01Ani Nath Shahdeo’s vow
Ani Nath Shahdeo, thakur of Barkagarh in the Nagvanshi lands, went on pilgrimage to Puri, and on his return built a temple of Jagannath on a hill near his seat, finishing it in 1691. The temple was made in the Kalinga style, smaller than Puri, with the same three deities. He settled families of many communities on the temple lands, each with a duty in the worship, so that Oraon and Munda families as well as Brahmins have their place in the seva. Part of the temple fell in 1990, and it was rebuilt and reconsecrated in 1992.
02Rath Yatra on the plateau
On the second of the bright half of Ashadh, the same day as Puri, the deities come down the hill on a wooden chariot and are drawn to the mausi bari, the aunt’s house, about half a kilometre away. A mela of nearly two weeks grows up around the route, with handicrafts, iron tools and drums from the villages of the plateau.
The life of this place
- 1691Ani Nath Shahdeo completes the Jagannath temple at Jagannathpur.
- 1990Part of the old temple collapses.
- 1992The rebuilt temple is consecrated.
At Jagannathpur, about 10 km south of central Ranchi near Dhurwa; steps and a road lead up the hill.
