Bandhavgarh Fort of Umaria in Madhya Pradesh
The Bandhavgarh forest in Umaria district of Madhya Pradesh has a rich history which dates back to 10 CE. The Bandhavgarh fort lies inside a forest. It is mentioned in Puran. The Ramayana depicts the fort of Lakshman, Lord Ram’s Brother. And for this reason, the fort is called “Bandhavgarh”, deriving from the term ‘Bandhu’ meaning brother. After the defeat of Ravan, Lord Ram stayed at this place and asked Nar and Neel to build a fort to keep a check on Lanka, since it is situated on one of the highest hills of Central India. The construction of Bandhavgarh Fort is on 810 m hilltop in the Tala region of Bandhavgarh Forest, on a plateau that spans around 4 sq km.
Around the fort, there are 2000 years old caves with walls inked with Brahmi script. These caves served as the meditating place for sages, until 12th century when Baghels ruled over it. The Fort was ruled by the Royal family of Reva, who still owns the fort. The treasury, the horse stable, and the temple are some of the structures which still remain intact.
The entrance of the fort is through Karn Pole, the main gate and Dashavatar statues along with the lakes inside the fort is admirable. The Vishnu statues are accompanied by Shiv Linga. The tall statues of Narasimha, Tortoise idol and the man-made pond at the top are some of the attractions of Bandhavgarh Fort.
A renowned mystic poet and saint also stayed and preached here. There’s a Kabir hermitage inside the fort. There is an escape link that Kabir used to move out from the Fort, towards Kashi, where apparently, he met with his master.