Jaina Antiquities in Koraput District (Introduction)

The district of Koraput derives its name from its headquarters the present town of Koraput. As far as the history of the district is concerned, the region of Koraput existed since the 3^rd century BCE. The region was ruled by several dynasties like Satavahans, Ikshvakus, Nalas, Ganga kings, kings of Suryavanshi [Suryavamsha] and finally the Koraput became a district in the year 1936 CE. The Nalas were ruling over this tract, Pushkari near modern Umarkot was the capital city. In the medieval period Nandapur developed as the capital under the Silavamsi kings and sometimes under the kings of the Solar dynasty. Vikram Dev of the Solar dynasty shifted his headquarters to Jeypore about the middle of the 17^th century CE and this town prospered as the capital. Koraput was chosen by the British in the 1870 CE for better health prospects^[1].

The district Koraput is located at Lat.18.82⁰ N: Long. 82.72⁰ E. It has an average elevation of 870m. The district covers an area of 8379 sq.km consisting of evergreen to deciduous vegetation endowed with various wild plants as a natural resource. Some major rivers pass through the district are Machhakunda, Bansadhara, Kolab; waterfalls like Duduma, Bagra, Khandahati and large mountain like Deomali and Chandragiri etc. The district is bounded by Rayagada in the east, Bastar district of Chhatisgarh in the west and Nabarangpur district in the south^[2].

Koraput district swarming with scenic beauty in the form of forests, waterfalls, terraced valleys, darting springs and with the nature loving people has an important place in the religious history of Odisha. Some of the important historical places in the district are Gupteswar temple, Jeypore, Sabara Srikshetra, Koraput Museum, Duduma waterfall, Kolab dam, Daman jodi, Jaina temples at Subei, Maliguda etc. Koraput is mostly famous for its Jagannatha temple which is also known as Sabara Srikhetra and Siva temple Gupteswara^[3]. Besides the Vaishnavite and Saivite monuments, Koraput is also famous for the Jaina antiquarian remains found in the shape of sculptures as well as temples.

The district is rich in Jaina heritage. Some of the Jaina sculptures are under worship in Hindu temples or fixed in to the temple walls, some of them are in private collection, where as some images are lying scattered and uncared. Odisha State Museum, Bhubaneswar and District Museum Jeypore have got noteworthy collection of sculptures. State Archaeology Department has constructed one sculpture shed for Jaina images in Jamunda. There are references of Jaina temples/ruins of temp les at Subei, Kachela, Bhairava Singhpur, Jeypore and Nandapur in Koraput district. But temples are available at Subei only, while at other places the temples might be destroyed or demolished. Besides, other prominent centers of Jaina relics in this area are Nandapur, Chatua, Boriguma, Korapata, Charmula, Narigaon, Kamta, Mali Nuagaon, Devata Gajar, Katharaguda, Pankhaguda and Palba^[4]. The District Museum of Jeypore also preserves a good number of Jaina images collected from the surrounding region. Jainism flourished in this area as it was ruled by eastern Gangas, the Somavamsis and the Telgu Chodas, who were forbearing towards the Jainism.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

N. Senapati and N.K. Sahu, Orissa District Gazetteers, Koraput, Cuttack, 1966, pp.1-38.

[2]:

Web supplement: www.ordistricts.nic.in, visited on 29/03/2014,8.05pm

[3]:

Ibid.

[4]:

J.K. Patnaik and S.K. Kar, “Jaina Heritage of Koraput”, in G. Mohanty and et al. (ed.), Cultural Heritage of Odisha, Koraput District, Bhubaneswar, 2008, p.164.