Location:

500 years ago Siddheshari Kali Puja was started by the ancestor of Zamindar Chakraborty house. Later this Siddheshwari Kali was named Khapa Kali. Located just two kilometers from Arambagh station in Hooghly district is the temple of Khapa Kali in this Tirol village. Local people believe that the presiding Kali of this temple is very awake.

Legends:

Many miraculous stories are heard about the glory of this mother Kali. One of them is that by the grace of this Maa Kali, mentally unbalanced patients get cured.

On one side of a grassy green field is a white double-sided temple. The main temple is quite high from the ground. A little further down the stairs is the mother’s nat temple.

It was learned that the priests assigned to this temple have been worshiping this goddess for generations. It is known from the temple priest that the mother of this temple is very awake. If the bracelet of Maa Kali is worn on a mentally ill person then that sick person gets completely cured. After recovery, one has to take a bath in the pond in front of the temple and dedicate the bangle to the mother and wear the copper bangle given by the temple priest.

The priest said that many mental patients in this village and its surroundings have returned home happily after being completely cured by the grace of their mother. After that he paused and said, not only this district or state, but patients from other districts and states also come here to get well.

It was also learned from him that when the mother-in-law of Sri Ramakrishna Saradadevi was sick, he himself brought her to Kalimandir in Tirol and offered puja. Later his daughter-in-law regained full health.

Again, when his niece Rakhu lost her mental balance, she too was brought here and she also regained her healthy life. Not only the mentally ill but any sick person who comes to their mother and prays with sincerity gets healed mentally and physically. Viroj’s Kalimandir is also mentioned in the stories of the respected literary Bibhativashan Banerjee.

Word of this miracle spread far and wide. So, every year thousands of people come to Khapa Kali temple to offer puja. Mother is worshiped all night on special Tithi. Many vows were made then. During the annual Kali Puja, a fair is held on the adjoining grounds.

It is known that Khapakali’s favorite is Nahvat Sanai. So, every year Sanai is played on Diwali night. The most joyous and surprising news is that those who play the Sanai do not need to make any invitations, , or vows. Year after generation after generation they come to chant Maa Khapa Kali Sanai without payment. It was learned that first started coming here after receiving a dream from their ancestor’s mother. “We also come every year to play Sanai and our descendants will also come.” This was said by a Sanai musician from Vin Gaon.

Festivals:

Every year during Diwali, the mother’s head crown is changed. Every year this crown comes from Hooghly zamindar Biswas’s house. This crown is adorned on the head of the idol during the Durga Puja of the Biswas home. After the Puja, take it off and give it to Maa Khapa Kali of Tirol of Arambagh to wear during Diwali. This rule has been going on for years. This is what Khapakali expressed to the zamindar of Hooghly. The zamindar Chakraborty of Tirol also expressed the same wish to the ancestor of the house.

It is very surprising that even in the era of so much progress in science, the way mentally unbalanced people from far away are coming here and getting cured. Nothing is possible without a mother’s grace.

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