Dhakeshwari Temple, Dhaka – History

Dhakeshwari Temple, Dhaka – History

It is believed that the Dhakeshwari temple was built in the 12^th century by Ballal Sen, a king of the Sena dynasty, and it is said that the city was named after the Goddess. The style of architecture of the temple cannot be assigned to that period. Furthermore, sand and lime, the mortar used in the building, came to be used in Bengal after Muslim conquest. Moreover, Abul Fazl, in his Ain-i-Akbari, has not mentioned anything about this temple, though he has given vivid description of each and every notable object in his chapter on the survey of ten subahs. Had this temple existed in his time, it was expected that it would find mention in his survey.

On the other hand, the three-domed roof and three arched entrances and the plastered walls of the temple strongly suggest that it was built in the Mughal style. On the other hand, the architectural and structural features of the temple indicate its builder to be someone who had very little influence on the culture of Bengal. Many of the features, such as the existence of a large tank, banian tree, garden, matha, resting-place and ashrama for sannyasis, and the practice of allowing one and all inside the temple suggest similarity to Arakanese religion and religious practices.

The existence of twin deities - the ten-armed female deity known as Dhakeshwari and the four-armed male deity known as Vasudeva - suggests the affinity with Tantric Buddhism of the Maghs. The Magh Nathas do not have any particular naming system; usually words like Natha, Isvara or Isvari are appended to place or tribal names. The female deity has got the epithet Dhakeshwari as the patron deity of the city of Dhaka (Dhaka + Isvari). Thus, it is assumed that the deity belonged to the Maghs and the architectural features indicate its affinity to Arakanese structures.

From all these it has been suggested that the builder of this temple was one Mangat Ray, who was also known as Ballalasena, younger brother of Arakanese king Shrisudharma, son of famous Arakanese king Raja Malhana. Mangat was obliged to take shelter in Dhaka having been driven away from Arakan. However, it must be said that there is another explanation of the name. The deity was found hidden underneath the earth and hence the name. Legends ascribe the construction of the temple to Ballalasena, the Sena king, who found the deity and constructed a temple for it.

Thus, it appears that the origin of the Dhakeshwari temple is shrouded in mystery. In the beginning of the 20th century Bradley Birt wrote that the temple is more than 200 years old and a Hindu agent of the East India company built it. The temple complex has undergone repairs, renovation and rebuilding in its long years of existence and its present condition does not clearly show any of its original architectural characteristics. It may be mentioned that nearby there was an Imambara or Husaini Dalan and in a map of 1864 it was marked as the old Huseni Dalan.

It is considered an essential part of Dhaka's cultural heritage. Many researchers believe that the temple is also one of the Shakti Peethas, where the jewel from the crown of the Goddess Sati had fallen. Although there is not enough historical context to establish this as a fact, researchers have been directed to this site while trying to locate the particular Shakti Peetha. Since ages, the temple has been held in great importance.

The original 800-year-old statue was taken to Kumartuli, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. During the partition of India, she was brought to Kolkata from Dhaka with millions of refugees. By 1950, the businessman Debendranath Chaudhary built the temple of Goddess in Kumortuli area and established some of the Goddess' property for her daily services. The idol is 1.5 feet tall, has ten arms, mounted on her lion in the form of Kathyayini Mahishasuramardhini Durga. On her two sides are Laxmi, Saraswathi, Kartik and Ganesh.

A Tiwari family from Azamgarh was appointed by the royal family for daily worship of the deity. In 1946, the descendants of that family came to Calcutta and were re-appointed, where they still serve the Goddess continuously. Current presiding deity here in Dhakeshwari Temple is the replica of original idol. It was severely damaged during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, and over half of the temple's buildings were destroyed. The main worship hall was taken over by the Pakistan Army and used as an ammunitions storage area.

In 1996, Dhakeshwari Temple was renamed Dhakeshwari Jatiya Mandir (National Temple) reflecting its position as the centre of Hindu culture and worship in Bangladesh. This was the culmination of a major campaign by Bangladeshi Hindu groups who had been demanding official recognition for the primary Hindu place of worship following the declaration of Islam as the state religion in 1988. As a result, the flag of Bangladesh is hoisted every morning outside the main temple premises, and it follows the National Flag Code rules such as rendering half-mast on nationally declared days of mourning.

As is the practice in other leading religious places of worship in Bangladesh, day-long prayers are common practice during important national holidays such as Independence Day, Language Martyrs' Day, Victory Day and birth and death anniversaries of former leaders such as Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Ziaur Rahman. Historically, several of the temple custodians were tortured and killed by the Army though most, including the Head Priest, fled to their ancestral villages then to India and therefore escaped death.

A significant portion of the temple land has been lost due to the Vested Property Act and confiscation by the Bangladesh Government, and the current premises are considerably lower than the historic reach of the property. Muslim mobs have attacked the temple complex many times, with the last major attack taking place in December 1992 (likely in retaliation for the destruction of the Babri Masjid in India). Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi prayed at the temple during his official visit to Bangladesh on 7 June 2015. He was given a model of the goddess Dhakeshwari by the temple authorities.

There are different theories regarding the origin of the name Dhaka. One is that the name came following the establishment of the Dhakeshwari Goddess temple by Raja Ballal Sea in the 12^th century. Another comes from the Rajatarangini text, written by a Kashmiri Brahman named Kalhana. It says the region was originally known as Dhaka. The word Dhaka means watchtower. Bikrampur and Sonargaon — the earlier strongholds of Bengal rulers were situated nearby. So, Dhaka was likely used as the watchtower for their fortifications.