Lucknow: A dog is considered an untouchable when it comes to religion even though a dog’s loyalty to Yudhishtra is a part of the epic Mahabharata. But, as the saying goes, every dog has his day and in Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh’s Bundelkhand region, it is not a dog but a bitch that is revered like a deity. On the link road between Revan and Kakvara villages in Mauranipur area, there is a unique religious structure — not a proper temple but a platform with the statue of a bitch.
The “temple” — Kutiya Maharani ka Mandir — came up a few years ago and the local people say that the “Kutiya” (bitch) is now the reigning deity of the area and fulfils wishes of devotees. The villagers claim that the dog deity fulfils wishes that range from good results in examinations to a good harvest, marriage proposals to getting a male children and also getting jobs.
According to the local people, the stray black bitch used to wander between the two villages Revan and Kakvara, in search of food and always reached venues of big functions and feasts. Some years ago, the bitch was unwell and hungry when it reached the venue of a function in Kakvara village. However, she was shooed away without food. The bitch, hungry and weary, returned to the road connecting he two villages and died after a few hours. The local people dug a pit and buried the bitch at some distance from the road. A few days later, people saw a mound of stone at the place where the bitch had been buried.
Kajri Devi, an elderly woman from Revan village, said, “People would try and remove the mound but it would reappear. This continued for a few days and finally the people realised that it was actually a miracle. We decided to build a temple but since we did not have money, we built a platform and got a statue of the bitch installed.” Special prayers are held at this “temple” between Dusshera and Diwali since that is the time when the bitch had died. “The devotees offer food and water to the deity and their wishes are fulfilled. Incense sticks can be seeing burning at the temple”, said Kishori Lal Yadav, who is a priest of the temple. Kusum, a young woman, vows by the powers of the Kutiya Maharani.
“My husband was jobless and we did not have money for two square meals. I offered prayers at the temple and within three days my husband got a job and today we are financially better off. I am saving money and the day I have enough, I will get a roof constructed over the temple,” she said.
