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The Vaital Deul Temple is situated near the Bindu Sagar lake. This 8th century AD temple is devoted to Goddess Parvati — Chamunda or Shakti or Kali . The goddess is placed in the main sanctum of the temple. She is seated on a corpse which is usually hidden by her robes. The deity is adorned with a garland of skulls around her neck; she holds a snake, a bow, a shield, a trident, a thunderbolt and an arrow. She is flanked by a jackal and an owl, which displays the most terrifying look of Goddess Kali . It was the first temple to have erotic sculptures on its walls. The unique feature of this temple is that the interiors are embellished but the outer walls are plain. |
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The 64 Yogini Temple shrine at Hirapur was built during Bhauma and Somavamsi rulers of Orissa. Located 15 kms from Bhubaneswar , this is one of the four Yogini temples of India . The temple is constructed in a circular structure, with 30 feets in diameter. It is built of coarse sandstone and the 8 feet high wall contains 64 niches to house the two-feet tall sculptures of Yoginis or Dakinis, carved from black chlorite. These goddesses serve Goddess Kali ( Bhairavi ). The Yogini cult is an offshoot of tantric practices in India (9th-13th century). |
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The Rama Mandir (temple), on the Janpath, is centrally located. In this temple, Lord Sri Rama , Goddess Sita , Lord Lakhman , Lord Hanuman , Lord Ridhi-Shidhi-Binayak , Maa Durga , Maa Santoshi , Lord Mahadev and many other deities are worshiped. This is a must visit for the visitors. It is about 1.5 kms from the railway station and 5-6 kms from the airport.
And, that's not all. Once you move out of the city of Bhubaneswar and proceed towards Puri and Konark, you get more reasons to fall in love with the artistic and architectural wonder that Orissa is. Puri is the abode of Lord Jagannath , an avatar (incarnation) of Lord Vishnu , according to hindu mythology. The Jagannath Temple in Puri is not only a holy place of worship for the hindus but also an architectural treasure house to reckon with. And, at Konark, stands the Sun Temple , inarguably the best that Orissa's art and architecture has offered. |