There is a tradition prevalent in the areas situated on the banks of Ganga. According to this, in case of death due to snake bite, the dead body is thrown into the Ganges river. It is believed that by doing this the person comes back alive after a few months or years. Although there is no evidence of any such incident, the seeds of this belief are hidden in a folk tale related to Mata Mansa Vishahari.
In the months of Sawan and Bhado, Mata Mansa Vishahari is worshiped with great pomp in the old Anga districts (Bhagalpur, Banka, Munger, Begusarai, Khagaria and Lakhisarai of Bihar). During this period, fairs are organized at various places near the temples of Vishahari Mata for about a week. According to Hemant Kashyap, spokesperson of Vishhari Temple Central Puja Committee of Bhagalpur, this time Vishhari Puja is on 17th and 18th August. In the fair, folk stories related to Mata Mansa Vishhari and Sati Bihula are shown through tableaux.
Bhagalpur is the center of the story of Bihula-Vishahari.
The center of the story of Bihula-Vishhari is Bhagalpur, a city of Bihar situated on the banks of Uttarwahini Ganga. In ancient times it was called Champanagari. Bhagalpur was also the center of the old Anga region (Anga district). In the story of Bihula-Vishhari, Mother Mansa Vishhari has been described as the daughter of Lord Shiva. It is said that Vasuki Naga had asked Shivputri to test an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva to establish himself on earth. That devotee was a renowned businessman from Champanagari (present day Bhagalpur). His name was Chandradhar. People also called him by the name of Chando Saav or Chandradhar Saudagar. He considered Lord Shiva worshipable and worshiped him only.
Chando Sav’s trade extended to Sinhala Island (Lanka) and beyond. He was a big silk businessman. He used to load the famous silk of Bhagalpur on his ship and take it to other countries by sea route through river Ganga and trade there. In this way, Bhagalpuri silk was very famous not only today but even thousands of years ago and it was in demand even in foreign countries.
Once before setting out on a similar trading expedition, Chando the merchant was preparing to worship Lord Shiva. During that time one night he had a dream. In his dream he saw that he was entering the river Ganges to take bath. Then he saw a female shadow. A voice came from that shadow saying, Chandradhar, you worship me. I am the daughter of Lord Shiva. Therefore, you also worship me once.
Mother Manasa Vishahari was born from the hair of Lord Shiva.
That shadow introduced herself that she was the daughter of Lord Shiva, born from the broken hair of Mahadev while taking bath. Manasa, Vishahari, Jaya, Dotila, Bhavani and Padma. Vasuki Nag has told her that if Chando Saav of Champanagari worships you, then you will become worshiped in the entire earth. On this Chando Saav just said that he cannot worship anyone except Mahadev. Because he has considered Lord Shiva as his deity.
According to the folklore of Mata Vishahari, when Chandradhar refused to worship her, the mother said that the consequences would be bad. After this Chandradhar Saudagar left on his business expedition. He also had six sons with him. When Chandradhar used to go to other countries for business, he used to take dozens of ships with him loaded with goods. It mainly contained silk. There were also hundreds of sailors and laborers.
Mother Vishahari had sunk all the ships of Chandradhar merchant.
It is said that when Chando Sav along with all his boats and sons landed in the sea near the Bay of Bengal. Then Mata Vishahari again started asking for worship from him. This time also Chando Saav refused to worship him. After this, Vishahari sank all the ships one after the other in the sea. Chando Saav’s six sons also drowned in the sea along with all the sailors and silk. Only Chando Saav survived. After this, Chando Saav had decided not to worship Vishhari under any circumstances.
Then Bala Lakhinder was born
After the death of Chando Saav’s six sons, a mountain of adversities fell upon him, but he did not waver from his devotion to Lord Shiva. He did not leave the worship of Mahadev under any circumstances. Many years passed, but Chando Saudagar could not recover from this sorrow. His everything was over. After a few years, a lamp of hope lit up in their house and Chandradhar’s wife gave birth to a son.
He was named Bala Lakhinder. Soon time passed and Bala turned 15 years old. Now Chando merchants also started focusing on their business like before and became immersed in devotion to Shiva even more than before. Meanwhile, one day a wise man came to Chandradhar Saudagar’s house and said that a calamity would befall Bala on his wedding day. If he escaped trouble that day, nothing would ever happen to him again.
Bala got married to Bihula at the age of 16.
When Bala Lakhinder turned 16, his marriage was fixed with a girl named Bihula. Here, preparations for the wedding started and Chandradhar’s worries increased. He started taking measures to keep Bala safe on the wedding night. It is said that Chandradhar Saudagar built a house made of iron and bamboo for the first night of his son’s marriage with Vishwakarma Shilpi, which was completely safe. Mother Vishhari had scared Vishwakarma and asked him to leave a space of just a inch to enter inside that house.
Nag Bala died on the wedding night
According to the story, when Bala Lakhinder and Bihula reached the Loha Bans house at night after the marriage, the snake Maniyar also went inside by just a thread’s length. Mata Vishahari had sent him. After this, the snake Maniyar bit Bala during the night and he died.
Bihula had resolved to bring her husband back to life.
After this, Bala’s widow Bihula decided to bring her husband back to life. He had full faith in his own chastity and dedication. He believed that when he did not commit any mistake then why was he punished for the mistakes of others (Chandradhar Saudagar). With just this in mind, she started floating along with her husband’s dead body, sitting on a manjusha (a boat-like box that floats in the river).
For months, floating in the river Ganga with the help of a palanquin, it reached its end. Where the sea begins. According to the story, she left Manjusha at the end of river Ganga and after keeping her husband’s mortal remains at a safe place on the river bank, she went inside the forest with a yogini. According to the folk tale, Yogini took Bihula to Kamakhya temple. From there he left his body for the gods and then met Mata Vishahari.
Bala was brought back to life with the blessing of Mata Vishahari.
He again asked the same question to Mother Mansa Vishahari as to why he got such punishment. Seeing Bihula’s loyalty and dedication, Mansa Devi gave her three boons. It is said that Bihula, through a boon, asked for the life of her husband and his six brothers from Mata Mansa Vishahari. All of them were sons of Chandradhar Saudagar. Also asked to return all the money and sunken ships of Chandradhar Saudagar. After this, Bihula returned to Champanagar with her surviving husband and his brothers via river Ganga.
Chandradhar merchant worshiped Mata Vishahari
After this, Bihula also convinced his father-in-law i.e. Chandradhar Saudagar to worship Mata Vishahari. In this way Chandradhar worshiped Mata Vishahari. According to folklore, for the first time on Earth, Mata Mansa Vishahari was worshipped, which was done by Chandradhar Saudagar. When Bihula died due to snake bite, she took her husband’s body to the river Ganga in a coffin and after six months, Bala returned alive. It is said that since then the belief came into vogue that after a snake bite, the dead body should not be burnt but should be floated in the Ganga river. So that by the grace of Mother Ganga and Manasa Vishahari, the person’s poison gets eliminated and he comes back alive.
The story of Bihula Vishahari is an important part of the folk culture of river Ganga.
Writer Meera Jha has written in her book ‘Bihula-Vishhari’ that the folk tale based on which Vishhari Puja is celebrated in the entire Anga region, is also mentioned in the book ‘Kamrup Kamakhya’ by Assamese writer Dharanikant Dev Sharma. According to Padmapuran, handwritten by ancient poets Durgavar and Mankar, Behula-Lakhinder saga is sung in ancient tune. In the Panchratna temple of Kamakhya, Marei Puja i.e. this puja is celebrated with great pomp and show by installing the Ghat and Nagfan of Nagmata Manasa on Pratipada or second day of Bhadrapad month. In Bengal also there is a tradition of worshiping Nagmata Mansa. Marei Puja held in the Panchratna temple of Kamakhya is the Madh Puja of Anga district. This means that the story of Mata Mansa Vishhari and Bihula is hundreds of years old and is an important part of the folk culture of river Ganga.