'588th Coronation day of Gajapati Kapilendra Deva celebrated in Cuttack, Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], June 30 : The 588th Coronation Day of the Great Suryavamsi King Gajapati Kapilendra Deva was celebrated at Cuttack and Bhubaneswar by different cultural groups on Thursday.

The event was commemorated at Kapali Mutt near Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneswar and the Bada Thakura Temple of Gopinathpur Sasana village at 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 and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), Bhubaneswar Chapter.

The groups had been celebrating the coronation since last year.

Speaking on the occasion, Deepak Kumar Nayak, Heritage Researcher and Founder Member of RLH Group, said that "Gajapati Kapilendra Deva was undoubtedly the greatest King from Odisha after Mahameghavahana Aira Kharavela. He established the large Odia Kingdom, which spanned a vast region from the Ganges in the North to Kaveri in the South. As per available historical information, his coronation took place on June 29, 1435 CE. Unfortunately, Indian history has not given this great emperor the due credit and accolades that he deserves. Historic places having connections with Gajapati Kapilendra Deva's reign have been selected to celebrate this historic day."

According to local lore, the Gajapati's coronation happened at the Papanasini Temple. An image depicting a royal procession is fixed to the wall of Kapali Mutt, which contains an Odia inscription mentioning the name of 'Kapileswara Deba Raja' (Kapilendra Deva) and his 17th regnal year. Similarly, at the Bada Thakura Temple in Gopinathpur Sasana village of Cuttack, a stone inscription containing 30 lines written in Odia sheds light on the Digbijaya (military) glory of the celebrated emperor. This Sasana village had been established by Gopinath Mahapatra, a warrior minister of Kapilendra Deva. The temple had been demolished during the Moghul invasion.

Anil Dhir, the Convenor of INTACH Bhubaneswar Chapter, has said that "Odishan history textbooks need a revamp to showcase Odia pride and the contributions of mediaeval era Gajapati Kings. The history curriculum should give more focus to highlighting 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. Both the inscription slabs are exposed to weathering and have already eroded to a great extent."

Dr Biswajit Mohanty said that the work on renovating the demolished temple at Gopinathpur was started by the State Archaeology Department, but surprisingly, it was stopped mid-way.

The State Archaeology Department should work actively for the proper conservation of these two historic sites related to the great emperor, Mohanty said.

Akash Pattanayak, the President of Silver City Cuttack Public Charitable Trust, and Prafulla Kumar Swain, a founder member of Maa Jageswari Club, have demanded the installation of statues of Gajapati Kapilendra Deva both at Cuttack and Bhubaneswar as a sign of Odia Pride and glory.

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