The Ashok Chaitya

Ashok Chaitya (a Buddhist Cenotaph) is situated in the village so the place is named after Chaitya which later on became familiar as Chitlang. In the western part of Makwanpur district, on the lap of Chandragiri Mountain range, there is a historical village called Chitlang. The historian monument built in the period of Ashoka, the great emperor of India, Ashok Chaitya (a Buddhist Cenotaph) is situated in the village so the place is named after Chaitya which later on became familiar as Chitlang. Recently, more than four hundreds Buddhist Pilgrimages visited the place which helped in raising the public interest of this place. According to the information of an archeologist, Mr. Prakash Darna, the historical facts of the place can't be publicized without the excavation of its internal area. According to him there is a statue of Yakshya couple in the western part of the forum wall. It is 16 feet long and 8 ½ feet wide. It is anticipated that it is an ancient statue. The shape of the Ashok Chaitya is similar to that of Shayambhu Chaitya located in Kathmandu. It is assumed that the dismantling slope towards east and south of the Chaitya may cause damage to it. In front of the Chaitya, there were two stone taps but one of them has been replaced by the construction of house and the other has been resided in with a personal fence. Ancient bricks have been found around the Chaitya as it was excavated. It is believed that there was a monastery and the Buddha pilgrimage used to dwell in it. In the report prepared by well-known historian Mr. Dinesh Raj Panta, it has been claimed to be some stone scripts in the lap of the Chaitya. Had it been explored thoroughly, public would know the unrolled history of it. According to Pandit Bajracharya this Chaitya is metal-stoned monuments. In a book written by former professor Mr. Dipankar Jain, Nalanda University, India, it is said that they had taken their meal in the same place where the Chaitya is situated at their stay in Nepal. The devastating earthquake of 1990 B.S. had damaged the Chaitya and after the renovation, the front position of the statue inside the Chaitya has made faced towards south instead of north. There is high possibility that this Chaitya can be developed into an archeological site and should be protected as national heritage. The concerned authorities must take suitable steps and an extra attention should be paid for its renovation in time or we will have to remorse later. Source : Pratab Bista

Bhutandevi, the Goddess of forest

Every year in the month of April, Bisasaya Puja is organized with hundreds of devotees participating in it. Amongst many famous religious and historical places in Makwanpur district, Bhutandevi Temple, located in the southwest part of Hetauda city is one of them. Every year in the month of April, Bisasaya Puja is organized with hundreds of devotees participating in it. At the very day of the Puja, one hundred and eight pigeons, fifteen he-goats, a she-goat, a pig, a duck, a cock and a buffalo are sacrificed to the deity. There is a custom of sacrificing one hundred and twenty eight animals and birds together. Likewise, on the fourth day of the Puja, seven pairs of pigeons are also sacrificed in the nearby jungle. Hetauda and its name The name of the city, Hetauda is related with the Devil of “Mahabharata” times. In Mahabharata period, this city was known as Hedamb-nagar because a monster named Hidambasur used to live here. According to the epic Mahabharata, the monster, Hidambasur had made a rule that at least a person should come to him to be sacrificed daily. Later on “Bhima” the son of “Pandu” came to this place during his exile in order to free the people from his grip. During this period he fell in love with Hedambasur’s sister, “Hedamba” and later on got married to her. As a result they gave a birth to a male baby, “Ghatotkach”, who became very strong and powerful soldier and killed many “Kauravas” in the battle of “Kurukshetra”. As the time passed the people started calling this place Hedamba and finally this name changed to Hetauda, which is now a famous industrial city of Nepal. By: Rohit Pokharel At the time of BADAHAKIM (the zonal officer appointed by the Rana regime during the Rana period), people used to come from Chisapani fort of Bhimphedi to participate in the Bisasaya Puja. But after the dismissal of BADAHAKIM, the Puja was continued by District Administration Office till 2045 BS on behalf of the Zonal Office. But the Puja was discontinued between 2046 BS to 2053 BS and again with the effort of holy local organization and some religious people, the Puja started from 2054 BS and is still on its way. The name “Bhutandevi” is derived from “Bhatandevi”. The “Bhats” (soldiers) used to worship the deity of “Bandevi” (the goddess of forest) and so she was called “Bhatandevi” (i.e. the goddess of Bhats) and slowly the name was modified to “Bhutandevi” temple, which is now popular in fulfilling the wishes of the devotees. The another remarkable feature of the temple is that the priest of the temple is from the Rai community, while in other regions of Nepal, the priests belong to Brahmin community (the top rated caste classified by the Hindu religion). In relation to the Rai priests (which is very rare in our country) the president of the Construction Committee of Bhutandevi Temple Mr. Purna Bahadur Shrestha says, “The ancestors of the “Rais” had been claiming their rights to worship the deity of goddess Bhutandevi, which is still in practice.” The deity, Bhutandevi is mostly worshipped on Saturdays and during Dashain, (The greatest festival of Hindus that falls in the month of October). In these days the people from Hetauda and its neighboring villages come to worship with the faith of their whishes to be fulfilled. Courtesy: The Rising Nepal

The Temple of Churiyamai

Situated on the lap of Churiya Mountain range, the temple of goddess i.e. Churiyamai is one of such temples, where thousands of devotees come to worship. Either may be an emperor or a beggar there is a custom in our only Hindu country that everyone pray to the god or goddess, bowing their head, wherever they be, for the protection against forthcoming trouble. Situated on the lap of Churiya Mountain range, the temple of goddess i.e. Churiyamai is one of such temples, where thousands of devotees come to worship. According to the legendary, the temple became famous among the people after the construction of Churiya tunnel in 1965 BS. Since the tunnel is in the Churiya Mountain, the name of the temple is derived from the name of mountain getting suffix “Mai” adding on Churiya. The main temple is placed just ahead of the tunnel. But after the construction of the Tribhuvan highway a substitute temple was constructed with an image of the goddess and placed on the left near the highway. The devotees who come there to worship the goddess climb a two minutes narrow street on the hill reach to the main statue. The main devotees are those who are the owner of heavy vehicles and the drivers that run on the dangerous Tribhuvan highway. In the ninth day of Dashain (the greatest festival of Hindus) i.e. Navami, they all come to the temple and sacrifice animals to the goddess and wished for the safety. Thousands of people from the district of Bara, Parsa, Makwanpur, Rautahat and Chitwan gather on the day of Navami so it is very difficult to control the huge crowd. Time to time an accident occurs in the temple. Not only on that day but also around the year number of people especially those who purchase new vehicle go to the temple. The vehicle owners have great faith on the goddess Churiyamai. When anew vehicle is purchased it is firstly offered to the Churiyamai before commencing any business. The main temple to which all devotees pay homage worship and respect, and the tunnel territory should be preserved and developed so as to make it historical as well as beautiful heritage. And it would be a good picnic spot. All people should come hand to hand with active participation to renovate, protect and preserve the highly worshiped temple and honored tunnel that is great historical as well religious belief of Makwanpur district. A little afford has been done to develop it but that is insufficient for protecting it from changing into debris. The time has come to seriously think for preservation of innumerably pilgrim aged temple of goddess and its peacefully calm territory.

The Makwanpur Gadhi Fort

Not only for the strategic purpose but also it was the governing place of the “Sen dynasty”.

As there are many historical monuments in Nepal, which are out of sight of the concerned authority. But the Makwanpur fort is one out of those, which is being strictly taken care by the Nepal army. Having some extra ordinary features, The Makwanpur fort is very famous in the history of Nepal. Not only for the strategic purpose but also it was the governing place of the “Sen dynasty”.

The Makwanpur fort, which lies in about 17 kilometers north from Hetauda is the great achievement of the Sen dynasty. Before the unification of Nepal “The Sen dynasty” ruled over Makwanpur till 1819 B.S. The then ruler of Palpa “Mukunda Sen” divided his huge state into four parts among his four sons and so Makwanpur came under his youngest son “Lohang Sen”.

We can get a glimpse of the ruins of the palace of that period that helps us knowing more about the then sculptures and architectures. The jail for the prisoners and a golden-coated statue of Lord Krishna also force peoples to think back to the history this place. The statue of Lord Krishna, that is 5 feet in height, is one and only statue in Nepal, which is tied by an iron chain. It is said and also believed that Lord Krishna used to wander in the mustard fields of Chitwan, leaving the fort so the people tied him up by the iron chain.

The Makwanpur Fort is a precious wealth of our country as well as of Makwanpur that gives information about the history, religion and culture of ancient Nepal. Hence the concerned authorities should take steps to conserve and protect the historical resource otherwise it will remain as the ruin itself and our successors will not get an opportunity to watch the evidence of the ancient Nepal.

The another king of the same regime “Tula Sen” constructed the Makwanpur Fort during his ruling period. Later on his grand daughter, Indra Kumari was married to King Prithivi Narayan Shah of Gorkha State, who annexed Makwanpur to Gorkha in 1819.

This fort is situated at an altitude of three thousand and five hundred feet above the sea level. The Hetauda-lalitpur, Kanti Highway, which is now under construction, runs through its lap. It is remarkable that we can have a very beautiful and gorgeous sight seeing from a fort made out of stones. We can also get a clear view of Birgunj (gateway of Nepal) and Raxaul (border of India) from the fort.

There are two castles in the fort, one is called the “Mool Gadhi” (the main fort) and other is “Sanno Gadhi” (the small fort). About 35 years ago, there was a palace called “Jungey Darbar”, which had its own supernatural beauty and it was an important belonging of the “Sen Dynasty”. But instead of conserving the historical monument, the later Sen king used the palace (Jungey Darbar) for their personal uses.

Having historical and cultural importance, The Makwanpur Fort is a very precious wealth of Makwanpur district. 25 feet high and 7 feet wide wall surround the fort. There is also a 10 feet deep canal, which was constructed in order to protect themselves from the enemies.

In order to protect the fort, some soldiers are in duty. People are not allowed to take photograph of the statue. On the occasion of Lord Krishna’s birthday (Janmasthami) and Tholo-Ekadashi, a big fare is organized in the fort. People from Hetauda and its neighboring villages go there and enjoy the fare. This place is not only an important historical place but also people from Hetauda and its neighboring places go to the place for picnic. But the sad part of it is that there is a great problem of drinking water.

By: Pratab Bista

Problem of Districts

There are many problems in this district. Many problems are related with agriculture such as high pressure on agriculture, non profession production, lack of irrigation facility, application of old agriculture techniques lack of agricultural land etc. Another problem is related with education. Higher school is available only in certain part of the district. Moreover when the students complete their diploma level study. They needed to go to another cities for the continuation of their studies. People face transportation problems during rainy seasons. Most of the roads are graveled and during the rainy season. It remains closed. The people are dependent on the government for the solution to these problems.

Historical Places

This district has its own historical value. This district has been famous since the Sen Regme. So, there are many historical places in this district. Some of them are Makwanpurgadhi, Shikharkateri (The place where the war between British and Nepalese armies were fought) Chisapanigadhi and Hetauda.

Tourist Sites

Although this district has fallen back in attraction tourists, there is many worth place visiting, the most famo20us tourist site is Daman. A vision tower has been constructed there. Many tourists visit here to view the natural scenes of mountain such as Mt. Everest, Kanchanjungha, Markhu and Lhotse. Hetauda Municipality has contributed a lot to promote tourism in the district. It has constructed a Martyrs’ Memorial Park at Hetauda-11 Nawalpur. This park has played vital role to introduce this district with others. Besides there Punya Kshetra, Chisapanigadhi, Mankamana temple, Makwanpurgadhi and Markhu (Indra Sarobar Lake) are also important places from the tourism point of view. The government has recently announced for the construction of tunnel from Hetauda to Kathmandu and Kantirajpath is also under construction. It will also help to promote tourism in the district.