Holy Pilgrimage – Jharkhand State –(Religious Places in Dumka, Jagannatha temple Ranchi ,Rajrappa Temple and other places ) -2 at 10:44 PM

Holy Pilgrimage – Temples in Jharkhand  State

 

Dumka, Jharkhand

Dumka,(Hindi: दुमका) headquarters of Dumka district, is a city and municipality in the state of Jharkhand, India. It was made the headquarters of the Santhal Pargana region which was carved out of Bhagalpur and Suri districts after The Great Santal Hul 1855. Presently, it is Sub-capital of Jharkhand state & the commissionary headquarter of Santal Pargana division which has 6 districts. It was bestowed the status of sub-capital of newly born Jharkhand state, carved out of the southern part of Bihar on 15 November 2000.

 

 

Religious Places

Baba Basukinath Dham

Basukinath is located in Dumka District of Jharkhand. It lies on the Deoghar – Dumka state highway and is around 25 km northwest of Dumka. It is a place of pilgrimage for Hindus. Basukinath Temple is the main attraction here.It is situated on Jasidih Dumka New Railway line and Basukinath Railway Station is the nearest railheads. Ranchi Airport is the nearest airport. It is situated at Jarmundi Block on Dumka Deoghar State Highway at a distance of 24 km from the Distrcit Headquarters Dumka. In a year lacs and lacs people from different parts of country come here to worship Lord Shiva. In the month of Shravan people of several country also come here to worship Lord Shiva. For more details, kindly follow :  

Malooti

Mallooti is a historical and religious place which is situated in Shikaripara Block on Dumka Rampurhat interstate highway at a distance of 55 km from Dumka District Headquarters. In 1860 Mallooti was made taxfree capital by the then King Basant Rai alias Basant. This Mallooti is associated with the archaeological and religious importal place for natural beauty

 

Baba Sumeshwar Nath

It is a religious place which is situated in Saraiyahat Block at the distance of 60 km from district headquarters Dumka. There is a big temple of the Lord Shiva. On the eve of Mahashivaratri the people of different parts of the district come here to worship Lord Shiva in addition to daily worshiping.

Masanjore Dam

Masanjore is a famous picnic spot situated in Dumka District of Jharkhand. This small village is about 31 km south of Dumka. The picturesque Masanjore dam on the Mayurakshi River is a major draw  From the counterpart rupee fund created through supplies of wheat and other materials from Canada for use in India, Canada Govt. devoted those funds to further development of the Mayurakshi project And Masanjore dam was commissioned in 1955. That's why the Dam still mentioned as Canada Dam. The dam is bounded by hills and forests, a perfect place for outing. Mayurakshi Bhawan Bungalow and Inspection Bungalow offer excellent and comfortable accommodation in the village. By road, Masanjore is connected with Vakreshwara (59 km), Sainthia (50 km), Tarapith (70 km), Rampurhat (62 km) and Deoghar (98 km). Masanjor dam or the Pearson dam on river Mayurakshi is a picturesque place on foot hills of long range of forest clad parallel hill ranges. This place is basically a hydro electric power generating center but in the process of time it has become popular center for the tourist. With the beautiful garden on the down hill and two beautiful Dak-bunglows on the bank of the river at charm to its beauty.

Tatloi

It is a hot water Spring, situated at a distance of 15 km from the district headquarters of Dumka. It is rounded by small mounts, beautiful, attractive and greenish natural atmosphere. The water of spring is very clear and healthy.

Kumrabad

This is a very beautiful picnic spot. Just 13 km from the Dumka town, you find a rare view of natural beauty with small hills,beside that smooth flowing Mayurakshi River.

Hill Range

Running south from pakur to godda. The hill range of Dumka seen parallel and terminate in th Mangalbhanga hill. To the south east of Dumka is Ramgarh hills further west two parallel renges of hills also stretch in an easterly direction from Masanjor to Ranibhal. Beside hill ranges some hillocks are also in like (i) Lagwa hil at Nonihat under which lies the Tatloi hot water stream (ii) Hijla hill top. (iii) Sapchala hill top. (iv) Chuto pahadi. Maluti (Temple village on way to Rampurhat).

Kurwa (Shrishti)

It is a small picnic spot about 5 km to the south of Dumka. It has a beautiful park, facilities for boating and a small hill.

Chutonath

It is situated 20 k.m. away from the District headquarter. It is a beautiful place and picnic spot having natural beauty surrounded by hillocks and river. Chutonath is a religious place of Hindu god Lord chutonath

 Dharmsthan

It is temple situated in Tin bazar at the heart of Dumka Town,It is very famous for goddess kali, during the Durga puja 7 days special puja is organised here

 

Transport

Dumka town is connected by road to the neighboring city . However in July 2011 Dumka was connected with the newly built Jasidih - Dumka railway line. Since then city has seen a growing number of three wheelers on the road. There is also ongoing work on a new railway line, which will connect Dumka to Bhagalpur (Bihar) and Rampurhat (west Bangal) in coming years. Recently intercity express to Ranchi was added.
Buses are the preferred mode of transport and are run by both government agencies and private operators. Dumka has good connectivity to neighboring district with buses. There is a luxury night bus service between Dumka - Ranchi and Kolkata. The road network of Dumka is very well maintained

 

Jagannath Temple, Ranchi, Jharkhand

Jagannath Temple in Ranchi was built by king of Barkagarh Jagannathpur Thakur Ani Nath Shahdeo, during 1691. It was completed on 25 December 1691 It is located about 10 km from the main town, the temple is on top of a small hillock near to a place called Firayalal chowk (The temple is not located near Firayalal Chowk) or (Albert Ekka chowk) in Ranchi.
Similar to the famous Jagannath Temple in Puri, Orissa, this temple is built in the same architectural style, although smaller. And similar to the Rath Yatra in Puri, an annual fair cum rath yatra is held at this temple in the month ofAashaadha, attracting thousands of tribal and non-tribal devotees  not only from Ranchi but also from neighbouring villages and towns and is celebrated with much pomp and vigor.
The temple has been built on a hill top. To reach the top visitors can climb the stairs or take the vehicle route. There are many steps and the climber needs to rest intermittently before resuming. People also take the vehicle route leading directly to the top . To facilitate the arduous climb to the top the management of the temple have made provisions for fresh water and the shade of a huge tree that many tourists generally make use of once they reach the top. The view of the city from the top is breathtaking 
The temple collapsed on 6 August 1990. With the active participation of the then State Government of Bihar, and some devoted patrons the reconstruction of the temple started on 8th February 1992 and has now been fully restored. The temple has regained back its former glory. And devotees and ardent worshippers make a beeline to the temple every year

 

Ranchi

Ranchi  (Hindi राँ) is the capital of the Indian state of Jharkhand. Ranchi was the centre of the Jharkhand movement  for a separate state for the tribal regions of South Bihar, northern Orissa, Western West Bengal and the present eastern Chhattisgarh. Jharkhand State was formed on 15 November 2000 by carving the Bihar divisions of Chota Nagpur and Santhal Parganas.
The name Ranchi comes from the original Oraon village Archi at the site. Archi derives from the Oraon word for bamboo grove or stave. According to legend, after an altercation with a spirit, a farmer beat the spirit with his bamboo stave or archi. The spirit shouted archi, archi, archi and vanished; Archi became Rachi, and Rachi became Ranchi  One historically significant neighborhood is Doranda ('duran' 'दुरङ' means song and 'daah' 'दअः' means water in the Mundari language), between the Hinoo (Bhusur) & Harmoo Rivers, where the civil station, treasury and church established by the British Raj were destroyed by rebel forces during the Sepoy Mutiny. The present Purani (old) Ranchi marks the site of the old village of Archi

Early history

Ranchi was ruled by Munda Rajas and their capital was a place in Ranchi called Chutia. The old Ram Temple in Chutia was their royal palace. Chota Nagpur is a distorted name for Chutia Nagpur. Possibly, the area was included in the Magadh Empire during the reign of Ashoka ( 273-232 B.C. ). With the decline of Mauryan power, King Kharavela of Kalinga led on army through Jharkhand and ransacked Rajgriha and Pataliputra of Magadh. Later, Samudra Gupta (335-380 A.D.) must have passed through the area on his expedition to the Deccan

Ranchi is located at 23°21′N 85°20′E. The total area covered by the Ranchi municipal area is 175.12 square kilometres and the average elevation of the city is 651 m above sea level.

Ranchi is located on the southern part of the Chota Nagpur plateau which forms the eastern edge of the Deccan plateau. Ranchi is referred to as the "City of Waterfalls", due to the presence of numerous large and small falls of around the close vicinity of the city. The most popular ones are Dassam Falls, Hundru Falls, Jonha Falls, Hirni Falls and Panchghagh Falls.
The Subarnarekha river and its tributaries constitute the local river system. Dams in Kanke, Rukka and Hatia have been built over these channels to cater to the water requirements of majority the population.
Ranchi has a hilly topography and its combination with dense tropical forests ensures that it enjoys a comparatively moderate climate compared to the rest of the state. Previously, it was accorded a 'hill station' status during the British rule. Rapid population growth and industrialization have caused considerable change in the weather pattern and rise in average temperatures. This has resulted in gradual loss of this "Hill Station" like status.

Transport

Ranchi is well connected via Rail, Air and Road routes.

Railways

Ranchi is now well connected with major cities of India via rail routes and one of the most profitable station in South Eastern Railways. Ranchi Railway Station with station code RNC is main station of Ranchi. Apart from Ranchi station, there are few more stations in city namely, Hatia Station, Tatisilwai Station and Namkom Station. Many important trains start from Hatia station as well. 16 trains start, 16 trains end and 20 trains pass from Ranchi Railway station. It is well connected with metro and major cities of India like Jaipur, Bilaspur, New Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bhubaneswar, Bangalore, Vishakhapatnam, Vijaywada, Hyderabad, Guwahati, Patna, Amritsar, Nagpur, Gorakhpur, Pune, Raipur, Cuttack, Puri, Rourkela, Durg, Ajmer, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Jammu, Surat, etc.

Airways

Birsa Munda Airport (IXR) of Ranchi has direct flights from Patna, Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata. Few major airlines like Air India, GoAir and Jet Airways serve this purpose. A new international terminal is being built which is spread over 19,676 square metres of land, is furnished with the finest equipment imported from China, Germany and Singapore, and has the capacity to handle 500 domestic and 200 international passengers at a time. This terminal will have some ultra modern facilities. It will start operating from July 2012.
Recently the annual Haj pilgrimage flights to Saudi Arabia have also started, serving the pilgrims from a temporary terminal. This service was aimed to reduce the burden on Kolkata Airport.

Roadways

NH 33 and NH 23 passes through Ranchi. Roads connecting major cities are providing movement for passenger and freight traffic. Buses of the Jharkhand State Road Transport Corporation and private buses ply regularly to connect Ranchi to the other parts of Jharkhand. Also, Bihar State Road Transport Corporation run regularly for major cities (Patna, Gaya etc.) of Bihar. Regular bus services are there to Kolkata and other towns of neighboring states. Private buses also ply regularly to Jamshedpur, Siwan, Begusarai, Rourkela, Dumka, Varanasi, Khagaul, Hajipur, Patna and Kolkata. Luxury Mercedes buses are also available from Ranchi to Gaya and Patna. A new ring road is under construction around the city to reduce the growing traffic overload on the city roads. Three flyovers are coming up for smooth movement of traffic in busiest zones of the city. All major NH and other roads are being widened to six lanes or eight lanes.
Bulk of the public transport constitute of auto rickshaw and cycle rickshaw. A city bus service under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission was started in 2010 to meet the demands of public transport. There are a total of 150 city buses operating in Ranchi. The Jharkhand Tourism Development Corporation (JTDC) was given the responsibility of running the buses in Ranchi

Tourist attractions

  Sun Temple: It is situated at a distance of 40 km on Ranchi Tata Road. It is built in the form of a Chariot with 18 wheels drawn by 7 white horses. It is surrounded by a pond which is used by devotees during Chhath Puja for worshipping of Sun.

  Angrabari (Amreshwar Dham): It is a temple consisting of the deity of Lord Shiva, Ram and Sita, Hanuman and Ganesh. It is situated near Khunti at a distance of about 40 km from Ranchi. The Shankracharya Swami Swarupanand Saraswati, having been captivated by serene, placid and celestial beauty of Angrabadi rechristened it as Amreshwar Dham.

Devri Temple: A temple of Solha Bhuji Goddess Durga, is located on right side Ranchi-Tata highway(NH33) at 60 km from Ranchi. It is the only temple in Jharkhand where the religious rituals are performed by the Pahans(tribal priests) along with conventional Brahmins

Rock garden & Kanke dam(Gonda hills): Gonda Hill and Rock Garden is situated at a distance of about 4 km from Ranchi town on Ranchi Kanke Road. Rock Garden is carved out of the rocks of Gonda Hill and resembles its design to rock garden of Jaipur. At the base of the Hill is Kanke Dam

Hundru Falls:Hundru Fall is one of the most picturesque falls surrounding Ranchi. It is 45 km from Ranchi on Ranchi-Purulia Road. Here, the Subarnarekha river falls from a height of 320 feet. The pools at the bottom of the falls are favourite picnic and bathing spots.

  Rani Sati temple ,   Panchmukhi temple are also located.

Jonha Fall.

Jonha Falls:Jonha Falls is also known as Gautamdhara, is around 40 km from Ranchi. It is approachable by both Road and train. The fall can be admired by descending around 500 steps. There is a tourist rest house which contains Lord Buddha temple. The river Kanchi flows nearby.

Panchghagh Falls:Panchghagh falls is on Ranchi-Chakradharpur Road about 6 km from Khunti. This fall consists of five streams formed in a row due to the breaking up of the Banai river which falls from a good height. Cemented walkways connect the different cataracts, of which stream 2 is the most popular while 5 is the biggest, though a bit inaccessible.

Dassam Falls:Dassam falls is 34 km from Ranchi on Ranchi-Tata Road near a village called Taimara. Here, the Kachni river falls from an altitude of 144 feet. It is also known as Dassam Gagh.

Hirni Falls:Another beautiful waterfall amidst forests about 70 km from Ranchi.

Sita Fall.

Sita Fall:Adjacent to Jonha falls is Sita falls which can be seen at its best early in the morning.

Pahari Mandir(Ranchi Hill):Ranchi Hill and Pahari Mandir is one of the landmark of Ranchi Town. The Shiva temple is situated on the top of the hill also known as Pahari Mandir. At the bottom of the hill is Ranchi Lake. Ranchi lake was excavated by Colonel Onsely in 1842.

 

Rajrappa Temple. Jharkhand

Rajrappa is a Hindu pilgrimage centre attracting an estimated 2,500-3,000 persons daily.

It is situated 28 km away from Ramgarh on the confluence of rivers Bhairavi and Damodar. This temple known as Chinnamastika temple finds place in our Vedas and Puranas and it has been recognized as an ancient and strong source of Shakti. It is believed that the person who devotes himself whole heartedly with pious heart to Maa Chinnamastika has all his wishes fulfilled by the Goddess. Devotees from all corners of Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal visit this holy place throughout the year. There is a large congregation of people here during the night of full Moon and New Moon. Marriages are also solemnized here on a large scale. The Art and architecture of Rajrappa temple bears resemblance to that of the famous Kamakhaya temple of Assam. Here, in addition to the temple of Maa Kali, there exists ten temples of various Gods and Goddesses like the Sun God and Lord Shiwa. The hot water spring adds beauty to this temple and during winter it turns into picnic spot.

Rajrappa also is a pilgrim centre for the Santals and other tribals who come for immersion of the ashes of their loved ones in the Damodar. They come mostly during the month of December, in groups known as yatri. As per their mythology it is their final resting place. In their folk songs Rajrappa is referred to as "Thel Kopi Ghat" (Water Ghat) and they use oil after bathing. They come in significant numbers from the southern parts of Jharkhand state such as East and West Singhbhum and Saraikela districts

For accommodation Dhramashala, rest house and Guest house are easily available at Rajrappa.

 

How to reach

Rajrappa stands at the confluence of the Damodar and Bhairavi (locally called Bhera) rivers.
Rajrappa is located off NH 23 connecting Ramgarh and Chas. It is 28 kilometres (17 mi) from Ramgarh, 65 kilometres (40 mi) from Hazaribagh, 78 kilometres (48 mi) from Ranchi and 60 kilometres (37 mi) from Bokaro Steel City

 

 

 

Waterfalls

The Bhera or Bhairavi joins the Damodar, falling from a height of 9.1 metres (30 ft). It is a scenic spot that offers boating facilities and spectacular rock formation for the visitors.

 

Dhanbad, Jharkhand

Dhanbad (Hindi: धनबाद, Bengali: ধানবাদ) is a city in the state of Jharkhand, and is also known as the Coal Capital of India.

Dhanbad is famous for coal mining. Tata Steel, BCCL, ECL and IISCO (Indian Iron And Steel Company) are some of the companies having coal mines in the district. Coal mining, coal washing, and coke making are the main coal-related industries in the city. IISCO is now owned by SAIL, while BCCL and Eastern Coalfields Limited are subsidiaries of Coal India Limited (CIL); these two companies are the largest operators of coal mines in Dhanbad, and have open cast mines as well as underground mines, whereas Tata Steel has mostly underground mines. These companies have developed townships for their employees. The prestigious Indian School of Mines is located in the heart of the city of Dhanbad.

Originally the name of Dhanbad was Dhanbaid which seems to have been derived from the word Dhan (paddy) and baid, i.e., the paddy land. The Dhanbad originated from the district of Manbhum occupied by Mundari or Kolarian races in the wilderness of South undivided Bihar. In the seventh century A.D. some information is available from the account of the travels of Hieun Tsang. These accounts narrate existence of a powerful kingdom which comprised the district and adjoining areas, ruled by Sasanka.

Dhanbad is a coal mining and industrial city and one of the busiest commercial centres in India. It is the second largest city and urban agglomeration in Jharkhand after Jamshedpur.
Dhanbad is famous for its coal mines and industrial establishments; it has 112 coal mines^[9] with a total produce of 27.5 million tonnes and an annual income of 7000 million Rupees through coal business. There are also number of coal washeries present there. The city is also known for its power generation plants. Hydro Power is being generated at Maithon and Panchet. Tata Power and Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) are setting up a 1050 MW thermal power plant at Maithon.That project also completed and came to operation. Now one unit is running successfully. ONGC is using CBM (Coal beded methane) for power generation at some of the coal mines.

Language

Hindi is the predominant language of Dhanbad, Khortha, Bengali, kurmali, Santali, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Magahi are also widely spoken. English serves as the connecting language in business and tourist function. Additionally, Urdu, Tamil, and Punjabi speaking people are present in significant numbers. Several tribal languages are also spoken in the city, including Kurukh and Ho

 

Temples

Kalyaneshwari temple – This temple of Maa Kalyaneshwari is very close to Maithon near Left bank

Panra – Panra is near Nirsa. This place has derived its name from Pandavas. According to the locals, pandavas spent some time here during their exile. A temple of Pandeshwar mahadev is also present.

Shakti Mandir – This is one of the most famous Hindu Temple in Dhanbad. It is situated in the main city.

Temple of Goddess Durga draws large crowd throughout the year.

Lillori Sthan Mandir – An ancient temple of Goddess Kali is present here. Situated on the bank of river katri. This Place is 19 km from Dhanbad Railway station.

Chark- khurd – This place is known for its hot water spring. It is in Tundi.

Gopalpur – Situated in Nirsa. This place contains ancient structures built during the period of emperor Ashoka. A large stone image of emperor Ashok is also present here.

Jagannath Temple, Dhansar – One of the most famous Hindu temple in the city, about 1 km from Bank More on the left side of the road connecting Jharia, opposite of reliance fresh. Temple of Lord Jagannath, famous for the car festival.

The Shiva Temple of Jhinjhipahari – Temple is extracted from the mining grounds of a small village called Jhinjhipahari. This village is situated near to city and takes half an hour to reach.

Bhuphor Mandir – 6 km away on NH-32 from Railway station towards Govindpur.

Transport

Road

Anything from cycle rickshaws, auto Rickshaws to all modern means of transportation are available within the city. Private and State buses are available for inter-city traveling. National Highway 2 and National Highway 32 are the major highways passing through Dhanbad. NH 2 has now been converted into Golden Quadrilateral (GQ). Golden Quadrilateral starts from Kolkata and ends at Delhi. From Dhanbad to Kolkata, Golden Quadrilateral will be converted into six lane expressway; NH 32 connects Govindpur to Bokaro-Jamshedpur.- Barbil.

Rail

Dhanbad has a very good rail connectivity with the other major parts of the country such as Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Kochi, Indore, Bhopal, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Jaipur, Nagpur, Pune, Guwahati etc. Dhanbad Rail Division comes under East Central Railway zone. Grand Chord rail-line passes through Dhanbad junction, it connects Howrah and New Delhi. CIC rail line starts from Dhanbad and ends at Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh. There is one more rail line passing through the district, it starts at Kharagpur and ends at Gomoh, this rail line comes under South Eastern Railway. Dhanbad is connected with almost all states through rail network. Each and every train through this has a stop at Dhanbad,other than the Sealdah New Delhi & Howrah New Delhi Duronto Exp,which also has a Technical Halt,but not to be used for Commercial Purposes

On October 1, 2011, India's first AC double-decker train was flagged off to connect Howrah and Dhanbad. With this India joins the league of Europe and North America that run multi-deck trains.As on Oct 2011, the train runs daily except Sunday, departing from Howrah at 8:30 am to arrive at Dhanbad at 12:45 pm, and on return trip it departs Dhanbad at 6:30 pm to arrive at Howrah at 10:40 pm. It has a maximum permissible speed of 110 kilometres (68 mi) with stops at Bardhaman, Durgapur, Asansol, Barakar and Kumardhubi on both legs of the route. This new AC design has several features namely stainless steel body, high-speed Eurofima design bogies with air springs and other safety-features. The coaches have a control discharge toilet system.

Air

Currently there is no air-link though there is an airstrip near Barwadda. A commercial Airport was planned to be set up at Barwadda, but no significant progress has been made yet. The nearest airports to Dhanbad are

1.   Birsa Munda Airport, Ranchi 140 kilometres (87 mi)

2.   Gaya Airport 207 kilometres (129 mi)

3.   Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata 269 kilometres (167 mi)

4.   Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Airport, Patna 271 kilometres (168 mi)

 

Festivals

Dhanbad is home to people from all across India. Charak Puja, Karma, Sarhul, Vishwakarma Puja, Saraswati Puja, Durga Puja, Chhath, Deepawali, Holi  and Guru Purnima are among the long list of festivals celebrated in Dhanbad

 

 

 

Om Tat Sat

                                                        

(Continued...)                                                                                                                              

(My humble  salutations to the great devotees ,  wikisources  and Pilgrimage tourist guide for the collection )