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Shardiya Navratri (Shardiya Navratri 2026), the festival of worship of Shakti, has special significance in Sanatan Dharma and Hindu culture. These days, there is a rush of devotees in the Shaktipeeths and temples of Maa Durga across the country. But do you know that there is such a unique and only temple in India, where the idol of Maa Durga is completely different from the traditional idols and is very special? Located in Jajpur, Odisha Temple of Maa Biraja Devi (Biraja Temple) This is the only Shaktipeeth in the country, where Mother Durga is seated with not 8 or 10 but only two arms, killing Mahishasura.
18th Shaktipeeth and the place of mother Sati’s navel
This holy temple of Maa Birja Devi, located on the banks of the holy Baitarani river in the historical city of Jajpur in Odisha, is considered to be the 18th Shaktipeeth out of the 51 Shaktipeeths of the country. According to religious beliefs, the navel of Mother Sati had fallen at this holy place, due to which the spiritual and tantric importance of this place is very high. According to mythology, Mother Parvati appeared from the fire of a huge yagya performed by Brahma Ji, who was named ‘Birja’ by Brahma Ji. This entire area is situated in the shape of a triangle, which is protected by Lord Shiva himself from all three directions, while Mother Birja is seated right in the middle.
The only form of Goddess Durga with two arms
The biggest and unique feature of this temple is the statue of Maa Durga installed here. Generally you must have seen such statues of Goddess Durga in which she has 8, 10 or more hands and they are equipped with weapons. But the standing statue of Maa Durga installed in Birja temple is only two handed Is. A wonderful scene can be seen in the statue where Maa Durga is holding the tail of the demon Mahishasura with one of her left hands and is killing him by piercing his chest with the trident held in the other right hand. Apart from this, the crown of Maa Birja is also very special, on which micro statues of Lord Ganesha, Nagraj Vasuki, Yoni along with Shivling and Moon are carved. This crown symbolizes the wonderful coordination of different sects of Hindu religion.
16 day grand Durga Utsav and Rath Yatra
On the auspicious occasion of Shardiya Navratri, this temple has a special glow as compared to normal days. A grand Durga festival is celebrated here during Navratri which lasts for 16 days. During this time, Rath Yatra of Maa Birja is taken out on a very attractive and grand chariot called ‘Singh Dhwaj’, which is the biggest specialty of this Shaktipeeth. Apart from this, a special festival is also organized on the new moon day of Magh month i.e. Triveni Amavasya to commemorate the emergence of the Goddess from the Yagya Kund. There is also a magnificent museum in the temple complex, in which the story of the goddess and the scenes of the appearance of Mahalakshmi, Mahakali and Mahasaraswati have been beautifully depicted.