Rupban Mura Temple and Vihara | Cumilla
Rupban Mura Temple and Vihara
Rupban Mura temple and Vihara is one of the important archaeological sites of Lalmai-Mainamati hilly area located in Cumilla district of Bangladesh. This archaeological site is located on a hill between the present Bangladesh Rural Development Academy (BARD) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and on the south side of the Cumilla-Kalir Bazar road.
An interesting samadhi temple of medium size which is almost cruciform in shape is discovered during a series of archaeological excavations and explorations led by the Department of Archaeology of Bangladesh. Along with this, several ancient structures are uncovered here, including a Buddhist Vihara, an octagonal stupa and another stupa on a square base. According to tradition, the entrance to the temple is on the east side and the entrance to the Vihara is located in front of it.
As a result of archaeological excavations and explorations, three phases of construction, renovation and reconstruction of the temple and vihara architectural structures are uncovered at the Rupban Mura archaeological site.
Here the cruciform temple was originally built as a stupa on a square base. Archaeologists imagine that the construction period of the first phase that means the oldest architectural structure is from sixth to seventh century CE. Later in the second phase (that means eighth century CE), it was converted into an almost cruciform temple. Few remnants of the architectural structure of the third phase, that means the last construction period, of this heavily damaged site remain Now a days. Archaeologists imagine that the construction period of the last architectural structure of the site is from tenth to eleventh century CE.
The features of the site are developed due to the construction of different architectural structures at different phases here, which are not observed in other ancient Buddhist temples and viharas. The cruciform temple has a long and narrow tabernacle on the eastern (i.e. front) side with a tabernacle on each long arm. A Large stone Buddha statue now displayed in Cumilla’s Mainamati Museum is said to have been found in the middle tabernacle. A few bronze icons are found in other tabernacles here.
A Buddhist Vihara was built separately at the corner thirty meters south-east of the Rupban Mura temple. Each side of this small square vihara which measures thirty-four meters of each arm. There is an entrance complex in front of the Vihara. The entrance projects outwards in the middle of the north arm of Vihara. The Vihara originally built in the conventional square plan had a total of twenty-four rooms on all four sides. But later it is said to had been reduced to eighteen in the second phase.
The southern part of Vihar’s twelve meters was abandoned, as it was beyond repair at that time. The Vihara was given a rectangular shape, by building a row of new rooms in front of it. Then its length is thirty-four meters and width is twenty-two meters. Corbelled niches and brick frames of the Vihara rooms were built in the second phase. A corbeled drain was built in the Vihara to drain the water.
Apart from a large stone Buddha image, five alloy gold coins of King Balabhatta of the Kharag dynasty among the important artifacts are found during archaeological excavations and explorations at the Rupban Mura archaeological site. [Md. Shahin Alam]
References:
- Rashid, M Harunur, Rupban Mura;
- The Lalmai – Mainamati Group of monuments;
- Department of Archaeology, Bangladesh.
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