https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=MalinithanMalinithan - Revision history2026-07-30T12:24:32ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Malinithan&diff=515470&oldid=prevGeorgeNobbs1 at 06:21, 15 March 20262026-03-15T06:21:54Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Short description|Archaeological site in Arunachal Pradesh, India}}<br />
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2018}}<br />
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2018}}<br />
{{Infobox religious building<br />
| name = Malinithan<br />
| religious_affiliation = Ethnic religion<br />
| image = Malinithan2.jpg<br />
| alt = <br />
| caption = Ruins of Malinithan<br />
| map_type = <br />
| map_caption = <br />
| coordinates = {{coord|27|39|24|N|94|42|21|E|type:landmark|display=inline,title}}<br />
| country = India<br />
| state = [[Arunachal Pradesh]]<br />
| district = [[Lower Siang district]]<br />
| location = Likabali<br />
| elevation_m = <br />
| deity = Kechai-Khati/Pishasi (tribal goddess)<ref>{{harvcol|Shin|2023|p=71}}</ref><br />(equivalent to Nang Hoo Toungh)<ref>{{harvcol|Laine|2019|pp=17–18}}</ref><br />
| year_completed = 13th-14th century<br />
| architecture = <br />
| creator = [[Chutia kingdom|Chutia kings]]<br />
| website = <br />
}}<br />
<br />
[[File:Malini Than temple complex.jpg|thumb|Malinithan temple complex]]<br />
{{Assam History}}<br />
'''Malinithan''' is an archaeological site containing the ruins of an early medieval period temple on the northern bank of the [[Brahmaputra River]] in the [[Indian state]] of [[Arunachal Pradesh]]. It is assumed to be built by the [[Chutia kingdom|Chutia kings]] in the 13th-14th century.<ref>[https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/jspui/bitstream/10603/67102/11/11_chapter%203.pdf Sarma, P.C.''A study of the temple architecture of Assam from the Gupta period to the end of the Ahom rule: Chutiya architecture'', p. 205]</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.indiawijzer.nl/tourism_travelling_to_india/northeasternindia/assam/assam_mixedbag/heritage_of_architecture_of_assam.pdf |title=Choudhury, R.D, ''Heritage of Architecture of Assam'', p.5 |access-date=28 February 2020 |archive-date=28 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200228224530/http://www.indiawijzer.nl/tourism_travelling_to_india/northeasternindia/assam/assam_mixedbag/heritage_of_architecture_of_assam.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>[https://asi.nic.in/Ancient_India/recent_issues/new_series_1/article_14.pdf Sengupta, Gautam, ''Archeology in Northeast India'', p.359]</ref><ref name="jstor.org">[https://www.jstor.org/stable/44144827?read-now=1&seq=6#page_scan_tab_contents Thakur, A.K, ''Pre-historic Archeological Remains of Arunachal Pradesh and People's perception: An Overview'', p.6]</ref> <br />
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[[Kecaikhati|Kechai-Khaiti]], a tribal goddess found among the [[Bodo-Kachari people|Kachari groups]]<ref>[http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/66509/5/05_chapter%201.pdf Kechai Khati worshipped by Bodo-kacharis]</ref><ref>[http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/67118/10/10_chapter%206.pdf Rabhas worship Kechai-khati and celebrate the Kechai-khati festival once every year]</ref><ref>[http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/116438/10/10_chapter%203.pdf Kechai-khati festival of Rabhas]</ref><ref>The [[Tiwa (Lalung)|Tiwas]], as well as the [[Koch dynasty|Koch]], also worshipped Kechai Kati. The Koch general Gohain Kamal built temples dedicated to Kesai Khati in Khaspur for the Dehans who were Tiwa and [[Mech people|Mech]] soldiers from Gobha, Nellie and Kabi.</ref><ref>"There is at Sadiya a shrine of ''Kechai Khaiti'' the tutelar deity of the Kacharis, which the [[Dimasa kingdom|Dimasa]] rulers continued to worship even after the establishment of their rule in Cachar." {{Harvcol|Bhattacharjee|1992|p=393}}</ref><ref>"The most famous temple of the Chutiyas was that of Kechaikhati, their primodial female deity.{{harvcol|Dutta|1985|pp=49}}</ref> or the Buddhist goddess [[Tara (Buddhism)|Tara]]<ref>"In her fearsome self this deity bears so many resemblances to the fierce manifestation of Buddhist Tara that many scholars have suggested a Buddhist origin for her"{{harvcol|Gogoi|2011|p=236}}</ref> is considered to be the chief deity worshipped in the ruined temple. The worship of the goddess Kechaikheiti even after coming under Hindu influence was performed according to her old tribal customs.<ref>"(S)he [Kesai Khati] was incorporated into the Sanskritized cosmos of goddess tradition and as her tribal attributes were so strong to be denounced as non-Brahminical, her worship continued according to old customs."{{harvcol|Gogoi|2011|p=236}}</ref> The goddess was taken care of by tribal priest known as the [[Deori people|Deori]]s and was worshipped by the Borgoya khel of the Deoris.<ref>{{harvcol|Shin|2023|pp=70–71}}</ref> There were four different kinds of Deori priest who looked after the deity Kechaikhati. The Bar Bharali and the Saru Bharali collected dues of the temple and provides animals for sacrifice. The Bar Deori (Deori Dema) and the Saru Deori (Deori Surba) performs the sacrifice and sung hymns.<ref>{{harvcol|Shin|2023|p=70}}</ref><br />
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Some scholars identify ''Kesaikhaiti'' to the [[Khamti people|Tai Khamti]] female deity of ''Nang Hoo Toungh''.<ref>"Towards the north of the Lohit River is the Nang Hoo Toungh territory. The third phi muang is, as the prefix "nang" (lady) indicates, a female divinity. The territory it is said to protect is more easily identifiable than that of the two-previous phi muangs. Nang Hoo Toungh is known in Assamese as Kesakhati ("person who eats raw meat")."{{harvcol|Laine|2019|pp=17–18}}</ref><br />
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==Location==<br />
The Malinithan archaeological site is located at the base of the Siang mountains in the [[Likabali]] town and a sub-division of the [[Lower Siang district]] of Arunachal Pradesh.<ref name=Arun>{{Cite web|url=http://arunachalpradesh.gov.in/malinithan.htm|title=Malini Than|access-date=3 May 2015|publisher=Government of Arunachal Pradesh|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150512062032/http://arunachalpradesh.gov.in/malinithan.htm|archive-date=12 May 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Likabali|url=http://villagemap.in/arunachal-pradesh/west-siang/likabali+circle/249900.html|access-date=3 May 2016}}</ref> It is situated on a hill that rises to a height of {{Convert|21| m}}, which affords a commanding view of the plains around it and of the [[Brahmaputra River]].{{Sfn|Sali|1998|p=148}}<br />
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==Legend==<br />
A legend was implanted around the site by [[Srimanta Sankardev]] in the 16th century, connecting the place to the mythological king of [[Bhishmaka]] (Lord of [[Vidarbha]]) of the epics.<ref>"Among many works of Śaṅkaradeva, the Rukmiṇiharaṇa, the poem of Rukmimi and Krishna, gained considerable popularity in the Sadiya area and influenced its regional identity construction. Rukmiṇī, in this poem, was a daughter of king Bhīṣmaka"{{harvcol|Shin|2020|p=55}}</ref> The association of the legend with the place led to a widespread renaming of the region.<ref>"Considering the wide popularity of the Rukmiṇīharaṇa among the people, especially as the staged performance, it is not surprising that many toponyms of the area were derived from this Vaiṣṇava legend and the legendary places associated with Bhīṣmaka were reproduced in the local landscape. For instance, Vidarbha, the name of the country, once ruled by Bhīṣmaka according to the Epics and Purāṇas and perhaps identical with [[Berar Province|Behar]] in [[Maharashtra]], was applied to the area around Sadiya."{{harvcol|Shin|2020|p=56}}</ref><br />
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As per the mythology constructed, when [[Krishna]] wanted to marry [[Rukmini]], the daughter of King Bhishmaka of Vidarbha, he abducted her prior to her wedding with [[Shishupala]]. Krishna and Rukmini then travelled from Bhishmakanagar to [[Dwarka]], stopping at Malinithan on the way over, where they were guests of [[Shiva]] and [[Durga]], who were doing penance. [[Parvati]], Shiva's consort, warmly welcoming her guests, presented them with garlands made of flowers plucked from her orchard.<ref>{{harvcol|Shin|2020|p=56}}</ref><br />
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==History==<br />
From all archaeological evidences at the site, archaeologists have opined that the temple belonged to the 13th century. Stonemason marks found in Malinithan<ref name="jstor.org"/><ref>Dikshit, K.N, "Bulletin of the Archaeological Society(1997-98)", p.75</ref> were also found in other sites of [[Sadiya]] like [[Tamreswari Temple|Tamreswari temple]], Bura-buri, Padum pukhuri as well as other places like Nakshaparbat and Buroi. The boundary stone-cum-brick wall which contains the mason marks was built by the [[Chutia kingdom|Chutia king]] Muktadharmanarayan in 1442 AD. <ref>"<br />
As mentioned earlier, Mukta-dharmanarayana, who constructed the wall of Tamresvari (alias Kecaikhati, Dikkaravasini) Temple or the temple itself in AD 1442"{{harvcol|Shin|2023|p=69}}</ref><ref>"The Pãyã-Tãmresvari (Dikkaravãsiní) temple inscription announces that King Dharmanãrãyana raised in 1364 Šaka [1442 AD] a wall (prãkãra) around the temple of Dikkaravãsiní, popularly known as Tãmresvari."{{harvcol|Neog|1977|p=817}}</ref> <br />
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==Features==<br />
The archaeological excavations revealed a very well designed and carved plinth of a temple, {{Convert|8| ft}} high, with sculptures of deities and animals, designs of flowers, damaged columns and panels. Four sculptures of lions on two elephants were found at the four corners of the ruins of the temple.<br />
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Among the sculptures found at Malinthan, five notable ones carved out of granite stone are of [[Indra]] riding his mount [[Airavata]], [[Kartikeya]] riding a peacock, [[Surya]] (Sun) riding a chariot, and [[Ganesha]] mounted over a mouse and a large [[Nandi bull]].{{Sfn|Sali|1998|p=148}} On the basis of the erotic [[Maithuna]] sculptures found here in different postures, it is believed that [[Tantra|tantricism]] prevailed here as a fertility rite of the primitive tribal people who held the "mother principal as the procreative power of nature".<ref>{{Cite book |title=Religious history of Arunachal Pradesh |date=2008 |publisher=Gyan Pub. House |others=Byomakesh Tripathy, Sristidhar Dutta, Rajiv Gandhi University. Department of History, Indian Council of Social Science Research |isbn=978-81-212-1002-7 |location=New Delhi |pages=351 |oclc=263065510}}</ref><br />
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The temple is carved entirely out of stone, a type of temple known as ''Asmamayai''. Iron dowels discovered in the ruins of the stone temple resembles the ones found in the Tamreswari temple of Sadiya, showing that it was probably built by the same people.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=58i0me3mj2YC&dq=tamreswari+temple+granite&pg=PA348 Religious History of Arunachal Pradesh by Byomakesh Tripathy, p.354]</ref><br />
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==Gallery==<br />
<gallery mode="traditional"><br />
File:Malini than Mother godess scuplture.jpg|Malinithan Mother goddess sculpture<br />
File:Gaja-singha of Malini Than.jpg|Gaja-singha of Malinithan<br />
File:Malini than Shiva sculpture.jpg|Malinithan Buddhist [[Tara (Buddhism)|Tara]] sculpture<br />
File:Malini than Kartika scuplture.jpg|Malinithan Kartika sculpture<br />
File:Malini than Apsara scuplture.jpg|Malinithan Apsara sculpture<br />
</gallery><br />
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==References==<br />
{{Reflist}}<br />
<br />
==Bibliography==<br />
*{{citation |last1=Shin|first1=Jae-Eun|year=2023|title=Kecaikhaiti, Eater of Raw Flesh: A Profile of the Multifaceted Goddess in the North-East|publisher=Manohar Publishers & Distributors}}<br />
* {{citation|last=Laine|first=Nicolas|url=https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02344765/document|title= Phi Muangs. Forces of the Place among the Khamti in Arunachal Pradesh|date=2019}}<br />
* {{cite book|last= Sali |first=M. L. |title=India-China Border Dispute: A Case Study of the Eastern Sector|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z6y2E9gw5oIC&pg=PA148|date=1 January 1998|publisher=APH Publishing|isbn=978-81-7024-964-1}}<br />
* {{Citation |last=Bhattacharjee |first=J. B. |contribution=The Kachari (Dimasa) state formation |editor-last=Barpujari |editor-first=H. K. |title=The Comprehensive History of Assam |volume=2 |pages=391–397 |publisher=Assam Publication Board |place=Guwahati |year=1992}}<br />
* {{Citation |last=Dutta |first=Sristidhar |title=The Mataks and their Kingdom |publisher=Chugh Publications |place=Allahabad |year=1985}}<br />
* {{cite journal|last1=Shin|first1=Jae-Eun|year=2020|title=Descending from demons, ascending to kshatriyas: Genealogical claims and political process in pre-modern Northeast India, The Chutiyas and the Dimasas|journal=The Indian Economic and Social History Review|volume=57|issue=1|pages=49–75|doi=10.1177/0019464619894134|s2cid=213213265}}<br />
* {{Cite journal| last = Gogoi| first=Kakoli| title = Envisioning Goddess Tara: A Study of the Tara Traditions in Assam | journal= Proceedings of the Indian History Congress| volume=72 | year=2011| pages= 232–239| jstor=44146715|issn= 2249-1937}}<br />
* {{Cite journal|last=Neog|first=Maheswar|title=Light on a Ruling Dynasty of Arunachal Pradesh in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries|date=1977|journal=Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute|volume=58/59|pages=813–820|jstor=41691751|issn=0378-1143}}<br />
[[Category:Shiva temples]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu temples in Lower Siang district]]<br />
[[Category:Shiva temples in Arunachal Pradesh]]<br />
[[Category:13th-century Hindu temples]]<br />
[[Category:14th-century Hindu temples]]</div>GeorgeNobbs1