Chouddo Devotar Mandir, Kailashahar, Tripura India

The ‘Chouddo Devotar Mandir’ or 14 deities’ temple is situated at a distance of about 14 km from the city of Agartala. The temple is dedicated to Ama or the mother of the people of Tripura, also known as Tripuri. According to legends, Maharaja Manikya dreamt that an idol of Tripura Sundari should be installed by means of shifting the idol from where he found it. The temple is situated on a tortoise-shaped small convex hill and has entrances from the north and the west. The roof of the temple consists of four slanting ‘Chhaar Chaalas’ that holds a lotus-shaped structure in the middle and looks like a modified Buddhist stupa. Lake Kalyansagar lies on the eastern side of the temple. A popular festival called Kharchi festival is celebrated at this temple compound. On this occasion, the temple is visited by thousands of devotees, who pay homage to the deity. The temple is inclusive of several ancient paintings, shlokas and stone inscriptions. The main idol of the temple is made of touch stone and is of a height of more than a metre. The idol belongs to the period of 10th or 12th century and is installed on a stone altar. The Goddess has an oval face and her two forelimbs are in a gesture of a Devi. There is also a crown on her matted hair and a garland of severed heads. The temple also has another idol that is known as the Chandi or Chotto Ma. An image of Lord Vishnu is enshrines this temple in the form of a black geode. Only in this place, the worshipping of Devi Shakti and Vishnu is found, which conjoins the Shakta and the Vaishnav culture. In the earlier days, it was considered to be one of the ‘peethas’ and was accessible by boat, foot, elephant or palanquin.