Sacred Jackfruit Tree, Kaina –
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.
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