Ambika Kalna Temples (Rajrajeshwari)

The temple town of Ambika Kalna, on the Bhagirathi in Purba Bardhaman, takes its name from the goddess Ambika, worshipped here as Rajrajeshwari. Built up by the Maharajas of Burdwan, the town holds an unusually dense cluster of brick and terracotta shrines. Chief among them is the Nabakailash, a ring of 108 Shiva temples laid out in two concentric circles in 1809.

Ambika, the goddess of the town

Kalna is prefixed ‘Ambika’ after its presiding goddess, a form of Durga venerated as Rajrajeshwari—‘queen of queens’. The goddess gives the town both its name and its devotional identity, anchoring the wider cluster of shrines.

Worship of the Mother here is woven into a townscape of temples rather than a single building, so a visit is as much about the sacred ensemble as any one sanctum.

The Nabakailash and the Burdwan Maharajas

The Maharajas of Burdwan (Bardhaman) were the great patrons of Kalna, and the town’s most famous monument is their Nabakailash temple of 1809—108 small Shiva temples arranged in two concentric rings. The outer ring alternates white and black Shiva lingas, while the inner ring completes the circle, a layout meant to evoke the abode of Shiva.

Around it stand the terracotta Pratapeswar and Lalji temples, whose brick walls carry finely modelled panels. Together these monuments make Kalna one of the densest concentrations of Bengal temple architecture along the river.

Visiting the temple cluster

The temple complexes sit close together in the town, so the Nabakailash, the Rajbari group and the terracotta shrines can be seen on foot in a single morning. Worship continues at the principal shrines, with the goddess and the Shiva lingas drawing daily devotees.

Kalna is reached by rail and road from Kolkata and Bardhaman, on the western bank of the Bhagirathi. The cooler, drier months are the most comfortable for walking between the brick temples.

Bengal terracotta craft

Kalna’s terracotta panels are its artistic signature—baked-clay reliefs that cover temple façades with scenes from the epics, deities, court life and floral borders. This was the medium of choice in a deltaic region short of building stone but rich in clay.

The detail of these panels rewards a slow look across the cluster.

list

• Nabakailash: 108 Shiva temples in two concentric rings (1809)
• Pratapeswar temple, noted for its dense terracotta narrative panels
• Lalji temple, an early jor-bangla and ras-mancha group nearby

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