Dongargarh Bamleshwari Temple

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Site Name: Bamleshwari Mata Temple
Site Type: Temple
Location:  Dongargarh, 110 kms from Raipur, Chhattisgarh state, India
Highlights: An important temple of Mother Goddess in Chhattisgarh state
Nearest Railway Station: Dongargarh
Nearest Airport: Raipur
How to reach: Well connected by road and rail from Raipur; public transport is not dependable
Hotel: Go to Raipur or Durg for stay
Restaurants: No good restaurants; go to Raipur or Durg for the same

Dongargarh is a small town located near Raipur, the capital city of Chhattisgarh state of India. The nearest city for Dongargarh is Durg. Dongargarh has the famous temple of Bamleshwari. Let us explore this site in this article.

There are two temples dedicated to Maa Bamleshwari in this town. There is a hilltop temple at an altitue of about 1600 feet. It is the most famous temple and called as Badi Bamleshwari. It can be reached either by flight of 1100 steps or ropeway. The main shrine enshrines Bamleshwari in the form of red colored stone idol.

There is another temple at the foothills which is called as Chhotti Bamleshwari. 

The word Dongargarh means "Fort on the mountain". As per the legend, the local king named Veersen did not have a child. With the help of priests he performed pooja and got a son in one year. He named his son as Madansen. As he believed that it was the blessing of Shiva and Parvati, he constructed a temple for Mother Goddess in Dongargarh. 

The king Mandasen had a son named Kamsen. This area became famous due to him as Kamakhaya Nagari. Raja Kamsen had to fight a battle with the legendary king Vikramaditya (of 1st century BCE?). Kamsen was killed in the battle. As per another legend, it was Vikramaditya who built this temple.

In those day, the Goddess was named as Bagulamukhi; later she became Maa Bamlai and now people call her Bamleshwari.

Happy travelling.


Location: Dongargarh, Chhattisgarh 491445, India

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