Unakoti

Tripura , Unokoti, Agartala

Unakoti hill is an ancient place of worship with huge rock reliefs celebrating Lord Shiva. The word 'Unakoti' literally means one less a kuti (crore) in Bengali. This historic pilgrimage spot is located at Unakoti Tripura District in the Kailashahar Subdivision in the North-eastern Indian state of Tripura. The sculptures of Unokati were created nearly around 7th to 9th centuries A.D, though the origin dynasty of the Shaivaite idols is still unknown.

Legend

According to the legends, once Lord Shiva was heading towards Kashi along with one crore god and goddess including him. On the way, they took rest at this place. Before retiring for the night, Lord Shiva informed all the Gods to follow him to Kashi in the morning. However, the Gods remained asleep while Lord Shiva headed to Kashi himself. Thus, the angry Mahadev cursed the Gods who were supposed to accompany Him to Kashi to stay there in the form of stone forever. This is still believed to be the legend as to why so many stone carved figures and rock images are there in the middle of the serene jungle of Unakoti.

Architecture

The stone images of Unakoti are of two types- the rock carved figures and the gigantic images made out of the stones laid there. The Unakotiswara Kal Bhairava is the central Shiva Head which measures about 30 feet high and includes the 10 feet embroidered head-dress. There are two female figures on both sides of Lord Shiva's Image; One of them is Maa Durga standing with Her Lion. Three gigantic Nandi idols were excavated from the ground here. The stone carved image of Lord Ganesha is enormous and stands to be one of the major sculptures here.

Picture Courtesy: "Unakoti (Scorpian ad)" by Scorpian ad at English Wikipedia. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Unakoti_(Scorpian_ad).JPG#/media/File:Unakoti_(Scorpian_ad).JPG

Darsan Info

The shrine entice both pilgrims and tourists. The best time to visit the place is winter and specially during the Asokastami Mela, Kali Puja, and Shiv Chaturdashi. Presently the temple is maintained by the Archeological Survey of India and the century old architectural Shaivaite wonder is now exclusively a historical place to visit.

Darsan Dresscode

No Specific Dress code to visit Unakoti

Famous Festival

April :- Ashokastami Mela
October :- Kali Pooja

Culture

Tripura, one of the notable North-Eastern states of India, stands apart for enshrining their century-old heritage and the lineage of their culture. Once, the princely state, Tripura maintained its independence even during the British Raj in India. In 1974, Tripura accepted to be recognized as an Indian State.
70% of its population is Bengalis and the rest of the 30% belongs to the different tribes, residing in this area over the centuries and much before the Vedic times.
Tripura is accredited for its enriched culture including dance, music, musical theater and other performing arts. The people here are grateful to the great poet Rabindranath Tagore for promoting Tripura in his various literary creations like Rajarshi, Mukut, and Visharjan.
Their handicrafts, way of flamboyant dressing entice travelers from other states and abroad.

Travel Support

Travel Support
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Temple Rituals

Presently the temple is maintained by the Archeological Survey of India and the century old architectural Shaivaite wonder is now exclusively a historical place to visit.
Many religious fairs are arranged throughout the year including the grand Asokastami Mela.