Maa Samaleswari Temple

In Sambalpur, western Odisha, India. Maa Salameswari temple is a Hindu temple, dedicated to the goddess known as ‘Samaleswari’. Among the natives, it is also known as Samalei maa, which means Mother Samaleswari. The presiding deity of Sambalpur, Shree Shree Maa Samaleswari temple, is a strong religious force in the western part of Odisha and the Chhattisgarh state of India. The mother goddess Samaleswari is worshipped from ancient times on the bank of the river Mahanadi, as Jagatianani, Adishakti, Mahalakshmi, and Mahasaraswati, and is the mother of the universe. She is the only Goddess after lord Jagannath, in Odisha who is the presiding deity of such a wide region along with the complete Western Odisha, which is parts of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. From ancient times, it is popularly known as Hirakhanda. According to Tavernier, Ptolemy described the place as Sambalaka, the French explorer, and Edwards gibbon, the English historian, diamonds were exported from Sambalpur to Rome.