Maa Mangala Temple is one of the 12 Shakti peeths of Odisha located on the Eastern Coast of Odisha and the Eastern Bank of Holy River named “The Prachi” in a small village named Katakpur. The temple is a symbol of ancient heritage of Kalinga which was built in the 15th century.
Legend:
The evolution of the name of “Maa Mangala” emerges from a legend which is believed by the locals of the Katakpur village. It is said that Goddess Mangala kept herself hidden deep under river Prachi. Once a boatman was sailing across the river but as the river was flooding and outpouring he was unable to sail his boat to the middle of the river so he had to spend his whole day waiting. Next day, before the dawn Goddess Mangala came in his dream and asked him to recover from the water and set establish her in the nearby village of Mangalapur. The boatman immediately dived into the river and found the deity from the bed of the river and then established the figure of the deity in the Mangalapur village. After doing that he saw a crow diving in the water and not come back for days, the crow detained inside the river at the same place where he recovered the figure of Goddess Mangala.
In the local Oriya language- ‘KAKA’ means Crow and Detained means ‘ATKA’ so by combining it becomes KAKA-ATKA and so the village where Maa Mangala temple is established is known as Kakatapur.
Architecture:
The temple is formed in a typical Kalinga style and is a major attraction for devotees of Shakti cult. There is a bed made of solid stone for Maa Mangala where she rests after touring the entire universe every day. Now the bed looks worn out in the same way it would if it were in use for centuries.
How to Reach:
Maa Mangala temple is well connected by roads and the nearest railway station and airport is in Bhubaneswar.
