Bagapatia, Odisha
The Ma Panchubarahi temple in Kendrapara district of Odisha is well known for a rare practice it still adheres to, with great reverence. For over five centuries, the five goddesses, sculpted in black granite, have been worshiped by women priests from the Dalit community.
Ma Panchubarahi is perhaps the only temple in the eastern state where Dalit priestesses conduct the rituals. While they do not get a monthly salary, they are given grains, vegetables, fruits etc., by the local community of Bagapatia where the temple is located.
“Gender discrimination has existed forever, yet around 500 years ago, our village broke the norm and provided women a chance to step into the traditionally male-dominated role of a priest, at this temple,” Rasmita Sahani, the sarpanch of Satabhaya gram panchayat, told Gaon Connection, with considerable pride.
Currently, four women priestesses from the Dalit community, take turns to perform the rituals at the temple. They are Sujata Dalei, Banalata Dalei, Rani Dalei and Sabitri Dalei. “Only married women from the Dalit community can perform pujas here,” Sasmita Rout, the former sarpanch of Satabhaya told Gaon Connection. No man or a widow can do that, she added.
“I took over as priestess from my mother-in-law Sita Dalei, when she became a widow eight years ago,” Sabita Dalei, one of the priestesses, told Gaon Connection.
According to temple researcher Basudev Das, lore goes that there were once male priests doing the job at the temple till one of them in an inebriated state enraged the goddesses. “The goddesses cursed the male priests and ever since, only women have been entrusted with the job of carrying out the rituals in the temple,” the Kendrapara-based researcher told Gaon Connection.
“The Dalit priestesses are highly respected in our village. We touch their feet before entering the temple. As men, we are not allowed to touch the deities,” Nigamananda Rout, former sarpanch of Satabhaya gram panchayat, told Gaon Connection.
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When the sea came to Satabhaya
The Ma Panchubarahi temple that stands today at Bagapatia, about 12 kilometres away from the sea, was originally located at the seaside village of Satabhaya in Kendrapara district, Odisha. The Panchubarahai temple was established by the king of Rajkanika about 500 years ago. When it was built, it was nearly 15 kilometers away from the coast. But, the sea advanced relentlessly close to Satabhaya and ultimately swallowed huge tracts of the coastline.
When the rising and advancing sea threatened to swallow the entire village, temple and all, the government decided to relocate the temple to its present location at Bagapatia in the same panchayat. It was only in 2018, that with the permission of the priestesses that men were allowed to be part of the team that carried the deities to their new abode.
“Along with the temple, 571 families were also relocated from Satabhaya to Bagapatia,” Sudarshan Rout, a former inhabitant of Satabhaya, who now lives in the rehabilitation colony at Bagapatia, told Gaon Connection.
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The older temple still stands today, and on close scrutiny, bits of the old wall murals can still be seen in its salt-stained, crumbling old walls. But it is a mere shell, in ruins and right by the sea, and locals feel it is just a matter of time before even that disappears forever.
“Two months ago a major portion of the old temple at Satabhaya was gobbled up by the sea. A part of it crumbled and fell into the sea in front of my eyes,” Arakhita Behera, a fisherman of Satabhaya, told Gaon Connection.
Meanwhile, the worship continues with fervour in Bagapatia. Has the Ma Panchubarahi temple come to Bagapatia to stay? Only the goddesses can tell…
