Ekteswar Temple

Ekteswar Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva, is located at Ekteswar, Bankura district, in West Bengal.^[5][6]

Ekteswar Temple
Religion
Affiliation	Hinduism
District	Bankura
Deity	Shiva (Ekapada)[1]
Festivals	Maha Shivaratri[2] Gajan[3] Charak Puja
Location
Location	Ekteswar
State	West Bengal
Country	India
Location in India Show map of India Ekteswar Temple (West Bengal) Show map of West Bengal
Geographic coordinates	23°12′36″N 87°05′02″E
Architecture
Type	Temple
Style	Rekha deul
Founder	Raghunath Malla
Date established	1626; 399 years ago (1626)
Height (max)	45ft[4]

About

The Ekteswar Temple is laying on the bank of Dwarakeswar River, which is 10 kilometers away from Bankura town.^[7][8] It is dedicated to Lord Shiva, particularly associated with the deity's form known as Ekapada Murthy.^[1]

History

Ekteswar temple in 1872

There is also a legend that in the past, when a dispute arose over the boundary between Mallabhum and Samantabhum, Lord Mahadev himself resolved the issue.^[4] However, according to another popular legend, Lord Shiva himself meditated to resolve this boundary dispute between the two kingdoms. At the junction of the two borders, as a symbol of unity, King Raghunath Malla of Mallabhum built the Ekteswar Shiva Temple and initiated the celebration of Ekteswar's Gajan festival.^[9] According to Acharya Jogeshchandra Roy bidyanidhi, "The Vedas mention 'Eka Padeshwar,' which over time has transformed into the name 'Ekteswar.' In the Ekteswar Temple, Lord Shiva is worshiped as 'Ekapada Murti' (one-legged deity). Such a form of Shiva is not found anywhere else, making it extremely rare."^[10]