A Temple Bell: Chronicling Echoes of Bygone Era & Timeless Tales

Panna: The deity, quaint charm, serene ambience and architectural marvel are not just the attractions that draw devotees to the Mahamati Prannath Ji Temple.

The temple which is at the centre of the faith of the followers of Pranami sect in the Panna district of Madhya Pradesh also boasts of a bell which came from London in 1864.  

The unique tradition of ringing the bell in this temple has been going on for 350 years. Like religious traditions elsewhere, the sound of a bell during worship here is not just meant for invoking divinity, dispelling negativity, and signalling the beginning and ending of a ritual.

In olden times, people used to know the time from the loud sound of the bell, and there are also religious and cultural reasons behind it.

Alerting people about time was one of the main purposes of the bell installed in the dome of Prananath Temple. Panna, the city of temples, is also known for its unique traditions and customs. In ancient times, when people did not have watches and other instruments to measure time, people got to know about the time from the sound of the huge bell hanging in the dome.

Apart from this, in those times, the elders used to guess the prahar and time from the rays of the sun and its shadow. The sound of the temple bell was useful for knowing the time till about four decades ago, but now it is not as useful, because now most people have watches and mobiles.

A person employed to ring the bell that came from London in 1864

The bell was run every hour each day then. The echo of the sound of this bell could be heard across the Panna city. In the silence of the night, the sound of the bell could be heard even in the surrounding villages adjoining the town.

Rakesh Kumar Sharma, secretary of Shri Prannath Ji Temple Trust, said, “This bell is made of ashtadhatu (eight metals) and was brought to India from London in 1864. After its arrival, it was brought to Shri Prannath Ji Temple in Panna. It was hung in the dome above the temple at that time. A few years ago, due to a crack in this bell, its sound changed. An effort was made to get this bell repaired by taking it to major cities, but it could not be repaired fully.”