Maa Sharda Temple attracts pilgrims from across the country
Maihar (Madhya Pradesh):
Maihar is a city in Madhya Pradesh known for the Maa Sharda Temple and the Maihar Gharana founded by Sarod Katha Baba Allauddin Khan.
With a long, syncretic history, Maher is now looking to a different future.
The state government has directed that now Muslim employees will not be able to work in the management committee of the temple. A letter signed by Pushpa Kalesh, deputy secretary of the state’s Ministry of Religious Trusts and Endowments, asked the temple committee to comply with the direction issued on January 17 and submit a report.
Two Muslim employees working in Maa Sharda temple since 1988 may lose their jobs. This, even though state government rules say that no employee can be fired on religious grounds.
An order has also been issued to ban the sale of meat and liquor in Maihar.
Both the orders were reportedly issued after supporters of the right-wing Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal approached Usha Singh Thakur, the Minister for Culture, Religious Beliefs and Endowments, in January.
District Collector Anurag Verma, who is also the head of the temple management committee, has told the media that action will be taken as per rules. The minister could not be reached for comment.
On the surface, the order may only affect two employees. But a recap of Maher’s history shows just how deep the loss will be.
Photo credit: Prof. Rafiqul Islam, CC BY-SA 3.0
Maihar was home to Baba Allauddin Khan, the famous musician and founder of the Maihar Gharana, which produced some of the biggest names in Indian classical music. Famous disciples of Khan include Pandit Ravi Shankar, Pandit Nikhil Banerjee and his daughter Annapurna Devi and son Ustad Ali Akbar Khan.
A musician in the court of the Maharaja of Maihar, Khan is credited with composing several classical ragas. It is said that Khan used to climb the 1,063 steps leading to the Maa Sharda temple daily and play in front of the goddess. In his interviews, Pandit Ravi Shankar described how his guru’s house in Maihar was filled with pictures of Goddess Kali, Lord Krishna and Jesus Christ. That house still stands in Maihar, unchanged, even as the world outside is changing.
Khan’s legacy is not limited to his contribution to music. After an epidemic left several children orphaned, the great musician took them under his tutelage and a group called the Maher Band was formed. The Maher band continues today and is in its fifth generation.
The Maa Sharda temple in Maihar, where Khan will perform prayers and performances for the goddess, is a Shakti Peetha, one of the 51 most prominent temples for followers of the Shakti tradition. The name of the temple town comes from the belief that when Lord Shiva performed Tandav with the body of Sati, her necklace fell on the Trikuta hill, giving rise to the name of the temple and town as Maihar (meaning necklace of the mother). The temple is believed to have been built in 502 AD and attracts pilgrims from across the country.