Tarapith – A place that has a wonderful ambience

Tarapith is a 13th-century Hindu temple famous for its Tantric temple and adjacent cremation grounds (Maha Shmashan), where tantric rites are performed. It is located in Chandipur village Rampurhat II CD block in the Rampurhat subdivision of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. The goddess Tara, a terrifying Tantric facet of the Devi, the main temples of Shaktism, is the subject of the Tantric Hindu temple. The term Tarapith comes from the fact that it is known as the most significant Tara worship location.The walls at the base of the temple are substantial and made of red brick. Under the eaves, in the sanctum, is where the deity’s image is kept. The sanctum contains two images of Tara. The three feet tall metal image that the devotee ordinarily sees conceals the stone image of Tara that is shown as a mother nursing Shiva, known as the “primordial image” (visible in the inset of the furious form of the picture of Tara). It features a protruding tongue, a garland made of skulls, and a fiery Tara with four limbs. The exterior picture was covered in a sari, adorned with marigold garlands, a silver parasol over its head, and crowned with a silver crown and flowing hair.

Another well-known saint from Tarapith is Sadhak Bamakhepa, popularly known as the avadhuta or “mad saint,” who practised and polished tantric arts and yoga while living as a mendicant in the cremation grounds and worshipping in the temple. Kailashpathi Baba is another well-known saint from Tarapith. Bamakhepa devoted his entire life to Tara Maa worship. His ashram is also adjacent to the Tara temple and on the Dwaraka River bank.

On the banks of the Dwarka River in West Bengal, the village of Tarapith is part of the Sahapur Gramme Panchayet and is home to the Tarapith Police Station. It is situated amidst lush paddy fields in the flood lowlands. It has cottages with thatched roofs and fish tanks, making it appear to be a traditional Bengali village.The town is situated 6 km from Birbhum district’s Rampurhat Sub-Division. The closest railway stations are “Rampurhat” and “Tarapith Road.”