01Older than Calcutta
When Shankar Ghosh built this small shrine in 1703, Calcutta was three villages and an English factory. The murti of Siddheshwari is of clay, renewed by tradition, and is worshipped in the Tantric way. Thanthania was then a patch of jungle where, the old residents say, the clang of the temple bell, than-than, gave the place its name. The present building is a modest atchala with a flat-roofed natmandir, squeezed between the houses and bookshops of north Kolkata.
02Sri Ramakrishna’s visits
Sri Ramakrishna knew the temple from his days in Kolkata before Dakshineswar, and the Kathamrita records his love for it; he once offered the Devi green coconut and sweets here, praying for the recovery of Keshab Chandra Sen. On Kali Puja, Kaushiki Amavasya and Phalaharini Amavasya the lane fills, and students of the nearby colleges stop to bow on their way to examinations.
The life of this place
- 1703Shankar Ghosh founds the Siddheshwari temple at Thanthania.
On Bidhan Sarani near College Street, a short walk from Girish Park and Central metro stations.
