Design fellow / Mason’s Ink Studio


project brief -

an introduction to Bhubaneswar for the heritage management plan, done in collaboration with mason's ink studio


2019

in collaboration with
bhubaneswar smart city

︎Bangalore

Ekamra Kshetra - Bhubaneswara

History The earliest settlers of Bhubaneswar were primitive hill tribes. Although mostly unidentified, it is known that tribes like Saora (farmers) & Shabar (hunter-gatherers) date their existence back to the days when Mahabharata was written. They are also known for being marathon walkers and expert climbers. The tribes are ethno-linguistically classified into - Austro-Asiatic (Mundari), Dravidian and Indo Aryan, which are spread across Orissa. Bhubaneswar boasts of the highly rich and continuous heritage of more than 2000 years. While it carries us back to the dawn of the dated Indian history, the earliest known history of the place can be traced to Sisupalgrah, the antiquity of which is established back to the period of 3rd -4th BCE. This region in Orissa, with varying geographical limits, was variously known as Kalinga, Odra or Utkala during the ancient and medieval period. Bhishma-Parva of Mahabharata mentions Kalinga and Utkala among the provinces of Jambudwipa (India). Sabha-Parva of Mahabharata mentions an ivory gift from the king of Kalinga.

Image. 2.1.  The map of Kalinga- nagari before the 1st century B.C. with Sisupalgarh, Dhauli hill and the site of Kalinga war.

History The earliest settlers of Bhubaneswar were primitive hill tribes. Although mostly unidentified, it is known that tribes like Saora (farmers) & Shabar (hunter-gatherers) date their existence back to the days when Mahabharata was written. They are also known for being marathon walkers and expert climbers. The tribes are ethno-linguistically classified into - Austro-Asiatic (Mundari), Dravidian and Indo Aryan, which are spread across Orissa. Bhubaneswar boasts of the highly rich and continuous heritage of more than 2000 years. While it carries us back to the dawn of the dated Indian history, the earliest known history of the place can be traced to Sisupalgrah, the antiquity of which is established back to the period of 3rd -4th BCE. This region in Orissa, with varying geographical limits, was variously known as Kalinga, Odra or Utkala during the ancient and medieval period. Bhishma-Parva of Mahabharata mentions Kalinga and Utkala among the provinces of Jambudwipa (India). Sabha-Parva of Mahabharata mentions an ivory gift from the king of Kalinga.

In Drona-Parva of the same epic, we understand that the prince of Kalinga fought on the side of the Kauravas in the great war. Xuanzang, the famous Chinese pilgrim of 7th century CE, visited the capital of the kingdom of Kie-ling-kia identified with Kalinga. Reference of Kalinga is also found in Pliny’s Natural History as Calingae, situated on eastern coast of India. Sisupalgarh was quite possibly the capital of ancient Kalinga from 4th century B.C. upto 4th century A.D. as indicated by the excavations found.

Image. 2.2.  The map of Kalinga- nagari in 1st century B.C. with Sisupalgarh, Ashokan edicts and Hathigumpha by King Kharevala.

Ekamra Kshetra comprised of 45 villages and was divided into asta-ayatana or eight sacred precincts, each with its water body, temples, small shrines, tirthas and prescribed pilgrim/ritual procession routes that are ritualistically and symbolically connected to the Lingaraj Temple.

According to the legends and myths narrated by early explorers, Cuttack pandits believe that upon the decline of the great monarchy of upper India at the dawn of the Kaliyuga, four principal thrones of Hindu princes ruled over the country.
These were the Narapatis, the Aswapatis, the Chatrapatis and the Gajapatis. Narapatis were the sovereigns of Telingana and Karnataka country, Aswapatis were in the Maratha country, Chatrapatis were the Rajput rulers of Jaipur and the Gajapatis, were the rulers of Orissa. Utkala-desa contains four pilgrimage centres, each one for a specific sanctity. These were Hara-kshetra, Vishnu or Purshottam-kshetra, Arka or Padma-kshetra and Vijayi or Parvati-kshetra. Hara-kshetra is modern Bhubaneswar, Purshottam-kshetra is Puri, Arka-kshetra is Konark and Parvati-kshetra is Jajpur.

1st century B.C. 6th century A.D.

It is difficult to come across evidence about rulers after the 1st century BC until the rise of Sailodbhav’s in 6th century AD. But from archaeological evidences we can say that after the 1st century BC the area which is now Bhuvaneshwar was under the influence of outside kingdoms as the Kushanas, the Murundas, the Guptas and the Vigraha rulers of Toshali.

Image. 2.3.  The map of Ekamra Kshetra showing its growth from the 6th century A.D. to the 14th century A.D. with temples around the town.

The golden era in the cultural history of the city begins with the end of 6th century AD upto 15th century, under the administrative control of Sailodbhavas (AD 575 - 700), the Bhaumakaras (AD 736-940), the Somavamsis (AD 885-1100), the Gangas (AD 1100-1568), the Suryavamsis (AD 1435 - 1540) and the chalukya dynasty (AD 1559 - 1568), thereafter losing its control to the Mughals, Sultans of Bengal, Marathas and the finally to the British till Independence.

Ekamra Kshetra lost its importance as a capital city after the 1st century BC and gained popularity as a saivacentre and a great pilgrim centre after the 7th century AD. With the revival of Bramhism, Bhubaneswar gained importance as a Saiva centre. The Ashokan pillars were deliberately transformed into Siva Lingam and the first temples dedicated to siva were constructed in 575AD under the reign of Sasankas (the first dynasty to build temples). Ekamra Kshetra gained importance as a centre of pilgrimage because of the Pilgrimage to Srikshetra or Jagannatha at Puri being one of chaturdhamas in India.

Image. 2.4.  The map of Ekamra Kshetra showing its growth from the 6th century A.D. to the 14th century A.D. with temples around the town.

Under the British rule, what is now the state of Orissa was a part of Bengal. In 1912,Orissa and Bihar were seperated from Bengal and Orissa was governed by Patna in Bihar. Around the turn of the century, the Oriya nationalist movement developed on the
rooted cultural and linguistic identity and harkened back to the days of the great Kalinga kings and Temple builders of a thousand year earlier.

Eventually, in 1946, the capital was relocated from Cuttack to Bhubaneswar. New Bhubaneswar was to be a symbol of both Indian Independence and the determination to build a better life. German planner Otto Koenigsberger was appointed to plan the new capital. The capital was designed as an administrative colony patterned roughly on the model of New Delhi. The proximity of the old town with towering temples inspired an architectural blend between the “old and new” for the new administrative buildings. The new capital brought in an expansion of jurisdiction not only in the New town but the old town, which posed a challenge to the traditional power structure in old Bhubaneswar.

Image. 2.4.  The map of Modern day Bhubaneswar showing the old city versus its planned counterpart.

The new town was planned as an entity by itself and had no planned physical connection with the old town, gaining its identity as a “temple city” from the old town itself. With the development of New Bhubaneswar, the old town has come under increased threat of urbanization mainly due to ignorance and unbalanced planning in regards to the old town. The unparalleled historical heritage of Ekamra Kshetra has been sadly neglected.

the complete report was published as a part of Bhubaneshwara Smart City Initiative and DRONAH