The 588th Coronation day of the Suryavamsi King Gajapati Kapilendra Deva was celebrated at Cuttack and Bhubaneswar on Thursday. The event was held at Kapali Mutt near Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneswar and Bada Thakura Temple of Gopinathpur Sasana village of Jagatpur block of Cuttack jointly by the Rediscover Lost Heritage (RLH Group), Maa Jageswari Club, Silver City Cuttack (SCC) Public Charitable Trust and Indian National Trust for Art & Cultural Heritage (INTACH).
Speaking on the occasion, Deepak Kumar Nayak, Heritage Researcher & Founder Member of RLH group said Kapilendra Deva was undoubtedly the greatest king from Odisha after Mahameghavahana Aira Kharavela. He established the large Odia kingdom that spanned over a vast region from the Ganga in north to Kaveri in south. As per available historical information, his coronation took place on June 29, 1435 CE. Unfortunately, Indian history has not given due credit this great emperor deserves.
According to local lore, the Gajapati’s coronation happened at the Papanasini Temple. An image depicting a royal procession is fixed at wall of Kapali Mutt which contains an Odia inscription mentioning name of 'Kapileswara Deba Raja' and his 17th regal year. At the Bada Thakura Temple, a stone inscription containing 30 lines written in Odia sheds light on the Digbijaya (military) glory of the emperor. This temple had been demolished during the Moghul invasion.
Anil Dhir, Convenor of INTACH Bhubaneswar Chapter, said Odishan history textbooks need a revamp in showcasing Odia pride and contributions of medieval-era Gajapati Kings. The history curriculum should give more focus on the success and contributions of Gajapati Kings like Narasingha Deva, Kapilendra Deva, Mukunda Deva, Ramachandra Deva I, etc. The places where the commemorations were held are in an extremely pathetic and neglected state.
INTACH’s Dr Biswajit Mohanty was surprised that the work on renovating the demolished temple at Gopinathpur was started by the State Archaeology Department, but surprisingly it was stopped midway. The department should work actively for the proper conservation of these two historic sites related to the great emperor, he said.
Akash Pattanayak, president of Silver City Cuttack Public Charitable Trust, and Prafulla Kumar Swain, member of Maa Jageswari Club, have demanded erection of statues of Kapilendra Deva both at Cuttack and Bhubaneswar as sign of Odia pride and glory.
