Hindu temple, Shariatpur
Dhanuka Manasa Bariধানুকার মনসা বাড়ি
- Time needed
- About 45 minutes.
- best months
- Nov–Feb
Mayur Bhatta's house at Dhanuka, a protected group of temples about 600 years old by tradition, with an old brass image of Manasa, the snake goddess.
At a glance
- Founded
- About 600 years ago, by tradition
- Image
- Old brass Manasa
- Status
- Protected antiquity
About
About six hundred years ago, tradition says, a wealthy man named Mayur Bhatta built his house at Dhanuka and then a Manasa temple inside it. The story goes that a boy of the house kept meeting a snake while gathering flowers; on the third day it followed him home and danced around him, and that night the head of the family dreamed that Manasa told him to build her a temple. The temple grew so popular, with worshippers coming even from India, that the whole house became known as the Manasa Bari.
The temple keeps an old brass image of Manasa; it is said to have been lost once and brought back by fishermen. The house suffered heavily in 1971. It is now a protected antiquity, with several temples together, looked after by a descendant of Mayur Bhatta, and old manuscripts have been found here. Dhanuka was also a centre of Sanskrit learning and the birthplace of several scholars. People say snakes still gather at puja time.
Getting there: A short rickshaw ride from Shariatpur town to Dhanuka.
Things to do
- See the Manasa temple and the other temples of the house.
- Ask the family to tell the story of the snake.
Good to know
- It is a family's home and a place of worship: ask before entering and remove your shoes.
.jpg){kind=link}