Mundeshwari Temple

Among the oldest surviving Hindu temple structures in India, though its exact age is genuinely disputed: the ASI and the Bihar State Religious Trust Board date it to 108 CE, based on a 2008 scholarly seminar’s reinterpretation of a “year 30” inscription date naming a ruler, Maharaja Udayasena, as referring to the Saka era; other scholars instead read the same Udayasena inscription’s palaeography as indicating a clearly post-Gupta date, most likely around 570-590 CE, with the present octagonal shrine itself possibly rebuilt as late as the 16th-17th century using salvaged older material. A Brahmi-inscribed seal of the Sri Lankan king Dutthagamani (1st century BCE), found at the site in 2003, points to very ancient pilgrimage traffic regardless of the exact construction date. The sanctum houses both a four-faced (Chaturmukh) Shiva linga and a ten-armed image of the goddess as Mahishasuramardini, reflecting a combined Shaiva-Shakta character. It has been an Archaeological Survey of India-protected monument since 1915.