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A Transcendental Treasure Trove in Cooch Behar
BY: SUN STAFF

Lord Madan Mohan

Nov 29, CANADA (SUN) — Situated in the heart of Cooch Behar in North Bengal, the devotees will find a rich vein of transcendental treasure, first in the presence of Sri Madan Mohan. His residence there, Madan-Mohan Bari, is a beautiful marble temple that was constructed by Maharaja Nripendra Narayan in the late 1880's. Lord Madan Mohan, the presiding Deity, is joined by Ma Bhavani, Ma Tara, and Kali Ma.
On the occasion of Rush Purnima, a traditional Rush Yatra is taken out. Also held for the Lord's pleasure is Rush Mela, one of the biggest festivals in North Bengal.

Madan Mohan Bari

Another sort of treasure hidden away in Cooch Behar comes in the form of sastra, found in the stacks of thousands of manuscripts housed at the North Bengal State Library. The library's extensive collection of valuable manuscripts and classic punthis, written on handmade papers and palm leaf, is comprised of thousands of Bengali and Sanskrit books and manuscripts, along with works in Urdu, Persian, Assamese, Arabic, and English. In the year 1900, the library's collection total 8,183 books and manuscripts. Today, the collection stands at more than 70,000 texts.
The library's history spans 125 years. During the minority rule of Maharaja Nripendra Narayan, Colonel Houghten came to Cooch Behr to act as Commissioner (1864-73). Houghten established State Library of Cooch Behar in the year 1870 by purchasing a stock of books at an auction sale of M/S.Rozario and Co., in London. The library was initially housed in a single room, but was later handed over to Maharaja Nripendra Narayan, who moved it to larger quarters at Lansdown Hall, in 1895. The library was first opened to the public in 1882..
Under the direct patronage of the Maharaja of Cooch Behar, who sanctioned Rs.2,000 as an annual grant for the purchase of books, the collection grew steadily. Different punthis, manuscripts and rare documents of the Raj-Darawabar or royal court were incorporated into the library collection, along with many rare and valuable sastric texts.
Today, under modern management and committed funding, the North Bengal State Library is working to properly preserve its collection of rare manuscripts and documents, as well as develop a Research Institute for scholars and students alike.
For those fortunate enough to visit Cooch Behar, the following list represents just a small selection of the library's many interesting texts. As is often the case with such specialized libraries, those wishing to personally inspect individual manuscripts should contact the library staff well in advance for permission, and to allow curatorial staff the needed time to retrieve items from the archive and make items available for public review.

Lord Madan Mohan

The following Bengali punthis can be found at the library:

Ganga-bhakti Tarangini by Durga Prasad in 1222 B.S.
Brahman Panditer Puthi completed during the reign of Harendra Narayan, 1847 A.D.
Kalika Purana
Mahabharata Khandav Dahan
Bidya Sundar and Bhrawa Gita, completed during reign of Maharaja Harendra Narayan, 1246 B.S.
Dcva-Khanda & Nara-Khanda, completed during the reign of Maharaja Harendra Narayan
Legendary Accounts of Royal Family of Cooch Behar
Songs composed by Maharaja Harendra Narayan & Sibendra Narayan
Haraparbati Sangbad & Maharaja's Britanta, completed during the reign of Maharaja Harendra Narayan in 1863 A.D.

Along with the following Assamese manuscripts:

Garuda-purana by Sankar Dev
Gopi-uddhava-sambad by Sankar Dev
Sri-krishna-janma-rahasya by Madhav Dev
Harish-chandra-upakhyan (with painted boards) by Sankar Dev
Gopi-uddhava-sambad (with painted boards) by Sankar Dev
Suvarna-ghatika-pada by Unknown
Bhakti-ratnavali by Madhav Dev
Bhagavata, First Skandha (with painted boards) by Sankar Dev
Bhagavata, Second Kandha by Aniruddha
Bhagavata, Tenth Skandha (with painted boards) by Ananta Kandali
Bhagavata, Eleventh Skandha by Sankar Dev
Gita by Govinda Misra
Gita by Unknown
Mahabharata (with painted boards) by Kanshari Kavi
Mahabharata (Karna Parva) by Panchanan
Mahabharata (Sabha-parva) by Dwija Gopinath
Ramayana, Adi Kanda by Madhav Dev
Ramayana, Bala Kanda (with painted boards) by Dwija Madhav

And the following Bengali manuscripts:

Sarani-tika by Rupa and Sanatana Goswami, 1228 B.S.
Brindavana-dhyana by Krishna Das Kaviraj, 1749
Sri-Chaitanya Bhagavata, Adi, Madhya and Antya khanda by Vrindavan Das
Chaitanya-charita (150 yrs. old)
Chaitanya-Gita by Kalidas
Sri Bhagavate Vaisnava-charitra
Vaishnava-vandana by Vrindavan Das
Harinama-kavaca by Krishna Das
Sadhana-bhakti-chandrika by Narottam Das (125 yrs. old)
Jagannath-mahatmya by Bharati Mukunda

Brahma-vaivarta-purana, Prakriti-khanda by Baidyanath
Brihad-dharma-purana, Madhya-khanda by Maharaja Harendra Narayan
Garuda-purana
Nrisimha-purana by Dwija Rama-nandan & Braja-sundar
Padma-purana by Vaidya-nath
Bishnu-purana by madhav Chandra Sharma
Naradiya-purana by Dwija Narayan
Markandeya-purana by Pitambara, 1602 A.D.
Padma-purana by narayan Dev
Siva-purana by Swija Vaidyanath
Brahma-vaivartta-purana, Brahma-khanda, by Ripunjay, 19th c.
Dharma-purana by Ram-nandan, 1719 Saka
Brihad-dharma-purana, Uttara-khana by Maharaja Harendra Narayan
Skanda-purana, Brahmottara-khanda by Maharaja Harendra Narayan
Arjjuna-sambad by Mukunda Das, 1223 B.S.
Bhagavata, Sixth Skandha by Dwija Jagannatha
Bhagavata, Tenth Skandha by Pitambar, 1522-1554 AD
Bhakti-viracana by Krishna Das, 1250 B.S.
Chandikar Brata-katha by Madhava Chandra
Chandi-Mangal or Abhaya-mangal by Kavikankan Mukundaram Chakravart
Gita-govinda by Jagat Sinha
Golaka-samhita
Hansa-duta by Narasinha Das, 1206 B.S.
Hitopadesha by Brajasundar Sharma
Hitopadesha by Dwija Brajendra-sundar
Janmastami by Deva-nath Dwija
Kalanka-bhanjan by Mukunda Das, 1223 B.S.
Kashi-khanda by Saradananda Das
Kriya-yoga-sara by Maharaja Harendra Narayan & others
Markandeya-chandi by Mahinath Sharma
Mohamudgar, 12-4 B.S.
Rajaputra-upakhyan by Maharaja Harendra Narayan
Raja-vamshavali by Ripunjay Das
Ram-rasayan by Raghu-nandan, 19th c.
Sad-ritu-varana by Dwija Bhutanath
Sahaja-charita, 1250 B.S.
Samantakopakhyan by Dwija Rameshwar
Sivagama
Siva-sangit (Siva-sankirtan) by Rameshwar
Unnamed Vaishnava Sahajiya Test by Sarani Tika
Upakatha by Maharaja Harendra Narayan

Ramayan by Adbhutacharya
Ramayana, Aranya-kanda by Rudradeva Sharma, 1729 Saka
Ramayana, Ayodha-kanda by Radhuram
Ramayana, Kishkindhya-kanda by Devinandan, Srinath Dwija & Dwija Raghuram
Ramayana, Lanka-kanda by Braja-sundar Dwija, 19th c.
Ramayana, Lanka-kanda by Swija Brajasundar, 19th c.
Ramayana, Uttara-kanda by Saradanada, Satananda & Radhuram, 1729 Saka
Ramayana, Sundara-kanda by Maharaja Harendra Narayan

Mahabharata (some torn and damaged pages)
Mahabharata, Adi-parva by Dwija Rudra-dev, 1240 B.S.
Mahabharata, Adi-parva by Srinath Brahman, 1718 Sakha
Mahabharata, Aishika-parva by Maharaja Harendra Narayan
Mahabharata, Ashwamedha-parva by Dwija Mahinath, 1754 Saka
Mahabharata, Bana-parva by Dwija Baidyanath
Mahabharata, Bana-parva by Dwija Baidyanath, Mahinath, Paramananda, Raghuram, Balaram Dwija & Ramnath
Mahabharata, Bana-parva by Dwija Balaram
Mahabharata, Bana-parva by Dwija Paramananda
Mahabharata, Bhishma-parva by Dwija Raghuram
Mahabharata, Bhishma-parva by Dwija Raghuram & Ram Saraswati
Mahabharata, Bhsima-parva by Dwija Raghuram
Mahabharata, Draupadi svayambara by Srinath Brahman, 1208 B.S.
Mahabharata, Drona-parva by Srinath Brahman & Dwija Kabiraj, 1670's A.D.
Mahabharata, Gada-parva by Dwija Ram-nandana
Mahabharata, Karna-parva by Dwija Lakshmiram, 1771 Saka
Mahabharata, Karna-parva by Lakshmiram, 1771 Saka
Mahabharata, Karna-parve by Manohar Das
Mahabharata, Kirat-parva by kavishekhar, 1527 Saka
Mahabharata, Maushala-parva by Dwija Baidyanath, 1239 B.S.
Mahabharata, Nala-damayanti Upakhyan of Bana-parva by Ram-nandan
Mahabharata, Prasthanika-parva by Mahinath, 19th c.
Mahabharata, Rajasuya by Anaqnta Kandali
Mahabharata, Sabha-parva by Jayadeva, Maharaja Harendra Narayan & Dwija
Mahabharata, Shalya-parva by Maharaja Harendra Narayan
Mahabharata, Shanti-parva by Dwija Baidyanath, 1774 Saka
Mahabharata, Svargarohana-parva by Madhav Chandra

Source: CoochBehar.gov.in

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