Discover India - Sarahan

Spectacular Sarahan

Sarahan, they say, is the Shonitpur of old. And here, Banasura of legend once ruled. One night, Usha, his beautiful daughter, dreamt of a handsome and strong prince.She told her friend Chitralekha about the dream and, based on Usha's vivid descrip tion, Chitralekha drew his portrait and then vowed that she would search the world and bring that prince to Usha....

For a long time Chitralekha wandered till one day she saw Aniruddha, Lord Krishna's son. Here was the prince of Usha's dream. As Aniruddha slept, Chitralekha silently lifted his bed and carried him to Usha. But the moment Lord Krishna heard about his s on's abduction, he marched with his army against Usha's father. Banasura who had no idea what the battle was about was defeated. Then the story of the dream was told. Magnanimous as ever, Lord Krishna married his son to Usha and as dowry, gave back the defeated Banasura his kingdom.

Banasura could not have chosen a more beautiful place to rule. Even today, Sarahan in Himachal Pradesh, has a setting that only gods could have created. Far below in the valley and miles out of its source in Mansarovar, tumbles the river Sutlej. Across lies snow covered Shrikhand and a host of other white-draped peaks some so sacred that none may climb them. And it is an area closely connected with the epic Mahabharata and the exile of the Pandavas. Around Sarahan itself there are fields and orchards , small villages and unusual architecture, thick forests and fast-flowing streams.

Between the legend of Banasura and the present-day comes the presence of Bhimakaii which is what Sarahan is really about. This is one of the fifty-one sacred shaktipeeths. Ages back, a legend goes, the devotee Bhimagiri set out from Bengal to pay homage at all the places sacred to Lord Shiva and the Devi in the `Himalayas. He carried a tall staff and an image of the Devi tucked in his matted locks. When he reached Sarahan, his staff sank deep in the ground revealing an image of Bhimakali. She appeare d before him and said that this was her true home and here she would live.

As the mists of myth gave way to verifiable history, the beautiful spot of Sarahan became the capital of the princely state of Bushair. The raja moved here from Kamru, the original seat in the Baspa valley. In the 18th century another shift was made to Rampur on the lower boundaries of the state. Bushair was regarded as one of the wealthiest states of the region and was a major entrepot for trade with Tibet, L adakh, Kashmir and Khazikistan. And even after Rampur became the capital, there was no decline in Sarahan's standing. The ruling family moved here during summer and it was the entry point to Kinnaur on the old Hindustan-Tibet road.

With horizontally placed interlocking wooden beams that encase finely dressed stone, the outer walls of the Sarahan temple complex hold roughly an acre of buildings and courtyards. On one edge, in the classical shikhara style is the temple dedicated to L ord Narasingh.

Now used as a repository, the older temple of Bhimakaii has a weathered and distinguished look. During the devastating earthquake of l905, it tilted on one side but the inherent elasticity of the wood-beam structure prevented any major damage. Interesti ngly, a later one straightened the plumb to an extent. The foundations of this tower like building are said to be three storeys deep and they say that there is a disused tunnel that connects this to the village of Ranwin, a kilometre away. Through this underground passage, pundits would enter and leave the temple. Completed in 1943, by its side is the new temple with a similar architectural pattern but with heavier carving on the woodwork and a fascinating roof line. Here, along with a host of other d eities are the two images of Bhimakali; the first portrays her as a young maiden and the second, as a mature woman. Within the complex, there is also a temple dedicated to Lord Raghunath.

Easily the most resplendent example of the area's traditional architecture, the Bhimakali temple complex has attractions for the pilgrim, the decorator, the designer and for every traveller who wishes to experience something out of the ordinary. At Sarah an every nature lover can come into his own and there also is a pleasant breeding centre. Sarahan is the base for some of Himachal's finest treks. It is also the doorway to Kinnaur's untrammeled beauty; Rampur is close by as is the Nathpa-Jhakri hydel p ower project, which is going to be the largest in Asia.

There are rest houses at Sarahan and here Himachal Tourism runs the Hotel Shrikhand.

GETTING THERE
Sarahan is connected by road from Shimla (177 kilometres).
The closest rail and air heads are at Shimla.