Mata Chintpurni (Chhinnamastika) Temple

Chintpurni, Una district, Himachal Pradesh

Devta dhams

About

Mata Chintpurni temple stands on the Sola Singhi hills in Una district of Himachal Pradesh, near the Punjab border. In the sanctum the Devi is worshipped as a round stone pindi. Her name is understood as 'the Mother who takes away worries'. She is also called Maa Chhinnamastika, a form of Shakti counted among the ten Mahavidyas. By tradition the temple is one of the Shakti Peeths. It is also a stop on North India's 'nau devi' yatra, along with Jwala Ji, Naina Devi and Vaishno Devi. Devotees cover their heads for darshan and offer halwa, coconut, a red chunri and a flag.

The story

The old name of this village was Chhaproh. Tradition says that many generations ago a Saraswat Brahmin named Mai Das was a great devotee of the Mother. She gave him darshan and took away his worries; he began her worship here, and the place came to be known as Chintpurni. Mai Das's descendants still serve as the temple's priests. A stone at the main gate marks the spot where Mai Das received darshan. An old belief holds that the dham of Maa Chhinnamastika is guarded by Rudra Mahadev on all four sides, and four Shiv temples stand around Chintpurni: Kaleshwar Mahadev to the east, Narahana Mahadev to the west, Muchkund Mahadev to the north and Shiv Bari to the south. In the Shakti Peeth tradition, a part of Devi Sati fell here; some say her feet, others her forehead.

Visiting

Spring and autumn are pleasant; the three Navratri melas bring very large crowds. The temple is about 3 km from Bharwain on the Hoshiarpur–Dharamshala road; from the bus stand a path of about 1.5 km leads up, the last part by steps. Cover your head in the temple. Nearby are Jwalamukhi, Brajeshwari Devi at Kangra, Chamunda Devi, and Baba Balak Nath at Deotsidh.

Festivals

Chaitra Navratri mela
Shravan mela (Sawan Shukla Paksha, Navratri)
Ashwin (Sharad) Navratri mela

Devta dhams

Sources