An inexhaustible torch has been burning for 484 years. That’s why it’s on record. So, who lit it? What is the story behind it anyway?
It is customary to light lamps in the temple of God. But it is strange to light a lamp in a temple and get hundreds of people. It is interesting that the lamp lit like that continues to shine. That’s why it is being grown in Akanda Jyoti. The lamp is located in a temple in Dekhiyabowa village in Jorhat district of Assam. The lamp was lit for the first time in 1528 by a saint. Since then, the devotees of the village have been constantly pouring oil on it to keep it from drying out. The trustees of the temple informed the Asian Book of Records about this Jyoti. They found it strange and gave a record.
To know the story of this lamp we have to go to 500 years ago. In the 15th century, a saint named Srimanta Shankaradev founded a religion called Ekasarana Dharma. The aspiration of that religion is that all human beings should worship one God.
Shankaradeva’s disciple Madhavadeva once came to Dekhiyabowa village in Assam in 1528 as part of that religious campaign. A poor old woman went home and put the food she had cooked. She poured oil in a pan and lit a lamp. They do not ask the old woman to make sure that the lamp is not extinguished. All the other villagers came to know about this and they all started watching. Gradually, all the people in the surrounding village came to look at the lamp and poured oil.
A temple was built at the place where this lamp was placed some years ago. There is a story hidden behind the construction of this temple. A devotee saw in his sleep a sal tree flowing in the opposite direction of the river flowing near the village. After waking up, the devotee told the others about his dream. They all went to the bank of the river and saw that there was indeed a sal tree growing. Chota temple was built with this lamp. Even now thousands of tourists visit the temple and worship Ekanda Jyoti.