Where Her Big Toe Came To Rest, a whole village became Her shrine.
Big Toe Of Maa Sati Maa Jogadya · Singhabahini Vaisakha Sankranti fair Kaichor station · 3 miles Purba Bardhaman, Bengal
Flat rice country, a broad village tank, a road running out from Katwa: nothing warns you that this ground Is a Peetha. Then the drums of the fair reach you, and Kshirgram gathers itself around its Goddess. Here She Is Maa Jogadya, and this quiet village is counted among Her Fifty-One Seats.
The Peetha where the Big Toe Of the Right Foot Of Maa Sati Fell to earth, making Kshirgram one of the Fifty-One Shakti Peethas.
Maa Appeared in Her fierce ugra chandi form in a dream To King Haridutta, who raised Her Ten-Armed Singhabahini image in stone.
A Shakta and Shaiva village together: the Shiva temple of Kshireswar stands a little way from the tank called Kshirdighi.
The story the village tells
The old telling begins with grief: Sati, The First Consort Of Shiva, Gave Up Her Body, and Shiva carried Her across the world in mourning. Vishnu's discus parted Her Body into Fifty-One pieces, and wherever a piece touched the earth, a Shakti Peetha was born. At Kshirgram fell the Big Toe Of Her Right Foot.
For long years, the village says, the puja and the fair were held here though no image Of The Goddess existed. Then Maa Came in a dream To Haridutta, king of Kshirgram, in Her fierce ugra chandi aspect, and he had a stone image of Her Ten-Armed Singhabahini Form carved and enshrined. When that image was one day found broken, Nabin Bhaskar of Dainhat carved an exact duplicate, and the Maharaja of Bardhaman bore the cost.
What you'll actually see
1
The Ten-Armed Singhabahini
In Her sanctum Maa Jogadya Is Seen as Singhabahini, The Lion-Rider with Ten Arms, carved in stone after the king's dream. The image standing today is the exact duplicate made at Dainhat when the older one was found broken.
2
Kshireswar and Kshirdighi
A short walk brings you To the Shiva temple of Kshireswar, which stands a little away from the village tank called Kshirdighi. Shakta and Shaiva worship share this ground, and the village honors both.
3
A worship older than the image
Village memory holds that the puja and the annual fair were alive at Kshirgram before any idol stood here at all. The image came later, By Her own asking, through the dream Given To King Haridutta.
Maa Jogadya adorned in Her shrine · photos CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
The fair of the year
Vaisakha Sankranti at Kshirgram
Once a year, at Vaisakha Sankranti, the worship Of Maa Jogadya swells into a great village fair. Devotees gather for Her puja in an observance the village says is older than Her image itself. The Ugra Kshatriya community honors Her one day earlier, in places beyond Kshirgram.
Vaisakha Sankranti usually falls in mid April. Confirm the exact date and the fair days with the temple office before travelling.
Plan your visit
By rail
Kaichor station on the Bardhaman-Katwa line, about 3 miles from the village.
By road
About 23 km from Katwa on the Katwa to Burdwan road.
Where
Kshirgram village, Mongalkote block, Katwa subdivision, Purba Bardhaman district.
Timings
No published hours; confirm darshan timings with the temple office before you travel.
Main day
Vaisakha Sankranti, when the big annual fair gathers around Her puja.
Dress
Modest dress as at any Devi shrine; no formal code is recorded, so ask locally.
Good to know
The village name is also written Khirogram, and Her Name appears as both Jogadya and Yogadya.
The Ugra Kshatriya community worships Maa a day before the main observance, in places outside Kshirgram.
Kshirgram is a small village of about 2,500 people at the 2011 census; expect simple facilities and carry what you need.
Questions pilgrims ask
Which part Of Maa Sati Fell at Kshirgram?
Tradition holds that the Big Toe Of Her Right Foot Fell here, which is why Kshirgram is counted among the Fifty-One Shakti Peethas.
Is there an idol of Maa Jogadya?
Yes. After Maa Came in a dream To King Haridutta, in Her fierce ugra chandi form, a stone image of the Ten-Armed Singhabahini was made. The image seen today is an exact duplicate carved by Nabin Bhaskar of Dainhat.
When is the best time to come?
The great fair gathers at Vaisakha Sankranti, when Maa Jogadya Is Worshipped with the year's fullest devotion. For quiet darshan, come on an ordinary day and confirm timings with the temple office.
Walk the sacred map
This Is one Seat among many. Her Body Fell across the whole of the old world:
Are you a priest, trustee, or sevak of Maa Jogadya Temple? Claim this page to add true timings, festival dates, and a way for pilgrims To actually reach you.
