Gopinath Temple, Ningthoukhong – Legends & History

Gopinath Temple, Ningthoukhong – Legends & History

As per local folklore, Bhagya Chandra, the King of Manipur who ruled in 1759, the Hindu god Krishna appeared to him in a dream and directed him to carve images of Krishna from a particular jackfruit tree in Kaina. In 1765, Bhagya Chandra was defeated by King Alaungpaya of Konbaung Burma (now Myanmar), and as a result he escaped to Cachar in Assam and took asylum with King Swagadeva Rajeshwer Singh of Tekhau. However, Chandra's uncle, who had plotted with the Burmese king to oust him from Manipur, complained to Rajeshwer Singh that Chandra was an impostor.

The Assamese king became suspicious and ordered that Chandra should fight a rogue elephant to prove his bravery and innocence. As King Chandra was a highly religious person, dedicated to the worship of Krishna, he appealed for help. Acceding to Chandra's prayers, Krishna appeared to him in a vision the night before the fight with the elephant. He told the king to face the elephant in front of a jackfruit tree in which he would be present, holding a rosary of Tulsi. Krishna commanded that after the fight he should carve images of Krishna out of that particular jackfruit tree, and to deify and worship them in temples built for the purpose.

The next day when the encounter took place in front of the jackfruit tree in Kaina, the wild elephant, instead of attacking Bhagya Chandra, bowed before him with reverence. After this, the king of Assam decided to help Bhagya Chandra. With his help, Chandra led an army to Manipur and won back his kingdom. Once back home, Chandra forgot about his promise made to Krishna. One day Krishna appeared in the garb of a boy before a woman at Kaina and asked her to give him food. He told her about the commitment made to him by King Chandra. The boy then disappeared.

When this incident was conveyed to the King, he realized his lapse and immediately came to Kaina to find the jackfruit tree to make the images of Krishna. However, with the first strike of an axe the tree started bleeding, forcing him to stop cutting. He appeased the tree by offering worship, following which he uprooted the tree without trouble and had it carried away to make the images. In another version it is said that in 1778, after the tree was cut it was moved along the Iril River but after a short distance of travel the tree got bogged down in water; this place is known as Urup.

Even with the help of elephants it could not be pulled out of water. Then the king himself started helping people in pulling it when it surfaced out of water. Then an aarti was performed in reverence of Govindaji; this place is known as Arapti. The tree along with its roots, was dried and the images were carved. The wood carving was done by Sapam Laxman under the guidance of Wanghei Pandit Angom Gopiram, the Pacha Hanchapa. Lakshman took three years to carve the images. In all, seven images were carved from the tree.

The first image of Krishna was installed at the  Govindaji Temple in the palace at Imphal. The second image was consecrated at Bihaynath Govinda temple at Sagalband; the third image was installed at the Gopinath Temple at Ningthoukmbam; the fourth at Nityananda Temple at Khwai Lamabam Leikai in Imphal; and the fifth at Madanmohan at Oinam Thingel, Imphal. The sixth image was fixed at Anuprabhu at Nabadwip at Nadia of West Bengal. The seventh image, carved from the roots of the tree, was installed at Lamangdong and came to be known as Advaita Prabhu or Lamangdong Advaita.

The first image made by Lakshman, which was installed at the Govindaji Temple in Imphal, is 1.2 metres (3 ft 11 in) tall. The carving of the image was started on Friday the 12th of Hiyaang-gei (November as per Meitei calendar) 1776 and the completely carved image was inaugurated three years later on Friday the 11th of Hiyaang-gei 1779. When the first temple was built at Imphal, Krishna again appeared to the king and in a vision revealed his mystic Ras dance.

Then the king, who himself was a poet and connoisseur of the arts, directed Guru Swarup Anand to seek the collaboration of all the famous exponents of dance in Manipur and adapt the Jagai-Nin-Thaag Purang to the Ras Lila of Lord Krishna. The original location of the jackfruit tree has been declared an historical archaeological site by the Archaeological Department of Manipur.

When the King Bhagya Chandra came to Ningthoukhong during his war journey, he met a tribal woman named Keshori. The king married to Keshori. They had a son and later the idol was taken under the care of his son, Prince Puraraj. The idol was initially worshipped at Konung Leikai, Kwasiphai and later it was brought to Ningthoukhong where it is worshipped currently. It is believed that the current temple was established in the year 1905 by the Maharaja of Manipur.