Garhpanchakot Temple & HILL
Garh Panchkot is a ruined fort located in the eastern part of India at the foothills of Panchet Hill. in the district of Purulia, West Bengal. The ruins of the Panchkot Palace are a silent testimony to the Bargi attack during the 18th century.
The king was a Rajput chieftain who believed in Shaktism, although the temples reflect his inclination towards Vaishnavism. This could be due to the influence of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, a proponent of Vaishnavism, during that period. The two distinctive architectural styles, which are evident from the temples, are the Bishnupuri style and a much older architectural style of using stone blocks. It is believed that the Bishnupuri styled temples housed Krishna and the followers were mostly vegetarians whereas the Stone Temples housed the figure of Kali and the followers were non-vegetarians and also believed in animal sacrifice. This lends credence to the fact that the King was tolerant towards other beliefs as one more Jain cave can be found in the vicinity.
There is another very old stone temple, which is dedicated to Rama. This could be because it is believed that most of the Hindu Kings of India were Raghu-Vanshis or descendants of Rama and his legendary ancestral kings as per the Hindu epic Ramayana