Hindu temple, Bagerhat
Kodla Mathকোদলা মঠ
- Time needed
- Forty minutes, plus the ride out.
- best months
- Nov–Feb
- Cost
- Free.
An 18-metre terracotta tower from the 1600s rising alone above the fields of Ayodhya village, a memorial raised, the story goes, by Raja Pratapaditya for his guru.
Plan your visit
- Opening
- Daylight hours; the caretaker opens the gate.
- Best time
- Morning light on the east face, or late afternoon on the main south door.
At a glance
- Height
- About 18 m
- Period
- About 1600, 17th century
- Style
- Odisha rekha temple form in brick
About
Eight kilometres north of the town, on the old east bank of the Bhairab, a dark brick spire stands over the coconut palms of Ayodhya: the Kodla Math, also called the Ayodhya Math. It is the one great Hindu monument of a district famous for mosques, and nothing else in Bagerhat looks like it. The base is a square about 9 metres a side with walls over 3 metres thick, and from it the tower tapers upward in curved ribs to a height of around 18 metres, in the manner of the rekha temples of Odisha. Every face is cut into projections and niches, and the polished bricks still carry bands of terracotta.
Who built it is half known. Above the south door is a worn Sanskrit inscription that names a Brahmin, Sharmana, building for the benefit of someone called Tarak. The tradition most people repeat is that Pratapaditya, the rebel raja of Jessore and one of the twelve chieftains who held off the Mughals, raised it around the turn of the 1600s in memory of his guru, Abilamba Saraswati. The inner chamber is tiny, under a dome, and the building is thought to be a memorial rather than a temple for worship. It is a protected monument, kept by the Department of Archaeology, with a caretaker and a gate.
Getting there: About 8 km north of Bagerhat in Ayodhya village, Baruipara union: take the Khulna road to Jatrapur bazar, then 6 km east by village road.
Things to do
- Walk all four sides: the terracotta differs on each face.
- Look for the Sanskrit inscription over the south door.
- Go on to Jatrapur bazar for tea on the way back.
Good to know
- The last stretch is a village road; a rickshaw or CNG from Jatrapur bazar is easiest.
- Combine it with Chandra Mahal on the way out of Bagerhat toward Khulna.
