is this place where apparently Ram and Sita got
married. It has life-sized statuses of Ram and Sita, decorated and kept in
rather modern style.
Ponds and tanks
Janakpur has a profusion on
small ponds, +100 at last count, each with a story of its own. The more famous
ones are the Dhanush Sagar, Bihar Kunda and Ratan Saga Kunda related to
Rama. Parashuram kunda is one where
Maharishi Parshuram bathed to quell his anger after his confrontation with Ram
over the breaking of the sacred bow of Shiva.
Jaleshwar
Nearing the Indian border is Jaleshwar, a
temple dedicated to Shiva, it is famous for the lingam being immersed in a pond
situated 20 feet below ground level. In addition, there are two large ponds on
either side of the temple.
Dhanushdham
A place of some
archaeological importance, it is 18 km towards the north-east of Janakpurdham.
Apparently the broken remains of the divine Shiva bow fell after Ram broke it
to obtain Sita's hand in marriage. Fossilized fragment of the broken piece is
said to be present to this day. Every Sunday in the month of Magh (January/
February), a Makar Mela (fair) is held here- an unbroken tradition since Vedic
times.
Coming back to modern times,
Janakpur also has a Women’s Development Centre situated in the village of Kuwah where local women
have come together to produce paper paintings, papier-mâché boxes and mirrors,
screen-printed fabrics and hand-thrown ceramics. You can buy beautiful, richly
coloured artifacts at reasonable prices from these artisans.
You may also visit villages at the fringes of Janakpur where time still seems to have stood still with life in every sense
continues in the same languid pace it did centuries back. The houses even sport
old Maithili style wall-frescos which is sure to take you back in time!
Phew, this is some list then.
But thankfully Janakpur is small by most Indian standards and means of
transport plenty. Same goes for accommodation and food.
If reading this, you make up
your mind, wish you all the best. May the Goddess light your path!
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Please feel free to post your comments below.
About Author :- Amit Kulkarni is the founder of Raghukul Holidays.
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