Champavati Temple, Chamba Sightseeing & Tours

Built in the Shikhara style, a Nepali form of architecture which comprises a curved cylindrical structure divided into five or nine parts and ending in a bell shaped dome, the temple of Goddess Champavati is steeped in legend. Champavati was a princess, the daughter of Raja Sahil Varman. As the story goes, she loved visiting the temple, but her father wondered if the attraction was really the temple or the priest who presided over it. So one day he followed her with his dagger drawn, hoping to catch her in the act. But when he reached, the place was empty. He could see neither his daughter nor the priest. They had vanished. But then he heard a voice telling him that his daughter had been taken away by the Gods as punishment of his suspicion. He built this temple in atonement and today Champavati is worshipped. The presiding deity is Mahishasuramardini, a manifestation of Goddess Durga as the destroyer of the demon Mahishasura. The temple compound also has a shrine to Vasuki Naga and Wazir. The Champavati Temple and its bloodthirsty history are sure to add a little colour to your holiday.