Information of Patan Devi Temple, Patna, Bihar

The Patan Devi Temple is located in Patna the Capital of the Indian state of Bihar. It is a Hindu temple dedicated to goddess Sati the divine consort of Lord Shiva.

Patan Devi Temple Religious Significance

The Patan Devi temple is one of the most sacred and oldest temples in Patna and considered as an abode of Goddess Durga another form of Goddess sati. It is belived that two parts of Goddess Sati had fallen on this holy ground. Therefore, two temples were built as Badi Patan Devi Temple where Badi means big and Choti Patan Devi Temple where choti means small. Patan literally means a town and the name Patna has been derived from this word.

The temple can be visited any time during the day and remains open from 6:00 am till 10:00 pm. It also remains open throughout the day and people belonging to any caste or religion can enter the temple. Tuesday is considered as an auspicious day for worshipping the Devi so a lot of people visit to offer their prayers.

The most important festival celebrated in the temple is the Durga Puja, Goddess Durga being another form of Sati. The Durga Puja that is the Vijayadashami usually falls in the month of October and a type of fare is conducted where almost 600 people come for Devi's blessing. Devotees offer flowers, garlands, sweets and also sum amount of money as an offering to the Almighty. The priests do the regular puja with the chanting of vedic mantras and prayers with the ringing of the temple bells.

Patan Devi Temple Mythology & History

According to the legends when Goddess Parvati left his mortal coil in the form of Sati, her consort Lord Shiva was maddened by death. He carried her corpse and began wandering about. In order to stop Shiva's madness Lord Vishnu cut Devi's body into 108 parts. Each different parts feel on different places where a part of her body and also her right thigh on the grounds of Patan.

It is said that the first Patan Devi temple was built somewhere between 9th to 11th century which was destroyed and the present structure was built by Man Singh was built during 16th and 17th century. Man Singh was the general of Mughal emperor of Akbar.

Patan Devi Temple Architectural Significance

There are a total of two temples the Badi Patan Devi Temple and Choti Patan Devi Temple built in typical temple architectural style. The Badi Patan Temple has the main shrine which comprises idol of Mahakali, Maha Lakshmi, Maha Sarawati and Bhairav which are made up of black stone. The idols are placed in thrones which are beautifully decorated. There is a veranda at the entrance of the temple measuring 1.5 by 1.5. The goddesses are all adorned with beautiful sarees. This temple is the most scared one in Patna city.

The Choti Patan Devi Temple is one of the main temples of Patna after the Badi Patan Devi Temple is considered a very sacred place. It is located in Chowk are of Patna. The Choti Temple was the temple which was built originally by Man Singh. With time it has lost its popularity but is still a holy spot of the divine. The temple consists of many images of Lord Ganesh, Surya God and Lord Vishnu. It also consists of ruins of early medieval period sculpture importantly the image of sun. The temple radiates a divine aura which gives immense joy to the devotes and attains peace.