Location: Umaria District Map
Constructed: no latter than 3 century BC
Bandhavgarh Fort is an ancient military fortification situated in Umaria District in India within grounds of the Bandhavgarh National Park. It was constructed no latter than 3 century BC.
There is no information as to when exactly the Bandhavgarh Fort was
built. Some sources in ancient writings, such as the Narad-Panch
Ratra and the Shiva Purana envisage occupation of the site for some
2000 years.
Local folklore suggests that the Bandhavgarh Fort was built by the
rulers of the Gond kingdom who ruled Gondwana. The kings of Gond of
the Pandro caste would be the initial builders of this fort and the
descendants of the kings of Gond would still live near the fort. The
Kings of Gond dug 12 talab ponds, only a few of which remain. The
construction and architecture of the fort are similar to the other
forts built by the Kings Gond.
Vanganga stream comes from the hill of Bandhavgarh Fort. In gondi,
van means family name and ganga is freely translated as pure water.
Bandhavgarh Fort takes its name from the most prominent hill in the
region, which legend says was entrusted by the god Rāma to his
brother Lakshmana to oversee Lanka the fortress island of the
legendary demon king Ravana. Hence the name Bandhavgarh (bandhav =
brother, garh = strong).
At one time, the fort was the business center for traders traveling
between Kosambi and Bharhut. During the Kalachuri dynasty he was
called "Haihay Kshetra".
The Vakataka dynasty (2nd to 5th century AD) used this place,
various carved inscriptions bear witness to this. They made the
place habitable by leveling certain rocks. Some remains of the fort
have been found on the hill of Bamania near Bandhavgarh and there
are many sculptures and coins scattered in the neighboring villages,
Bijhariya, Mala, which attest to the domination of this kingdom.
Several dynasties reigned, however, over the fort; In particular,
the Mauryas from the second century BC. AD, Vakataka, Sengars - a
Rajput clan - since the fifth century, then the Kalachuris of
Tripuri in the tenth century.
During the reign of Karan Deo (1245 - 1260 according to the Vikram
Samvat calendar), Bandhavgarh was the capital of the southern part
of the Gahora kingdom.
The principality of Rewâ owes its origins to the foundation of a
State in 1234 by Vyaghra Dev, a descendant of the Vâghelâ of
Gujarat. He married the daughter of Raja de Pirhawan and conquered
the territory between Kalpî and Chandalgarh. Karan Dev, son of
Vyaghra Dev, married the daughter of the Raja of Ratanpur who
brought as dowry Bandhogarh (now Bandhavgarh).
In the 13th century, the Baghela ruled Bandhavgarh until 1617, when
Maharaja Vikramaditya Singh moved his capital to Rewâ.
The last inhabitants deserted the fort in 1935.
Bandhavgarh Hill is a plateau located 250 m above sea level,
approximately 7 km in circumference and 2 km in its greatest east-west
dimension.
There remain a few statues representing the
reincarnations of Vishnu (avatar), fish and turtle. Several artificial
ponds - presumably former water reservoirs - are still visible on the
hill, such as the Rani Talab (Queen's Pond).
There are 39 caves
in Bandhavgarh Fort and surrounding hills within a radius of about 5 km.
The oldest cave dates from the 1st century. Several caves bear
inscriptions in Brahmi script]. Some caves have relief carvings
depicting tigers, wild boars, elephants and horsemen. Badi gufa, the
largest cave, has a wide entrance, nine small rooms and several pillars.
It was dated to the 10th century. The cave appears to be primitive,
without the elaborate statues and carvings seen in Buddhist period caves
and its purpose is a mystery.
800 m east of the fort one can see
a gigantic idol of Vishnu reclining on Ananta the naga, called “Shesh
Shaiya”.
A promontory called “Suicide Point”, allowed, with luck,
to see vultures in flight, some of which nest in the remains of one of
the two temples of the fort. It was also a great bird watching spot in
the park.
However, since 2012, it is no longer possible to visit
Bandhavgarh Fort, as the Madyar Pradesh Forest Department no longer
grants permission to anyone. Only the large statue of Vishnu at the base
of the fort can be visited.