|
|
Close to the royal palace at
Chamba, there is a stone
sikhara temple dedicated to Goddess Champavati. Tradition holds that the
town of Chamba was named after
her.
THE LEGEND OF CHAMPAVATI TEMPLE
According to legend handed town by tradition connected with the founding
of the temple of Champavati is that it was initially erected by Sahil
Varman in Chamba. His daughter
bearing the same name was of religious disposition and used to visit the
place of a saint for religious discourse. Her father, getting suspicious,
followed his daughter one day to the hermitage of the stage with the drawn
sword in his hand, only to find that the place was deserted. As he entered
the place was human voice was heard upbraiding him for his suspicions and
saying that his daughter had been taken as punishment. He was further
commanded to construct a temple in her memory in her memory on the spot
where she disappeared, to atone for his sin and to avert calamity to his
family.