Jaintia Hills, once ruled by Hindu kings, celebrates Durga puja in a unique way. The main rituals are performed at the Durga Mandir in Nartiang, 64 km from Shillong. This is probably the country’s oldest Durga puja that started during the rule of King Dhan Manik in the 16th century.
The humble temple, which is over 600 years old, is made of stones and wood with tin roofing and has a poignancy that is unlike Hindu temples across the country. Behind its serenity and simplicity there are untold stories which are centuries old. But all these have missed the attention of the government that has, so far, done little to promote it.
INTACH had proposed heritage status for the temple along with other sites in the past. However, the status is yet to be conferred on Durga temple.
But the office of the Director of Urban Affairs says Nartiang Durga temple was not on the list of possible heritage sites submitted by INTACH to the state government. “However, there is a proposal on the Nartiang Monoliths, the jurisdiction of which is with the Director, Arts and Culture,” it adds.
Matsiewdor War Nongbri, Joint Secretary in the Sports and Youth Affairs Department, said the temple is on the list “but how long the whole process will take only the Meghalaya heritage authority can say”.
The 16th century temple is one of the 51 ‘shakti peethas’, or site of divine power, in the country. It is believed that the Goddess’s left thigh fell in Nartiang. Durga here is known by the name Jainteshwari. Besides the religious significance, the place is a rich historical site.
“The government is more focused on luxury festivals than the existing sites of importance. The temple should have been declared a heritage site long back. Even Majuli (in Assam) has been declared a heritage site but nothing happened in Meghalaya,” says a concerned citizen in Jowai.
“There are seven MLAs from Jaintia Hills and none takes up the issue on the floor of the House. These useless leaders are least bothered about their own heritage,” he adds.
The Meghalaya Heritage Act has already been legislated since April 2012. The state has also notified the Meghalaya Heritage Regulations 2013 since August 2013.
In 2007-08, the Central Puja Committee (C.P.C) took up the task of renovating the temple and providing facilities for the priest and his family.
Nartiang, which had the summer palace of the Jaintia kings, is more famous for its Monolith Park, another possible heritage site, than Durga temple. The Myntdu river, which is recently in news for all the wrong reasons, flows nearby.
Uttam Deshmukh, the 32-year-old priest at Durgabari, says he is the only caretaker of the Durga temple as well as the nearby Bhairav temple.
Though a Marathi, Deshmukh speaks fluent Bengali because, he says, his forefathers migrated to the place centuries ago. “The Jaintia royal family needed a priest and it employed my predecessors in Durgabari,” Deshmukh says.
“Villagers have immense faith in the Goddess. They come to the temple whenever there is an ailment,” he adds.
Talking about the present condition of the temple, Deshmukh says there is no help from the state government for maintenance as well as the priest. “We get rice from villagers and survive on donations by devotees. Besides that there is no other help from the authorities.”
Deshmukh says he and the villagers sent a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former governor V. Shanmuganathan last year requesting for heritage status to the temple. “Though no answer came on the temple but now at least the Monolith Park is maintained from the governor’s fund,” he informs.
CPC too had approached the government for similar status about a decade ago. Now, the committee is again contemplating petitioning the government on the heritage issue as well as the Act.
Sajay Laloo, a concerned citizen from West Jaintia Hills, says ignoring of worshipping place of other religious denominations other than Christianity is not uncommon in Meghalaya.
“The name Jaintia is a Hindu name. Jayantia. But with time it became Jaintia. The British did not change that. They did not even stop the puja at Durga temple except for the human sacrifice. So the temple was preserved from generation to generation. But with the formation of the State of Meghalaya, the importance of this temple slowly diminished due to scant respect shown by the government to Durga worshippers or tribal religion. There was a time when Behdeinkhlam Festival of Jowai was derecognised by the state government and removed from the list of state holidays. Till date there was never an attempt or proposal by the state to preserve the temple or promote it. I doubt it will ever be converted into a heritage site or important place of worshipping,” he adds.
Arts and Culture Minister Ronnie V Lyngdoh says he was unaware of such a demand for heritage status to the temple. “Maybe the proposal is at the director’s level. But I will look into the matter. If heritage status is conferred then it will benefit the state because we are promoting all places of tourist interest. Nartiang fits perfectly for religious tourism,” he adds.
~ NM
