Unakoti - उनाकोटी

Unakoti is one of the most famous Shaiva pilgrimage sites in the state of Tripura in northeastern India. Unakoti is famous for its huge rock cut panels depicting Hindu gods and goddesses. Unakoti means one less than a crore and it is said that so many rock cut carvings are available here. Unakoti, also known as Angkor Wat, is located in northeastern India.

History and Architecture of Unakoti
The idols at Unakoti belong to Hindu deities and are especially dedicated to the worship of Lord Shiva. It is a historical place and a testament to the cultural heritage of ancient Tripura dating back to the seventh to ninth centuries AD. Innumerable rock-carved sculptures and stone sculptures of Hindu gods and goddesses displayed in open air are the main attractions of Unakoti, which was carved out of the Raghunandan Hills, nowadays known as Unakoti Hills or Belkom Tila.

According to the legend, once Lord Shiva was traveling from Kailash to Kashi along with one crore gods and goddesses. On the way they reached Raghunandan hill at night. So they decided to rest and take shelter on this hill. Lord Shiva alerted all the gods and goddesses to wake up before sunrise the next morning and proceed for the journey to Kashi. Unfortunately, none of them except Lord Shiva could wake up early in the morning. Enraged Shiva set out alone on his way to Kashi and cursed all the sleeping gods and goddesses to become stones and remain there forever. As a result, there are less than one crore stone sculptures on the hill, and it is called Unakoti.

According to another story, local sculptor Kalu Qamar had a dream that if he could make idols of ten crore gods and goddesses in one night, then this place would get the status equal to Kashidham. Skilled sculptor Kalu Qamar had worked tirelessly throughout the night to complete this work. It was only one less than one crore statues of gods and goddesses and the sculptor wanted to make the last statue for his sculpture rather than for any other deity, where in future the artist and the artist's creation would get equal importance. But the artist's self-indulgence might not have been liked by the complete creator. Hence, the idol of the last deity was left behind, and that is how Unakoti did not achieve its status as Kashidham – say locals.

Unakoti Darshan Timings:
Unakoti is a place of great spiritual importance in Tripura. This place is open throughout the week and darshan timings are from 6 am to 5 pm.

Major festivals in Unakoti
Every year in the month of April a big fair is organized which is known as Ashokashtami Fair. Thousands of pilgrims come to this festival. Another small festival takes place in January.

How to reach Unakoti?
Unakoti is located about 178 km north-east of Agartala, the capital of Tripura. The nearest airport is also located at Agartala and flight is the best option to reach Tripura from other parts of India. From Agartala, you can hire a car to travel to Unakoti.