Orissa – Main Religious Destinations

Bhubaneswar, the capital of Orissa, is named in honor of none other than Lord Shiva. The capital city is an exceedingly rewarding destination if you happen to be a devotee, or even an architecture enthusiast. There are a huge number of temples in the state.

The city of Bhubaneswar has been described as a city of temples. The city was home to more than a thousand temples at one point of time. A good many of these exist still, and are excellent examples of how the Kalinga style of architecture was practiced. The temple of Lord Lingaraj is certainly the most magnificent, and it stands at a towering height of fifty four meters. The temple is dedicated to Bhubaneswar himself, who is known literally as the Lord of the Universe.

The “Rath Yatra” (Chariot Parade) organized in honor of Lord Jagannath is one of the most important happenings in Orissa. The festival is held in June – July Period, and is an exceedingly fun festival with an upsurge of color and festivity. The festival has thousands of chariots drawn by thousands of devotees.

The “Nandighosha” is the name for the chariot of Lord Jagannath, and it has 16 wheels that are as large as 7 feet in diameter and is forty five feet in height. This festival is marked by a celebration of color, sound and faith, and is the most major among the sixty two annual festivals that are celebrated in Puri.

There are smaller temples dedicated to such deities as Lord Vishnu, Goddess Laxmi and VImala. The Lord Jagannath Temple serves the Mahaprasad, a vegetarian banquet that is one of the most famous in Orissa.

Mukteswar Temple is a marvel of architecture, and is marked by a notable stone arched entrance. The temple has unique sculptures at the outer walls.

The Parsurameswara temple is another temple that has exquisite carvings on the walls. The windows are latticed and are quite famous. Rajarani is yet another temple that is a notable work of architecture. The temple architecture is marked by life sized female figures, masterpieces of sculpture.

In addition, the Ratnagiri Lalitagiri Udayagiri Buddhist complex that was unearthed by excavations in the region is another notable destination. These locations are impressive and there are quite a few notable insights to the past. Ratnagiri, Lalitagiri and Udayagiri are all significant Buddhist destinations.

Also make sure you do not miss the famous Konark Sun Temple, which is situated close to thirty five kilo meters from Puri. The temple dedicated to the sun was built in the 13th century, and is one of the treasures of Orissa.