Hiyangthang Lairembi Temple

Getting there

• By air

  Imphal Airport is at Tulihal, about 7 km south of Imphal city. Hire a taxi from the airport to Hiyangthang.

• By train

  Imphal has no working railway station yet, as the Jiribam to Imphal line is still being built. Rail travellers come to Dimapur in Nagaland and continue by road.

• By road

  Hiyangthang lies south of Imphal in Imphal West district. Taxis and local transport run from the city.

Rules to know

• No official dress code is published, so wear modest clothes that cover shoulders and knees.
• Remove footwear before you enter the shrine, as at any temple.
• Ask the priests before you take photos near the sanctum.

Why devotees come here

Hiyangthang Lairembi Temple stands on Heibok Ching, a small hillock at Hiyangthang, south of Imphal in Manipur. It is a major Meitei shrine of Irai Leima, later also worshipped as Kamakhya. On Bor Numit, the boon day of Durga Puja, thousands climb the hill from early morning.

Hiyangthang Lairembi is the Meitei name of Irai Leima, the Devi of water and aquatic life in Sanamahism, the old faith of Manipur. Legend calls her the princess of Heibok Ching, daughter of the clan king Heibok Ningthou. When the Khuman king Kokpa pursued her, her father turned him to stone.

Irai Leima took refuge in the house of Sarangthem Luwangba. She hid in his granary and quietly did the household work each day. Once found, she vanished, then came to him in a dream and said she had joined his clan as his daughter. King Senbi Kiyamba, who ruled from 1467 to 1508, sent maibas and maibis, the Meitei priests, to the spot. They declared her a deity to be worshipped. The Sarangthem family still holds a feast for her every year, the Chaklen Katpa.

In the 18th century, under King Garib Niwaj, she came to be worshipped as Kamakhya, a form of Durga. So the hill now keeps both Meitei and Hindu festivals. The present shrine is seven storeys high, faces east and has three equal doors, with a pillared mandapa in front.

Festivals

• Third day of Durga Puja, September or OctoberBor Numit

  The boon day, when devotees pray at the auspicious time for their wishes.

• September or OctoberDurga Puja

  Kept here since the time of King Garib Niwaj.

• Set by the Meitei calendarLai Haraoba

  The Meitei festival of the deities, which draws thousands to the hill.

• Set by the Meitei calendarPanthoibi Iratpa

  A Sanamahi observance also kept at the temple.

• Once a yearChaklen Katpa

  The Sarangthem family's own feast in honour of the Devi.

Tips for your visit

• On Bor Numit crowds gather from early morning, so take an elderly parent on an ordinary day instead.
• The shrine is on a hillock, so expect a climb from the road.
• Stay in Imphal city and make the temple a short day trip.
• Check the year's Bor Numit time with local temple committee notices before you go.

Questions people ask