The open site of the Bada Akhada Mutt is a welcome sight for the sore eyes of those who support the mutt demolishing being done in Puri. As promised, the small temple, the Gadi of the Mahant, and the kitchen inside the mutt were left intact.
Mahant Harinarayan Das has been incommunicado since the demolition, a few of the initiates and disciples were wandering around with lost expressions.
I met Atmatatvananda, who told me that they had no option other than surrendering. The mutt will be allocated land elsewhere, he said, but the historic values, the chaitanya and the heritage is lost forever.
The Langali Mutt at Cuttack was one such place for the Naga Sadhus. It was built sometime in the 1870’s, on the embankment of the Kathjori, just off the Puri Ghat. Today, the only visible sign of the old mutt is a small arched entrance about 100 metres away from the Puri Ghat Police Station.
The Nagas looked fierce and formidable with their ash-smeared body, long matted hair and intense eyes. The locals used to keep a safe distance, the Nagas had quick tempers and there were many cases of skirmishes. Their nudity, chillums and aggressive behaviour instilled fear and bewilderment among the people.
Another Naga mutt on the Old Jagannath Sadak was the Lacchman Mutt in Balakati on the banks of the Daya river, the remains of which can still be seen.
The Nagas were unwelcome in the mutts of Puri, so they left for the Rath Yatra just a couple of days earlier, to reach just in time.
The Nabakalebar of 1950 witnessed violent clashes between the Naga Sadhus and the police. In the struggle, 200 Sadhus and 14 policemen were injured. It is also believed that a dozen Nagas were killed; the bodies were removed and buried. In 1954, during the Rath Yatra, a wheel of Lord Jagannath’s chariot gave way, and the chariots were stranded midway.
The next day, a group of armed Nagas forcefully climbed the Chariot of Lord Balabhadra and attacked the policemen of duty. In the clash, 190 Nagas were injured and hospitalised and many priests and policemen too were injured.
Since then, the entry of the Nagas has been banned in Puri.
The Langali mutt at Katak is under disputed ownership. The section which has the two temples is in a very bad condition. The entire complex is on the verge of collapse. The Lacchman Mutt at Balkati is an abandoned structure near the bank of the river.
It is used to store cow-dung patties by the nearby locals. These important vestiges of the Old Jagannath Sadak should be properly restored.
(The writer is a heritage researcher)
