SHIVA TEMPLE, MANIKGANJ

Shiva Temple, Bangladesh

Amongst a large store of photography of the many hidden treasures of Bangladesh, it is a picture of this late19th Century temple that seems to arrest the attention of, far and away, the majority of visitors.

Clutched in the embrace of the sacred Bodhi tree, the remains of this sacred building seems, almost, to be a metaphor for the archaeology and rich religious history of Bangladesh.

Bodhi (Sacred Fig) Tree

It marks the considerable wealth of the country that could afford its building, not much over 100 years ago; one of literally thousands of such Hindu shrines and Temples that are sadly being neglected and left to ruin across the country.   It also seems, in its own way, to represent the unique fusion in the lands of Bangladesh of the Hindu and Buddhist religions.

Shiva Temple

The tree is regarded as sacred in many belief groups, and is often found at a social centre of communities but is especially associated with Buddhism since the Buddha himself found enlightenment beneath one such tree. Thus to have a Bo tree wrapped around the Hindu remnant seems almost symbolic. And that both appear to be not much longer for this world may sadly be just as symbolic in this country.