PUJA SPECIAL - DESTINATION : The Ganga

PUJA SPECIAL –  River Cruise Tour :

By Partha Pratim Majumder

Destination : The Ganga

One River Cruise Out Of The Two

“Experience Bengal”’s Durga Puja  : A Rivercruise Way

The caption this year floated by Deptt. of Tourism, Govt. of West Bengal & West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation Ltd. (WBTDCL) was “EXPERIENCE BENGAL - THE SWEETEST PART OF INDIA”.

Way To Jetty

There is hardly any doubt asto mere words can not describe what Puja means to Bengal and the Bengalees. It is perhaps the convergence of all quintessential components of life like :

         ·            Emotions

         ·            Culture

         ·            The cult of Goddess

         ·            The warmth of being together

         ·            The joy of celebrations

         ·            The pride of artistic expression  in search of variety and uniqueness and

         ·            Finally the love of life  

Therefore, Durga Puja is much more by several notches than just worship …… that’s why be it  Kolkata or the whole of West Bengal, so many thousands of pandals with amazing idols, glitz of illumination and loud beating  of drums (Dhaaker Awaaz) greet so many millions of puja revelers in new dress and shoes, who joyfully roar to  say -  “Been there – Seen that”.

With this tradition of a typical  carnival time, a slice monotony looms large in our mind to question – “Can’t we think beyond and celebrate in an innovative way? Can’t we go back to the soulful river or Maa Ganga  for  few hours ?

Yes, we can – thankfully by holding the hands of West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation Ltd. (WBTDCL). 

It has been organizing several “Puja Special Package Tours” every year since long – out of the lot, one model i.e “River Cruise Tours” stands out of the crowd.

This cruise tour is made for a crowd that loves to be somewhere  far from the madding crowd ........ more in the aura of slow pace of life that believes things to be enjoyed with its subtlety and simplicity like the riverside buildings ....... standing aloft for so long 

WBTDCL  realizes this towards implementation 

River Cruise Tours : 

Every year, subject to date finalization, such tours take place on :

ü  Mahalaya Day for Tarpan – Morning Trip

ü  Shubha Saptami / Shubha Astami / Shubha Navami - Morning Trip & Evening Trip

ü  Shubha Bijoya Dashami – Immersion Trip

Baul Song 

Experience Bengal - A Lifetime Experience :

M.V Sarbamangala - Upperdeck 

         ·            On 22^nd October (Shubha Navami), I, as a first timer,  was on board with more than 100 tourists in its evening trip (6pm to 9pm) from New Babughat Jetty to Belur Math and back

         ·            A special gate @ New Babughat Jetty was set up to welcome the tourist traffic carrying tickets (either online or offline). Once checked by WBTDC Officials, you are given a Souvenir Bag with several booklets on tourism in WB and a token gift

         ·            There were two large and well illuminated vessels bound together (M.V.Sarvajaya & M.V.Sarbamangala) , hosting the event of cruising along the river while enjoying the rituals of exclusive Durgapuja on board with memorable musical soiree and an exotic Bengali cuisine to satisfy the tourists’ taste-buds

         ·            On entering the abode of Goddess on the riverbed, we all had the first but divine eye contact with “Maa Durga” , the idol in traditional attire  with her family in the lower deck of the 1^st vessel . The priest  and dhaki  were found to be attached and busy in rituals

Maa Durga @ The Vessel 

         ·            The musical function was  arranged on the upper deck of the 2^nd vessel, whereas the audience was found sitting having catering arrangement made on the upper deck of both the vessels

         ·            Just at 6pm, both the vessels tied together  started its journey amidst chanting of mantra and sound of drums (Dhaker Bajna). While leaving the jetty and listening to the Baul songs of  Birbhum ,  the crowd had the first sip of its fruit juice as “Welcome Drink”, accompanied a fistful of  starter items. Tea followed closely.

Ms.Moumita, The Anchor 

         ·            Ms. Moumita of “Akaash Aaath (8)” appeared as anchor and welcomed all the guests heartily , recited couple of Bengali poetry and then introduced Ms. Bandita Sarkar with her orchestra for an entertaining performance touching all taste points from Agamani to Rabindra Sangeet to Old Bengali Melodies to Hindi Foot Tapping Numbers of old & present time

         ·            Suddenly Moumita and all others spotted Mr. Arindam Ganguly, the famous iconic  singer cum “Shreeman Hansaraaj” famed actor  of Bengali Film Industry in the audience. He was present with Ms. Kheali Dastidar Ganguly , his wife and a team of his friends to enjoy the evening.

         ·            He, on a request for rendition of a few liner song of his choice, charted out one of the ever favourite Bengali folk song on “Ganga river” , originally sung by Late Nirmalendu Chowdhury, (the maestro of folk music of Bengal) in the film named “Ganga” in sixties , directed by Late Rajen Tarafdar

 

Mr. Arindam Ganguly 

         ·            It (“Ammai dubaili re amaai bhasaili re”) was a superb rendition without any accompaniment and through the use of a highly prepared voice quality , practiced  from his childhood, (when he was Master Arindam). His rendition on the river and remembering the river was truly an out of the world experience . Arindam mesmerized all to take the atmosphere to a different level

         ·            Thank you Arindam for showing your rare virtue of not having ego , which all of us must look at and follow. It was a sudden return gift from the guests  to WBTDCL for such awesome journey, arranged by them  

         ·            Our cruise navigated through the darkness gently in between the two lighted borders of the river …. crossed Howrah Bridge underneath … Nimtalla Ghat … Shova Bazar Ghat …. Kashipur Ghat… and finally close to Belur Math Ghat at about 7pm , when we could hear the chanting of devotional songs during “ Sandhyarati” going on

Howrah Bridge at night

         ·            Now, on the way back………. We touched upon all the timeless points of Ganga and its  riverside civilization. The river has been seeing celebration of life called “Durgotsav or Sarodotsov” for centuries as silent observer and finally the close down by the event “Immersion”

         ·            At about 8.30pm, we were served Dinner , having the following items on the menucard :

o    Salad

o    Rice & Luchi

o    Daal

o    Veg. Curry

o    Chicken Curry

o    Bhetki Paturi

o    Chaatney

o    Papad

o    Sweet Dish – Sandesh, Rossogolla,Gulabjamun and Icecream

o    Paan & Paan Masala

         ·            At 9pm, you are back to the point of commencement of the journey i.e New Babughat Jetty for departure to own destination

Upper Deck - It's light everywhere 

2016 booking : Where , How and When ?

Booking Office : Tourist Centre, 3/2, B.B.D Bag (E), Kolkata-7000 01 (P) 033-2248-8271 /2243-6440 (F) 2248-5168

• Online Booking & other information : www.wbtdc.gov.in/www.wbtourism.gov.in
• Email : tourismcentrekolkata@gmail.com

• Pocket Pinch : As per price fixed before booking is open next year / This year it was @ Rs.1300/- for the morning tour and Rs.1500/- for the evening tour
• Contact Person heading this program : G.M (Operations)

Belur Math at night from the vessel 

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Tuki – “TAKI Tour”

TAKI

By Partha Pratim Majumder

Boatride on Ichhamoti River

TAKI , North 24 PGs. ,West Bengal : A Great Weekend Trip

In Kolkata or any part of West Bengal, you need to have a restful  and relaxed weekend (Saturday & Sunday) at the end of daily rigour or grind for many months or years, You may zero in on a common weekend tour destination like Digha or Bolpur to  boringly say -  “Been there – Done that” .

But, in stead , you may opt for a soulful river plate as your next tour destination for rest, relaxation, river cruise and get serenity with fresh breeze of a river inside for complete rejuvenation. Then, you return to your normal life after recharging your battery of life. 

View from Amrapali Guest House 

Taki is your best bet in this category as you have a divine connect of “Ichhamoti Nodi”  or “Ichhamoti River”, flowing gently but diligently for centuries as a common water bed between two member countries  of U.N.O – India & Bangladesh.

Riverside Park

Unique part of observation is this that in the widespread river, both run their boats with individual flags in the air , but for a common purpose – fishing.

Where To Stay :

Taki is still alien to  the so called “Hotel Culture” unlike other tourist destinations because of its serene atmosphere. Therefore, a few Guest Houses as under are visible by the riverside to take rest and have view from your balcony :-

1.     Suhasini Guest House (www.suhasiniguesthouse.com) – (03217-234108/322212)/9330826779

2.     Bidhan Saikat Guest House (Taki Municipality/ Sabyasachi Bose) (M) 93337-57003

3.     Amrapali Guest House (Contact Person – Sayan Paul) (P) 03217-234471

4.     Check – In & Check Out Time – 10am
5.   Pocket Pinch - Room Tariff @ Rs. 800 to Rs.1200/-  Per Day (Non A.C/A.C)
6.   Food (Breakfast / Lunch /Dinner) - Tasty dishes available at "Kichhukkhan Restaurant" C/o, Suhasini Guest House - Fish Meal (Rs.100-Rs.150) / Chicken Meal (Rs.100) / Breakfast with Tea  - Rs.35/- per head 

Children's Park - Riverside Road

Location : How to Go ? 

• 2hrs. by Hasnabad Local train from Sealdah Rly. Stn. and 3 hrs. journey by car  from Kolkata
• Train almost every hour
• Few train timings (to & fro) are as under :

            From Sealdah To Taki - 07.47hrs / 08.20hrs/ 09.18hrs/ 11,45hrs.

            From Taki Stn.  To Sealdah Stn.  – 10.58hrs. /11.37hrs./11.57hrs./13.44hrs/14.58hrs.

Inspection Bunglow

The Tourists’ Activity Area : What To Do ?

Any traveller has the expectations  and activity as under :

·         A cool morning walk by the riverside under the rising sun and in the cool clean breeze

·         Rest of mind and body for meditation  or sitting for hours while looking at the river

·         Prime focus will be in resting one’s body and mind towards rejuvenation and self realization

·    Tour of the local hotspots like Machhranga Island,Golpatar Jungle by Van Rickshaw and so on apart from enjoying boat ride

·         Taking children, if you have with you, to a A-1 Children’s Park by the side of the river   

TAKI - Brief History  :

• Taki is found in the very old records as a very prosperous village under direct control of “Zamindar (Landlord)” during the Moghul rule , particularly during the rule of Emperor Jehangir
• Subsequently, the family of landlord Roy Chowdhury had started staying over there with his menials and people

Blog writer in front of Suhasini Guest House

• During the period marked by the upheaval of Raja Rammohan Roy, the then landlord Kalinath Munshi had been his an ardent and close associate
• Taki Academy, the first school had been established by him in 1832 and a connecting road (46km) between Taki and Barasat had been built by him
• In 1869, Taki Municipality had been established over a population of 5261 persons
• Just opposite to Taki, Sripur (under erstwhile Satkheera now Khulna district) stands at the other side of the river in Bangladesh. Dr. B.C.Roy, the first Chief Minister of West Bengal had his mater uncle’s house at Sripur , for which he used to visit Taki several times for the boat ride

		Ichhamoti River - Natural View River Jetty - Boats waiting ----000----

TARAPITH : The Abode of Maa Tara

By Partha Pratim Majumder

Tarapith - Temple Complex

Tarapith , Birbhum, West Bengal : Brief Story

This is one of the few places of India  , meant more as a pilgrimage than a simple tour, marked to  categorize as “Been there – Done that” .

No, here you are for a divine connect while meeting “Maa Janani” at her home for a spiritual realization.

This is the place , where decades and centuries have been witnessing with deep reverence - the aroma of spiritualism of  a “Siddhapitha” , that conjures up the historical names alike – Maharishi Vashistha to Sadhak Vamaksepa in their search of divinity.

Location : About 265 miles from Kolkata, Tarapith is situated on the northern bank of the flowing Dwarka river, in Birbhum, in West Bengal. A seat of tantra studies, this is yet another holy shrine devoted to the worship of the female principle of creation, or Shakti. Tarapith is where Vasistha, the son of Brahma, the creator among the Hindu trinity is believed to have first attained his spiritual salvation.

Mother's feet 

Background : As the legend goes, Vasistha, after repeated failure in his attempts to acquire salvation, went away to China, mastered it there, and brought it back to Tarapith. A very similar form of this quasi Buddhist asceticism is still practiced here, which involves austerities and meditation, leading to a final communion with God. The temple that was built by Vasistha got buried under the earth with the passage of time.

Foundation :Tarapith as it stands today, was built by Joybroto, a merchant, who received directions from Tara Maa in his sleep to unearth the 'brahmashila', or the sacred stone, to set it up as a shrine in a proper place. Tara Maa of Tarapith, another form of Kali, has two hands, is garlanded with snakes, is adorned in sacred threads, and has Shiva lying in her left lap sucking her breast.

The Pilgrims’ Paradise:

Any traveller as a pilgrim would look for  the expectation from his/her tour as under :

·         Prime focus on divine aspirations to have a tete’-a-tete’ connect with Goddess Tara at the temple   for prayer and rituals as per the notch ability

·         Tour of the locality including green paddy fields around to the sites of tantric culture

·         Rest of mind and body for few hours of meditation  

Historical anecdotes :

·         Tarapith is a small temple town near Rampurhat in Birbhum district ,  West Bengal, known for its Tantric temple and its adjoining cremation grounds where Tantric rites are performed.

·         The Tantric Hindu temple is dedicated to goddess Tara, a fearsome Tantric aspect of the Hindu Divine Mother the chief temples of the Goddess-oriented Shakta sect of Hinduism.

·         

         Tarapith derives its name from its association as the most important centre of Tara worship and her cult.

·         

      Tarapith is also famous for Bamakhepa known as the 'mad saint', who worshipped in the temple and resided in the cremation grounds as a mendicant and practised and perfected Yoga and the Tantric art under the tutelage of another famous saint known as the Kailashpathi Baba.

·         

    Bama Khepa dedicated his entire life to the worship of mother Tara. His ashram is also located close to the temple.

Tarapith temple : Legend and importance

¦  The Tara temple in Tarapith steeped in the narrated myths is a medium sized temple in the rural precincts of Bengal. Its fame as a pilgrimage centre with the deity of Tara enshrined in it is due to "the temple’s founding myths, its type of worship (which includes blood offerings), the hymns sung there, the powers of the nearby tank, and the inhabitants and rituals of the adjacent cremation ground".

¦  The temple base is thick with thick walls, built of red brick. The superstructure has covered passages with many arches raising to the pinnacle with a spire (shikara). The image of the deity is enshrined under the eaves in the sanctum. There are two Tara images in the sanctum. The stone image of Tara depicted as a mother suckling Shiva – the "primordial image" (seen in the inset of the fierce form of the image of Tara) is camouflaged by a three feet metal image, that the devotee normally seen.

Main Temple

¦  It represents Tara in her fiery form with four arms, wearing a garland of skulls and a protruding tongue. Crowned with a silver crown and with flowing hair, the outer image wrapped in a sari and decked in marigold garlands with a silver umbrella over its head. The forehead of the metal image is adorned with red kumkum (vermilion). Priests take a speck of this kumkum and apply it on the foreheads of the devotees as a mark of Tara's blessings. The devotees offer coconuts, bananas and silk saris, and unusually bottles of whisky.The primordial image of Tara has been described as a "dramatic Hindu image of Tara’s gentler aspect".

¦  The priests of the temple offer puja (worship) with great reverence to bring out her motherly aspect to the devotees, blending the North Indian fierce depiction of the Sati myth of the goddess with the peaceful motherly visionary form of Tara seen by Buddha and his disciple Vasishtha of the Tantric tradition – the Buddhist Tara form. At Tarapith, though the softer motherly aspect of the fierce goddess is emphasized. Chanting hymns or poems in her praise is also a part of the devotional appeal made to the goddess.

¦  The devotees take a holy bath at the sacred tank adjacent to the temple before entering the temple premises to offer worship and even after the worship. The waters of the tank are said to have healing powers and even restore life to the dead.

¦  Blood sacrifice of goats is the daily norm in the temple. Devotees who offer such goat sacrifices seek blessings from the deity. They bathe the goats in the holy tank near the temple before the sacrifice. They also purify themselves by taking bath in the holy tank before offering worship to the deity. The goat is then tethered to a stake, the designated post in a sand pit, and the neck of the goat butchered with a single stroke by a special sword. A small quantity of the blood of the goat is then collected in a vessel and offered to the deity in the temple. The devotees also smear their forehead with a bit of blood from the pit, as a mark of reverence to the deity.

Sadhak Bamakhepa 

The saga of Tarapith and Sadhak Bamakhepa :

v  Bamakhepa, more than any other teacher, could best be characterized as a "mad saint". Throughout his life , he was continually found violating the normal rules of society and religious practice. v  He was born in 1837, in the village of Atla near Tarapura (or Tarapith) in Birbhum, West Bengal, India. He was named Bamacara by his father, a religious man named Sarvananda Chatterji. He was the second son and had a sister who was later widowed. Because of his sister's religious zeal, she was called ksepsi, or madwoman v  As a child, Bama (or Vama in Hindi pronunciation) was subject to tantrums: when the Kali (goddess) image would not answer his prayers, he would roll on the ground screaming and crying. Thus, even as a child he was considered mad Bama, or Bama Khepa. v  He had little interest in studies, and the family was too poor to afford schooling for him. His father was a professional singer, and Bama would often sing songs with him. Bama's father was an ecstatic, falling into states of bhava (strong religious emotion) while he sang. While singing, he would sometimes forget who and where he was. Even when not performing, he spent so much time in bhava that his wife would beg him to pay some attention to his physical circumstances so they would not starve. v  Bama described his father as a yogi. When Bama would role on the ground shouting "Jaya Tara" (victory to the goddess Tara) his mother became upset, but his father only smiled. His father also took Bama for his first visit to the burning ground (a place sacred to the goddess Tara) at Tarapith.        The surrounding of Tarapith             v  Bama took initiation from his family guru and had his sacred thread ceremony when he was sixteen years of age. His father died soon afterwards and his mother asked him to get work, to keep the family from poverty. However, he was absent-minded, and indifferent towards work and found it difficult to keep a job. He spent much of his time at Tarapith, the great burning ground and shrine of the goddess Tara. He spent days and nights there singing before the goddess' image. v  In 1864, Brajabasi Kailaspati came to Tarapith as a monk (sannyasi) wearing sacred tulsi beads, and the red cloth of a renunciant. He violated traditional purity rules by eating with dogs and jackals. People thought him to be a powerful monk who practiced black magic (pisaca siddha). When Bama began to follow him and do as he did, the villagers began to refer to him as one without caste (he lost his Brahman priest status in their eyes and became an "outcaste"). v  Kailasapati was rumored to have brought a dead tulsi tree to life, walked on the flood-waters of the Dvaraka river, lived under water and flown in the sky. He was also said to have instructed ghosts and demons. Bama often saw ghosts and spirits assembled who would jump into trees and disappear into the dark when he was with his companion. Kailaspati explained that they had done meditation in this graveyard during their time on earth, but had died afraid and would come to him seeking advice. v  Bama's actions became upsetting to the villagers. He saw a boy on the road who claimed to be the Narayana deity of one of the nearby houses. The boy asked Bama to take him with him and give him a drink. Bama dipped the stone idol given him by the boy into the river. v  Then he went back to the village collecting all the roadside statues of deities and took them with him installing all of them on a sand altar at the river's edge. The villagers were furious that their statues had disappeared, including a deity that had been inside a house. Bama hid in a hut, and blamed it on Narayana (the boy-deity he had met). Kailaspati returned the statues to the villagers who watched their statues more carefully after that. At Tarapith  v  In a dream, Bama saw the goddess Tara who told him to set fire to the rice paddy near the village. He set the fire and saw himself as Hanuman setting fire to Lanka (from the Ramayana). The fire spread through the village, and the villagers spent much time trying to put it out. In the midst of the flames he saw the goddess Tara, and he danced in ecstasy before her. He told the villagers he would atone for the fire by jumping into it which he did shouting "Jaya Tara" (victory to Tara). They could not find his burnt body, but he was seen later running into Kailaspati's hut. They wondered if he was a ghost, or somehow alive, or had learned magic and used it to protect himself from the flames. Bama later said he felt Tara's hands lift him out of the fire and throw him into the forest. v  Bama's mother tried to have him locked up, as she thought him mad, but he escaped to Kailaspati. She feared Kailaspati and only watched from a distance. Bama called her "small mother" and the goddess Tara "big mother". v  Bama took initiation from Kailaspati and saw a great light condensed into the form of the Tara mantra, which was his personal mantra. He saw a demoness with long teeth and fiery eyes, and later the environment was transformed- the bushes turned into mythical divine figures, and he heard the voice of Tara, who told him she lived forever in the "salmoni" tree, and that she would be its fiery light. The tree shot forth flames and he saw a blue light which took on Tara's form. v  Wearing a Tiger's skin, she stood on a corpse with four arms, matted hair, three eyes, and a protruding tongue. She wore snake ornaments, and an erect snake on her head. She embraced him and vanished at dawn. Some accounts say that this experience was preceded by a vision of Kailaspati walking on water in the form of Bhairava. Bama also learned about religion from Vedagya Moksyananda, who taught him religious texts - the Vedas, Puranas, and Tantras.        Tarapith : At Present         v  Bama was subject to mood swings, alternating emotional love and exhilaration, with anger and hatred. He would curse the Goddess Tara and her ancestors, throw bones and skulls, and frighten away visitors. He would call Tara stri meaning earthy women or prostitute, and said that she was a demoness who had harmed him and that he would have his revenge by calling down a thunderbolt upon her. He would rage and then sink into a trance. v  Bama became a priest at Tara's temple at Tarapith, and his stay there was marked with confrontation. He roamed around the cremation grounds happily, making friends with the dogs, naming them, and sharing his food with them (very unacceptable actions for a Hindu). He would eat food to be offered to the goddess before the worship ceremony was finished thus making it impure and unsanctified. The caretakers of the temple were angry at this and beat him severely. He insisted that the goddess Tara asked him to take food in this way. After this, the temple owner, the Rani of Natore, had a dream : v  She dreamt that the stone image of Mother Tara was leaving the temple at Tarapith and going to Kailasa. Tara Ma looked very sad, and tears were flowing down her face, and she wore no mark on her forehead. She was bewildered and emaciated. Her back was bleeding and full of cuts, and vultures and jackals followed behind her, lapping the blood from her wounds. v  In fear, the Rani asked, "O Ma, why do you show me these terrible things, and why are you leaving us?" v  The goddess answered, "My child, I have been in this sacred place (mahapitha) for ages. Now your priests have beaten my dear mad son, and as a mother, I have taken these blows upon myself. See how my back is bleeding, I am in great pain ... For four days I have been starving, because they have not allowed my mad son to eat my ritual food. So for four days I have refused to take their offerings of food ... My child, how can a mother take food before feeding her child? You must arrange for food to be offered to my son, before it is offered to me, at the temple. If not, I will leave there permanently.        Ma Tara Residency  v  Bama got his priest job back, and people began to visit him, to come as devotees, or simply to see him. He performed worship after this, and a crowd gathered to see it. Bama did not follow the traditional rituals; he sat before the image and said laughingly, "So girl, you are having great fun, you will enjoy a great feast today. But you are just a piece of stone without life, how can you eat food?" He then ate all the food that was to be offered to the goddess and asked an assistant to sacrifice a goat - again without the traditional rites. He did not say any Sanskrit mantras, only a few in Bengali. He threw some leftover food to the image saying "there Ma, take that." v  He took a handful of flowers marked with sandal paste and stood before the goddess. He cursed her and threw the flowers at the statue. He wet the flowers with his tears. Although the flowers were thrown with an attitude of abuse instead of reverence using mantras, they arranged themselves into a neat and beautiful garland around the goddess' neck, and the observers were amazed at the mantraless form of worship of the madman. He then went into trance which continued all day, and he emerged from it on the following day. He was not a priest who followed schedules- often the time for worship would have passed and no one could find Bama anywhere. He would later be seen in trance under a Hibiscus tree, on in the jungle, having arguments with the goddess. v  Nilamadhava, a villager, wished to know if Bama was a saint, so he hired the prostitute Sundari to seduce Bama. On seeing her, Bama said, "Ma, you have come." He then began to suck her breast so vigorously that blood came out. In pain, Sundari began to shout, "Save me!" His devotees were shocked to see a prostitute there and told her to leave. He was harsh to disciples who did not appear sufficiently dedicated: One person came and asked for initiation, saying that he wanted to renounce the world. Bama told him to bathe in the river. When he returned, Bama gave him a kick and told him angrily to leave and never come back. Bama's disciples protested, and he told them that this man was still thinking of his business in Calcutta while taking his ritual bath. Tantra Sadhana & Advt. for Local Liquor : He also had unique curing techniques; these stories, too, were told by several Shakta informants: v  Westerners may find it difficult to understand Indian devotional traditions where devotion creates both powerful positive and negative emotions. However from the Indian standpoint, true surrender to the god means total involvement and dependence on him or her for everything. The acceptance of negative emotions in devotion along with the positive ones leads to a kind of obsession where the concentration on the god becomes almost yogic. This same intense concentration is cultivated by the yogic practitioner but without the strong emotional component that is normally part of the path of devotion.        Tarapith : a bird's eye view        v  The erratic behavior can be interpreted in two ways from a tantric standpoint. The second or "hero" stage of Tantra where one has passed beyond normal human desires strives to break free of the moral conventions of society by ritually performing the five forbidden actions. Such ritual action is normally highly controlled and disciplined involving concentrated use of mantra and visualization. However, the mad saint dispenses with the "ritual" performance, and chaotically violates society's norms in order to break free of the conventional nature of normal human awareness to encounter the divine reality. Such strange behavior also has the added advantage of scaring away unwanted attention from the curious which leaves much time for spiritual practice. Bamakhepa embodies the unorthodox (sometimes referred to as left-handed) path of Tantra in Bengal. It is a chaotic path that combines the extremes of passion, and the union of the opposites of hatred and devotion, sacred and sacrilegious, and life and death.

TARAPITH @ Present :  Few Observations

1. Riot of hotels and lodges around the shrine :   After 10km on the main road from Rampurhat Railway Station to Saithia amidst the green rural belt, this great shrine is found to be gheraoed by innumerable hotels and lodges for commercial gain, whereas civic amenities, hygiene and road conditions are too poor as far as its plan is concerned.

It seems that there is no municipal body to look after the social issues of the divine place.

2. Lack of infrastructure : A serviceable arterial road in the presence of more than 300 hotels, lodges and other establishments is so pathetic and poor that “misfit” is the right word to reckon with

3. Lack of tourist attraction & tourist guide : While the fact remains that the huge inbound tourist traffic has been a continuous reality over the years and decades, the district authority has no plan to make it a tourist destination with variety of options including trained guides  for the sake of retention of the tourists. It’s a big failure in reshaping it in the fitness of the things.

Sad road condition 

Ready Reckoner :

¦  When to go : Any day round the year. Normally , the tourist crowd swells on weekend, and Tuesday

¦  How to get there :   Several trains from Howrah and Sealdah Rly stn. Including daily Maa Tara Express (Departure from Sealdah at 07.25hrs.  / Arrival at Rampurhat Stn. at 12.25 hrs. and (Departure from Rampurhat Stn. at 14.05pm / Arrival at Sealdah at 19.00hrs)

¦  Where to stay ?

There are hundreds of hotels and lodges around. A list of  a few :-

SL NO.	NAME OF THE HOTEL	CONTACT NO.	WEBSITE / Email
1	Hotel Maa Tara Residency	9564304497/03461-253432
2	Hotel Sathi	9033848112	sathi.traders1980@gmail.com
3.	Raktajaba Lodge of Benfish	Gautam Roy (Ph. 0346-1253556)	http://www.benfish.info/raktajaba.php
4.	Hotel Swagatam Intl.	·      03461253446 ·      9735336120 ·      9674319687	https://swagatamhoteltarapith.com/tarapith

¦  Whom to take help for all rituals at the temple ?

Shri Dinabandhu Mukherjee, Teacher  (B.A-English) / Tori (Taramaa), Maa Chandi Anusandhani / (M) 89262-08575 – The Priest , who is able to take care of his client at the compound of the temple and beyond

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