INVASIONS ON THE JAGANNATH TEMPLE

Lord Jagannath Temple at Puri was invaded by many rulers and the count goes to eighteen. The temple was plundered and looted because of enormous wealth present in it. Due to these attacks, the Idols of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra were transferred to various places in order to save them during the invasions. Please refer below table for brief details about these 18 invasions.

18 Invasions on Jagannath Temple Invasion By Whom When First Invasion Raktavahu 9th Century Second Invasion Illias Shah, the Sultan of Bengal 1340 A.D. Third Invasion Feroze Shah Tughlaq, the Muslim ruler of Delhi 1360 A.D. Fourth Invasion Ismail Ghazi, the commander of Allauddin Hussain Shah, Sultan of Bengal 1509 A.D. Fifth Invasion Muslim invader Kalapahara, the Assistant Army General of Sulaiman Karrani, the Afghan Sultan of Bengal 1568 A.D. Sixth Invasion Jointly done by Suleman (the son of Kuthu Khan) and Osman (the son of Isha - ruler of Orissa) 1592 A.D. Seventh Invasion Mirza Khurrum, the commander of Islam Khan. Islam Khan was the Nawab of Bengal 1601 A.D. Eighth Invasion Hasim Khan, the Subedar of Odisha 1608 A.D. Ninth Invasion Hindu Rajput Jagirdar Kesodasmaru. He was serving under Hasim Khan. He was a friend of Jahangir 1610 A.D. Tenth Invasion Kalyan Malla, son of Raja Todar Mall, the revenue minister of Akbar became the Subedar of Orissa 1611 A.D. Eleventh Invasion Kalyan Malla, son of Raja Todar Mall, the revenue minister of Akbar became the Subedar of Orissa 1612 A.D. Twelfth Invasion Mukarram Khan, the Governor of Odisha 1617 A.D. Thirteenth Invasion Mirza Ahmad Beg, the nephew of Moghul empress Nurjahan - wife of Jahangir 1621 A.D. Fourteenth Invasion Amir Mutaquad Khan alias Mirza Makki, the Governor of Odisha 1645 A.D. Fifteenth Invasion Amir Fateh Khan 1647 A.D. Sixteenth Invasion Ekram Khan, the Nawab of Odisha, against the order by Aurangzeb, the Moghul emperor, to destroy the temple of Lord Jagannath 1692 A.D. Seventeenth Invasion Muhammad Taqi Khan, Naib Nazim (Deputy Subedar) of Odisha 1731 A.D. Eighteenth Invasion Muhammad Taqi Khan, Naib Nazim (Deputy Subedar) of Odisha 1733 A.D.

During the last invasion, the servitors removed the idols to Marda of Kodala. The temple at Marda in Ganjam district of Odisha was the last safe abode of the three deities of the Jagannath temple from December 29, 1733 to December 31, 1736. The temple at Marda is known as "Sarana Srikhetra" because it gave shelter to the Deities of Puri Jagannath temple. In Odia language 'Sarana' means shelter.

Around 1752 AD, when the Maratha influence was high, the then King Birakishore Deva was afraid of the Maratha Bargis (during the period of invasion by the Marathas, warriors called as 'Bargis'), so Maratha Dewan Bahadur Khan wrote a letter to the King in 1752 AD with the assurance that no invasion would be launched on the Jagannath temple during the Maratha rule. The servitors should continue worship of the deities as usual without fear. It was the direction of the Maratha Dewan to King Birakishore Deva.

The most significant feature in the history of invasion on the great temple of Lord Jagannath at Puri that in no case the 'Brahma' of the deities were destroyed which continued till today. The servitors played an important role in safeguarding the Deities at the time of danger. The Kings have taken care of the temple from destruction by surrendering before the invaders. In Ayodhya, Kasi and Mathura the mosques have been built in place of the temples due to Muslim invasion. At Puri, the temple of Lord Jagannath remained standstill at the time of invasion, no mosque had been erected which is the miracle of the deities. The people of Puri have suffered but kept the temple safe.

References:

• https://magazines.odisha.gov.in/Orissareview/2011/july/engpdf/82-89.pdf

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