12th Jagatsinghpur Heritage Walk Explores Ancient Somnath Temple at Somnath Hat
Balasore,January 4 (Krushna Kumar Mohanty) The 12th edition of the Jagatsinghpur Heritage Walk was successfully organised on Sunday at Somnath Hat, drawing heritage lovers to the historic Muchukunda Somnath Temple.
The walk offered participants a close look at a site that reflects a rare confluence of Maratha-period architecture and much older Somvanshi-era remnants.
Standing about 30 feet tall, the temple is built in stone-carved Pidha style. While the main structure is believed to date back to the post-Mughal Maratha rule, experts participating in the walk observed that several idols housed within the temple are far older. The idols of Lord Ganesha, Kartikeya and Goddess Parvati, marked by distinct crown designs and strong Shaiva symbolism, are attributed to the Somvanshi dynasty.
The temple also preserves a rare Uma-Maheshwar idol and a fragmented statue of Lord Vishnu.
The site is closely linked with local legend associated with Muchukunda Goswami, a devotee from Gujarat.
According to historical references, he was a contemporary of saints Baranga and Bauli, as mentioned in Achyutananda Das’s Shunya Samhita. Legend holds that while Muchukunda was travelling towards the Sarala shrine, the Shiva Linga became “Patala-Gami” (fixed deep into the earth) on the banks of the Alaka River, leading to the establishment of the present pitha.
The heritage walk was conducted under the guidance of advisor Prabhanshu Samantaray and coordinator Shrikant Singh. Around 25 participants from Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Puri and Jagatsinghpur took part in the event. The organisers acknowledged the contribution of Biswa Ranjan Dehury and Utkal Mohanty, Basanta Manjari Das, Manjulata Raut, Bhagaban Dash and Shashanka Panda, Trilochan Swain, Sambit Singh, Debasish Patra and Dinesh Swain, Ratiranjan Panda, Bikash Chandra Swain, Rajesh Pradhan, Sourav Singh and Hrudananda Behera for ensuring the smooth conduct of the programme.
At present, the Muchukunda Somnath Temple continues to be a major spiritual centre of the region, attracting thousands of devotees during Makar Mela, Shivaratri and Sankranti festivals.
