The Jayanti Shakti Peeth is situated at Village Bauorbag in Kanaighat Upazilla about 55 km away from Sylhet (originally known as Srihatta) divisional headquarters in Bangladesh. It’s believed that left thigh of Maa Sati fell in this holy place.
The temple of Baurbhag is established on about 5.90 acres of land. It is known that some local miscreants have been encroaching the bank of the temple pond for a long time. About one and a half acres of land has been grabbed, said Dilip Kairi, president of the temple management committee and local teacher Biswajit Dev Sabuj.
“Shakti” means the goddess Dakshayani, or various forms of Mahamaya Parvati who is worshipped everywhere, and “Peeth” means the sacred place. Therefore, Shaktipeeth refers to the sacred place where various parts or ornaments of the body of Goddess Sati fell after being cut by the Sudarshana Chakra (the whirling knife) of Sri Vishnu, and the temples were established.
Shaktipeeth is one kind of significant holy place or pilgrimage site in Hindu Dharma. According to Hindu scriptures, in the shrines named Shaktipeeth, various parts of the body of Goddess Dakshayani Sati are preserved in stone. Although there are generally 51 Shaktipeeths, there is disagreement in the scriptures about the number and position of the Peeths. The number of Shaktipeeths in Peethanirnaya Tantra is 51. These Shaktipeeths are located in various parts of the Indian subcontinent.
The total number of Shakti Peeths in different parts of Bangladesh is six. Let’s see the locations and puranic stories behind these Shaktipeeths in Bangladesh.
Shaktipeeths are related to a well-known Hindu religious episode. There was a king named Daksha whose daughter was Goddess Sati. When Sati grew older, she performed intense penance to attain Bhagwan Shiva as her husband. As Daksha was performing a Yajna, he invited all the gods and goddesses except Bhagwan Shiva and Sati. Sati insisted on attending the function despite the disapproval of Bhagwan Shiva.
When Sati entered Daksha’s palace, King Daksha insulted her. He said that his other daughters were more distinguished and worthy of honour than Shiva and Sati. Sati could not bear Daksha’s insulting words for her husband, Shiva. She threw herself in the glowing sacred fire of the Daksha Yajna. When news reached Bhagwan Shiva, he was enraged. He created a fierce giant named Veerbhadra from his hair and ordered him (Veerbhadra) to go and destroy the Yajna of Daksha. Veerbhadra rushed to the sacrificial area and severed the head of Daksha.
However, it was proclaimed that the Yajna should not be left incomplete. So, a head of a goat was placed to restore Daksha’s life. Shiva began to wander carrying the dead body of Sati. He started Pralay Nritya (the dance of destruction of universe.) In order to save universe and break this attachment of Bhagwan Shiva, Bhagwan Vishnu with his Sudarshana Chakra cut Sati’s body into pieces. Sati’s body pieces fell at 51 different places of the world and these are called Shakti peeths.
Among them six Shakti peeths are located at different areas of Bangladesh.
These are Jessoreshwari Shaktipeeth at Shyam Nagar Upazilla of Shatkhira District, Sugandha peeth at Barishal, Jayanti Shaktipeeth at Kanaighat in Sylhet, Bhabani Shaktipeeth at Sherpur Upazilla in Bogra, Chandra Nath Shakti Peeth at Sitakunda in Chittagong and Sri Sri Mahalaxmi Bairabi Griba Shakti Peeth at Dhakkin Surma Upazilla in Sylhet district.
