Home to human civilisation since at least the 2nd century BCE, as is evident from the wonderful carvings found in the rock-cut, monastic caves of Khandagiri and Udayagiri nearby, Bhubaneswar is the cultural, industrial and religious hub of the Indian state of Orissa.

Also known as the 'temple city', Bhubaneswar is central to the sites of some of India's best-renowned Jainist and Hindu edifices, including the Jagannath Temple and the Konark Sun Temple. The Lingaraj Temple of Shiva also lies close by, the city’s largest, dating from the 11th century. It is surrounded by more than a hundred smaller shrines and stands to the south of the holy Bindusagar Lake, once the hub of a group of several thousand temples, though the remains of only a few of them are still visible.

Once a year, on the night of the first Spring new moon, the statue of Shiva is carried to the lake and bathed in the waters, in which the sacred properties of all India’s holy rivers and lakes are believed to be combined.

Written by  larapiegeler.

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