Panchdeval Temple

There is an ancient temple built in the 8th-9th century on the banks of the pond in Jiran, which is called Panch Deval. Small temples were built a little away from it, which are now in ruins. These were the places of worship of the so-called Tantrikas. Panch Deval is a heritage of Guhil era architecture and art. The original temple must have been started to be built by some Guhil ruler in the 9th-10th century.

The four pillars in its Sabha Mandap were donated in 1053 and 1065 by the wives and son of the great feudal lord Vigrahpal of the Guhil dynasty. These were broken during the Muslim invasions, which were renovated and arranged in Samvat 1608 during the time of Maharana Jagat Singh (I). An inscription to this effect is placed on the left side of the navarg in the sanctum sanctorum. Panchdeval temple and inscription in the temple This temple made of sandstone was originally dedicated to Lord Shiva, as is evident from the depiction of Shiva in the northern lintel of the sanctum sanctorum. The upper part of the door peak, Jagat Peethika, Karnika are original. At the time of destruction, the peak and the assembly hall were washed away. There are big statues of the eight Dikpalas in the waist of the temple. Apart from this, a Narasimha statue is also installed. At the time of reconstruction of the temple, new statues were installed on the peak. These include 20-arm statues of Vishnu’s Virat form, Sheshmayi Vishnu, Sapta Matrikas, Harihar Pitamaha. The dome of the temple is of pure Muslim style.

The Panch Deval temple currently has a Panchmukhi Shivalinga. A beautiful statue of Lakshmi-Narayan and Parvati sitting on Garudasana is kept in the interval. There is a rare statue of Garuda in the assembly hall. The inscription engraved below it tells that this statue of Garuda was made by Raghav, son of Ralha. This statue is said to be of the Parmar period.

Garuda is the vehicle of Lord Vishnu. In human form, Garuda is sitting in Veerasan with anjali mudra wearing Upgreiva Haar, Graveyak, Haravali, Chhatraveer, Kaiyur, Kankan, Muktadam, belt of many strings, ring and Bhupur in feet. Snakes are wrapped around both the arms of Garuda.

In the Panch Deval temple itself, the statue of Lakshmi-Narayan in Garudaasan is without entourage. The rare statue of Vishwaroop Vishnu is embedded in the peak of the temple. In it, 20 arms and 4 faces were made as per Roop Mandan and Aparajit Pruchha. Now only one right face of Narasimha is left. Its arms have been broken. This statue is a Sthanaka. Below it, there is a lotus pedestal and Chakra and Shankh Purush are inscribed among the Ayudha Purush on the right and left.

The idol of Varaha avatar of Lord Vishnu is situated in Panch Deval temple. One idol is big and the other is small. It is made of red sandstone. There are depictions of sages in every pore of it. The second idol is a combined form of Varaha and human. This idol is in Shankarwadi at Chitakheda gate. There is depiction of Varaha saving the earth. In this idol, wearing Jaramukut, dhoti as undergarment, Varaha has snake, mace and chakra in his hands. Earth is being held in the finger of the left hand, which has folded hands.

Lord Vishnu had taken the incarnation of Narasimha to kill Hiranyakashyap. There are three idols of Narasimha in Jiran. There are one broken and clear idols in Panch Debal temple. In one idol, Narasimha is shown killing Hiranyakashyap with Shankha Chakra in the upper hand. The other idol is engraved in Rathika behind Panch Deval temple. This statue made of pink sandstone is 89 x 45 cm. Narasimha Sthanaka is standing with matted hair, crown, bulging eyes, open mouth, necklace, garland of cashew nuts, umradaya, katisuttra etc. On the right and left are garland holders, in the first hand there is an ambiguous one, in the second there is a conch, in the third there is a chakra, in the fourth hand there is a mace. There is also a depiction of the statue of Yashoda breastfeeding in the Panch Deval temple.

Jiran has been associated with the Pashupat sect. This is confirmed by the Shivlingas installed here and scattered here and there. There is a huge Shivlinga here. In which there is a depiction of Bhojpeeth, Bhadrapeeth and Brahmapeeth.

There is also a statue of Shiva in a dancing posture in Jiran. Apart from the statue of Uma Maheshwar Nataraja Shiva, there is also a statue of Nandi. The statue of Nandi, which proves Hanuman to be the incarnation of Nandi, was found among the ruins of the Panch Deval temple. In this huge Nandi statue measuring 105 x 90 x 34 cm, Nandi is sitting with his knees bent. This is a very unique statue of Nandi which confirms some mythological story. In greed for money, people broke it into pieces which have been repaired by joining them. This statue of Nandi is in Sati Mata temple. The statue of Panchagri Parvati is also in Jiran. The statues of Lord Shiva’s son Ganeshji are available in Jiran. As soon as you enter Jiran from the road, there is a temple of Ganeshji. It was renovated on 3 June 2002 and the Kalash and the flagstaff were installed. The statue of Ganesha dancing with a snake in his hand is Kileshwar. There is a small temple of Ganeshji on the Ghoda (Gaur) valley. It has the statue of Ganesha and Vinayaki. Vinayaki is embracing Ganesha standing in a double posture. The statue of Mahishasura Mardini with six arms has been found in Jiran.

There is a temple of Bageshwari Devi on the Panch Deval Mandir road, which is of 13th-14th century. It has a two headed statue of a buffalo. One hexagonal statue is 97 x 60 x 18 cm in size.

It has trident, knife, sword, bell, bow and buffalo’s tail in its hands. In this statue made of limestone, the buffalo’s face is inscribed on the left side which the goddess is pressing with her right foot and is standing in Veerasan. In another statue nearby, the buffalo’s face is towards the left side. This statue is of 9th-10th century.