aknowledgement

SURGUJA

Temple carvings and archaic ruins date the history of this place to the era before Christ (BC). According to the holy books Lord Rama had visited Surguja during his fourteen years of exile and a number of places here are named after him, his brother Laxmana and wife Sita, including Ramgarh, Sita-Bhengra cave and Laxmangarh. Most of the local population is made up of the Pando and Korwa tribes, who regard themselves as descendants of the Pandavas and Kauravas (the warring clans of the epic Mahabharata) respectively.

The average altitude of the area is 600 meters.

ATTRACTION

Mahamaya Temple

This simple temple is to the east of Ambikapur town.

Thinthini Patthar

This 200 quintal rock is cylindrical in shape. When struck, you get a metallic echo, popularly believed to be divine.

Kudargarh

This place of worship, dedicated to Goddess Kudargarhi is on a hill. People come here seeking fulfillment of their wishes.

Ramgarh and Sita Bengra

Lord Rama, central character of the epic Ramayana, and his wife Sita, are believed to have stayed in these caves during their 14 years of exile. The locals know many stories about the caves, handed down through generations.

Tata Pani

This hot spring, 95 km from Surguja, flows continuously through the year. It is reputed to have medicinal properties.

Pawai Waterfall

This natural waterfall flows through the year and is a popular picnic spot.

Kendai Waterfall

This natural waterfall is on the Bilaspur road.

Deepadih

The Shankar Temple here is surrounded by 4 gods - Lord Ganesha, Lord Kartikeya, Lord Vishnu with his all avtars (forms) and Goddess MahaDurga - who are there to guard and serve Lord Shiva. Deepadih is about 70 km from Ambikapur.

Mainpat

This hill station is known for its Tiger Point waterfall and woolen fabric.

Saila Dance

Only males participate in this group dance, performed during public functions, national festivals, and political rallies, and in January after cutting the crop. All the dancers hold two hard bamboo sticks and strike the sticks of their neighbour in unison.

Suwa Dance

This is a dance by which a young girl lets a young boy know she is interested in him. When a marriageable young boy listens this song and sees the girl dancing, he sends a marriage proposal to her parents. It is also danced to please the goddess of wealth.

Karma Dance

"Karam" is a tree worshipped by the locals. According to legend, in an ancient war, only a young couple that hid in the hollow trunk of this tree was left alive, and ever since then this tree has been regarded as sacred. The karma dance is peformed according to caste, but holds the same significance across all castes.

Male and female dancers are chained together to form a circle. A branch of the karam tree is passed among the dancers as they sing and dance in praise of the karam tree. This branch should not touch the earth. At the end of the dance, it is washed with milk and rice beer and later it is planted in the middle of the dancing arena.