Mata Matha Puri

The Mata Matha Puri is an ‘Ashram’ (Hermitage or Monastery) located in the city of Puri, at an approximate distance of 67.6 kilometres from the city of Bhubaneshwar. Tourists often include this monastery in many Puri Tour Packages, along with a full tour of Puri and its many wonders. This Ashram is located 500 metres from the famous Jagannath Temple. It is a very serene place to relax after a day of travelling to the many places nearby indeed. It makes this Ashram a very popular site for a visit among all the Places to visit in puri.

The main “Math” has various idols of Gods and Goddesses like Goddess Kali, The Shiva Linga, Lord Vishnu, Lord Hanumana etc. The construction of the whole area enclosing the Mata Matha Puri is significant and thematically in the form of a park-like structure where you can find these various idols nearby within intervals, spread out throughout the entire space. 

Mata Matha Puri History

Historically placing, the construction of the temple of Mata Matha Puri dates back to the 16th Century CE during the reign of king Mukundadeva belonging to the Suryavamsi Gajapati Dynasty indeed. The structure of the Mata Matha Puri is two-storeyed. The temple belongs to the Gaudiya sect of religion which is a part of Vaishnavism ( also known as Gaudiya Vaishnavism or Chaitanya Vaishnavism). Though the whole of the monastery is open and living, the authority uses only a part of the monastery for various religious activities. The rest of the monastery is in a shabby and torn down condition due to years of lack of maintenance.

The matha also has a beautiful courtyard surrounded by pillars and a verandah indeed. These verandahs followed towards the eastern, southern and western sides, revealing living rooms inside. The matha has many paintings inside it, apart from the many idols. One can observe paintings of Chaitanya, Yasoda, Narasimha, Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra etc., all over the monastery. Spread over an area of approximately 2.5 metres, the Mata Matha Puri faces the North indeed. Occasions such as the Lalita Saptami, Dol Purnima and Janmashthami are observed regularly every year here indeed.