Orissa,
the lush green state, girdled by the Bay of Bengal, has seen some of the best
fusion of traditional Indian art in its many temples and monuments, and has
been able to preserve much of it, in an environment natural to its wonder and
attractions. Ancient Orissa was a confluence of racial streams.History tells us that the Aryans entered Orissa from the north-east, subjugated the primitive people living there and imposed on them their language and culture.
The story could not be so simple; for the people then living in the land were not perhaps all of the primitive type, nor were they subjugated culturally. What might have happened in all Probability was a racial and cultural amalgamation.
Geographically Orissa stands as a coastal corridor between the northern and southern India cut off by the intractable Vindhyas.
It is natural therefore that an assimilation of the races and cultures of the Aryans and the Dravidians; must have taken place here in the days of gore.
At the same time successive racial and cultural tides might have surged up from the different sides, rolled in and broken over this Bound culminating in the indo-cultural synthesis.
Orissa, which is largely rural, the traditional values are still kept alive. In general the values have no doubt weakened but they are not lost.
Among
die innocent Advisees dwelling in the wooded hinterland and forested hill slopes,
India's earliest civilization is retained in its pristine form. Not only in
their secluded hamlets, bet also in the countless thousands of villages in the
country sides one can catch a glimpse of the dwindling horizon of humanity,
through the innocent and benign outlook of tile villagers. A sensitive person who happens to be a prisoner of the modern society with its stress and strain will not, while in a typical village, fail to mark the relationship of its common people with God, nature and their fellow men.
It was in Orissa, that Buddhism found some of its strongest exposure, and cult following. However, it was Hindu art that dominated the landscape, eventually, and resulted in the profusion of temple traditions, that have endured till now.
Heavily forested, and isolated, Orissa was once famous for its majestic battle elephants. But life in Orissa revolved around temples,
and
that the Oriyas lived lives free of strife, is evident from the fact that the
state has few forts or fortified palaces to its credit, indicative of centuries
of peace and harmony. Most of the state's attractions are close to each other, and convenient access is provided out of the state capital, Bhubaneshwar.
The capital itself is an intriguing amalgam of the old and the new, an emerging modern Indian city, that is steeped in the roots of the traditions of its glorious past, without being overwhelmed by it.
How to reach :
By Air :The most convenient access into Orissa is a flight to Bhubaneshwar. Indian Airlines has flights from Hyderabad, Nagpur, Calcutta, Delhi, Raipur, Varanasi, Mumbai and Chennai.
By Rail :Train connections from all parts of the country exist, but are usually long and the non - availability of air-conditioned class travel is a constraint.
By Road :Once in Bhubaneshwar, road travel is the best option, to visit the other attractions in Orissa.
