Pradnya Shidore (प्रज्ञा)

You cannot protect a language by reducing it to policing and performative politics. The future of Marathi depends on education, opportunity, and cultural confidence - not coercion. My latest piece for @thewire_in thewire.in/politics/why-c…

The Tulja Bhawani of Maharashtra and Nepal: The Taleju Bhawani temple is located at Kathmandu in Nepal, around 2,000km away from Tuljapur in Maharashtra. The Goddess Tulja Bhawani is worshipped in both places. Read this fascinating story of migration, religion, and cultural exchange dating back to centuries. #history #Maharashtra #Nepal #Marathi #Nepali #TuljaBhawani #Hinduism #MedievalHistory #IndianHistory #TuljaBhawani #TalejuBhawani #JaiBhawani The Goddess Tulja Bhawani is the family goddess of many in Maharashtra. Her temple is located at Tuljapur in Dharashiv (formerly Osmanabad district) of Maharashtra. Tuljapur may have originally been named as ‘Thane Chinchpur’ or ‘Chinchpur.’ The name of the Goddess may be derived from ‘Twarita’ or ‘Turja.’ The Skanda Purana mentions ‘Twarita’ as an avatar of the Goddess Mahishasurmardini. The worship of the Goddess ‘Tulaja’ may be dated to the Bahamani period as evidenced by an inscription in a Maruti temple at Kati in Dharashiv which refers to ‘Shri Tulaje Matesi.’ The worship of the Goddess Tulja may have taken place even during the rule of the Seuna Yadavas of Devgiri. The temple gained prominence during the reign of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, and was sacked by the Adilshahi general Afzal Khan. Nepal has three principal shrines to Tulja Bhawani or Taleju Bhawani as she is referred to in the country, at Kathmandu, Patan (7 km from Kathmandu) and Bhaktapur. She is the patron deity of the Newar people of Nepal. It is said that Harisimhadeva or Hari Singh Deva, the king of the Karnat or Karnataki dynasty of Mithila, built the Taleju Bhawani temple at Kathmandu in the 14th century. He was the descendant of Nanyadeva, the founder of the dynasty. Local lore suggests that these kings may have hailed from Konkan in Maharashtra, settled on the banks of the Chandrabhaga in Solapur, not too far from Tuljapur. Another version says Harisimhadeva installed the yantra of the Goddess Bhawani, which Nanyadeva had brought with him from the South, at Bhaktapur in Nepal. The Goddess is said to have given the yantra to Nanyadeva in a dream. Hence, it is possible that the kings who hailed from Maharashtra worshipped Tulja Bhawani and carried this tradition with them to Nepal. Sources: महाराष्ट्र संस्कृती: घडण आणि विकास - ह श्री शेणोलीकर प्र न देशपांडे The Goddess Who Went to Nepal - Akshay Chavan (livehistoryindia.com/story/snapshor…)