Bhairavnath temple, Sasvad

Saswad is a village with a rich history. Within it, there are large palaces, known as wāḍās, built during the late Marāṭhā period by saradārs like Purandare and Mehendale. The village also boasts several stunning temples, including Sangameśvara, Cangā Vaṭeśvara, Gaṇapatī, and Mārutī. All of these buildings are excellent examples of late Marāṭhā art and architecture.

Kalabhairava Temple: The temple is located in the heart of Saswad. Palaces surround it, and the Karha River flows nearby. Two history scholars, Shivajirao Ekke and M.S. Mate, have written about this temple in their books. Legend has it that during the battle of Khalad Belsar, Shivaji Mahārāj’s horse was bitten by a snake. In response, he sought the ritual verdict of Bhairavanātha, who at the time was worshipped at a small temple located at Girme Ali in Saswad. Today, an image of Bhairavanātha in the form of tāndaḷā can still be found there. Later, Shivaji Mahārāj built a new temple to fulfil his vow, and Ahilya Devi Holkar added platformed apartments and a fencing wall around it. This information is as per the temple priest.

The presence of kettledrums in the Bhairavanātha temple carries an anecdote that is still recounted by the temple's priests. According to the story, these kettledrums were originally brought to Saswad by Mehendale Saradār for his palace. However, a complaint was lodged at the Peśavā Darbar in Pune, asserting that Mehendale was not deserving of such an honour. To navigate this controversy, Mehendale then relocated the kettledrums to the Bhairavanātha temple, asserting that they were intended for worship. 

This temple is unique, as it contains images of both Bhairavanātha and Kāḷabhairavanātha. Every twelve years during the Nashik Kumbha Meḷā, thousands of Nāthpanthī ascetics, known as Navanāth Jhuṇḍi, visit the temple and stay for two days.

An outer view of the temple 

Architecture: The plan of this building consists of ‘garbhagṛha and sabhāmaṇḍapa’. This building is on a high plinth and it has a fencing wall from all sides. There is an arrangement of platformed apartments also. In front of the main temple, there are wooden pillars and a gallery on them. It is a very distinctive construction. There are trees of Spanish cherry and Frangipani near the temple. Two banyan trees are out of the fencing wall.

Garbhagṛha: The entrance to the garbhagṛha is covered with glasswork. Therefore, the engraving on its frame is not visible. There is Gaṇapatī is on the lalāṭabimba of the entrance. Images of Bhairava, Jogeśvarī and Kāḷabhairava are on the central pedestal, adjacent to the back wall of the garbhagṛha. There are two small arched rooms and two devakoṣhṭhas in the garbhagṛha. Its roof is dome-shaped. The temple has no antarāḷa.

Sabhāmaṇḍapa: The sabhāmaṇḍapa of the temple is notable for its absence of pillars, a feature that suggests an influence of Islamic architecture. The maṇḍapa is accessible through three doors located in the east, west, and south directions. Kīrtīmukhas are carved on the thresholds of each of these entrances, with Gaṇapatī figures adorning the lalāṭabimbas. Additionally, bilvapatra motifs are engraved on the uttrāṅga of the east and west doors.

Adding to the complexity of the sabhāmaṇḍapa's design, two smaller, dwarf doors are situated beside the southern main entrance. Inside the maṇḍapa, the walls are adorned with carvings of eight straight snakes, complemented by 16 different floral motifs. The space also includes six niches, with a tortoise sculpture at its center, which is a norm in any Marāṭha period temples.

Bhairava

The outer side of the temple: The main structure of the temple is on the adhiṣṭāna. The maṇḍapa of the temple is square on the outside and the garbhagṛha is hexagonal. There are no special images carved in the upper portion of the temple except for a few engravings. The temple has śikharas on the garbhagṛha and sabhāmaṇḍapa. Both the śikharas are originally in Marāṭhā style and restored later. There are no images on them. 

The temple is on a high plinth. It has a high fencing wall from all sides. This fencing wall consists of platformed apartments at the south, east and west. The main entrance is on the south side of the wall. There is a nagārakhānā like structure above the door. The door is square and has Gaṇapatī on the lalāṭabimba. There is another small door in the wall on the north side. There is a circular brass platter inside the temple entrance. It is called the back of the tortoise. Sūryadevatā, 12 rāśīs (zodiac signs) and 27 nakṣatras (constellations) are engraved on it.

Śikharā

Lamp pillars: There are two dīpamāḷas on the hexagonal and square platforms inside the fencing wall. Some images of Gaṇapatī are kept in a small dome nearby. Two dīpamāḷas and a karpurastambha are in front of the temple, outside the fencing wall.

Dīpamāḷas

Loose images: The front wall of the temple features carvings of two kevala śarabhas, each adorned with wings. The design of these śarabhas shares similarities with the śarabhaśilpas found on the Cangā Vaṭeśvara temple. On the eastern side of the temple's garbhagṛiha, there is a gomukha. Additionally, images of the navagrahas (nine planets) are displayed in the platformed apartments of the temple's eastern side fencing wall.

Moving to the western side, the apartments house an array of deities and symbols. These include images of Dutta, Tuḷajābhavānī, Viṭṭala-Rakhumāī, śivaliṅga and Nandī (Kāśīviśveśvara Mahādeva), Gajalakṣamī, pādukās of Śrī Rāma, Gorakṣanātha, Bhairavanātha, Jogeśvarī, as well as the horse of Bhairavanātha, Khanḍobā Mhāḷasāī, and Dāsa Mārutī. It's worth noting that the majority of these images are modern. Outside the temple fencing, under a banyan tree, are additional images of Gaṇapatī and two śivaliṅgas.

Sculptures

Inscription: There is an inscription on the bell in front of the temple. It is in Latin language and carved in Roman script. There is no date on the bell. It has the gospel of the Catholic sect engraved on it. It is ‘AVE GRATIA PLENA DOMINVS TECVM’, which means ‘Hail (Mary) Full of grace The Lord is with thee’. During the late Marāṭhā period, the Marāṭhās conquered the Portuguese. At that time, many bells from their churches were donated to Hindu temples. This bell should be one of them. It may have been offered to the temple by Ambajipant Purandare, a nobleman of the Peśavās.

A front view of the temple.

Concluding Remarks: This temple serves as a distinctive representation of late Marāṭhā period architecture. While it belongs to the same era as the Sangameśvara and Cangā Vaṭeśvara temples, the design of the Bhairavanātha temple diverges from those counterparts. It is suggested that certain practices prevalent among the Nātha sectarians might also be associated with this temple. Furthermore, the temple is a recognized seat for Girī Gosāvī ascetics.

As with other prominent temples in Saswad, this one is also erected on a high plinth. One noteworthy feature is the application of glass carving on the garbhagṛiha entrance and under the vitāna of the sabhāmaṇḍapa. This decorative choice has the unfortunate effect of obscuring the original stone carvings. Moreover, a varnish has been applied to the stones, a treatment that could potentially be detrimental to the material.