The Leaning Temple of Huma
A Shiva temple on the Mahanadi leans to one side, and its inner shrine is said to lean another way.
What was reported
The Bimaleswar temple at Huma, on the bank of the Mahanadi, is said to have been built by a Chauhan king of Sambalpur in the 17th century. The main temple leans visibly, and visitors are told that the smaller structures around it lean in different directions, and that the tilt has never stopped the temple from being used.
The fish in the river beside the temple are protected and fed by pilgrims, and are said to come to the bank when called.
Explanations offered
The usual explanation is that the temple stands on a slab of rock that has shifted, perhaps through floods or ground movement on the riverbank, rather than that it was built to lean. No detailed engineering survey has been widely published.
- When
- Built in the 1600s
- Where
- Huma, Sambalpur district, Odisha, India
- Witnesses
- Pilgrims and visitors
- Status
- Partly explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.