Located 12-km from Malinithan, West Siang District of Arunachal Pradesh, the Malinithan temple also called as Akashganga Temple is one of the famous temple and an archaeological site. At present, the temple dedicated to Goddess Durga is completely in ruins. The ruins of temple indicates that it belongs to the 14th - 15th century. The archaeological findings at the site includes the sculptures of Durga, a Shiva linga and a bull, the mount of Shiva.

location Arunachal Pradesh, Lower Siang , Itanagar

Legend

According to the local mythology, Krishna abducted Rukmini, the daughter of King Bhishmaka of Vidarbha, prior to her wedding with Shishupala. On the way to Dwarka, the couple stopped at Malinithan, where they were invited by Lord Shiva and Parvati, who were doing penance. Parvati warmly welcomed her guests and presented them with garlands made of flowers plucked from her orchard. Enamoured by the beauty and the scent of the flowers, Krishna addressed Parvati as Malini, meaning "the mistress of the garden", and since then the place is named as Malinithan. According to another legend, it is believed that the image of a female without the head, which was unearthed during the excavations, represented Malini who was the lover of Shiva. The image of the goddess Durga found here is also known as "Pupane", an ancient name for the Divine Mother.

Architecture

The temple was built in Orissa temple style of architecture. The archaeological excavations revealed a very well designed and carved plinth of a temple, sculptures of deities and animals, designs of flowers, damaged columns and panels.Four sculptures of lions on two elephants were found at the four corners of the ruins of the temple. Among the sculptures found at Malinthan, five notable ones carved out of granite stone are of Indra riding his mount Airavata, Kartikeya riding a peacock, Surya (Sun) riding a chariot, and Ganesha mounted over a mouse, and a large Nandi bull. On the basis of the erotic Maithuna sculptures found here in different postures it is believed that tantricism prevailed here as a fertility rite of the primitive tribal people who held the "mother principal as the procreative power of nature".

Culture

The culture of Arunachal Pradesh is truly varied in the sense that the state has 26 major tribes including sub-tribes. Every tribe has their own unique set of traditions and customs. The major tribes of Arunachal are: Adi, Galo, Aka, Apatani, Nyishi, Tagins, Bori, and Bokar.

Darsan Info

09:00 A.M To 06:00 P.M

The best time to visit the temple is from the months of April to October.

Darsan Dresscode

No dresscode

Temple Rituals

There is no rituals performing right now in this historical temple

Additional Info

 

There are many food joints near the temple

 

 

Supermarket : Available