Maniyar

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Maniyar parshuram nagari Muniwar
Town
Nickname:  Maniar
Maniyar Location in Uttar Pradesh, India
Coordinates: 25°48′50″N 84°02′02″E / 25.81389°N 84.03389°E / 25.81389; 84.03389
Country	India
State	Uttar Pradesh
District	Ballia
Population  (2001)
• Total	18,750
Languages
• Official	bhojpuri
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)

Maniyar is a town and a Nagar Panchayat in Ballia district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is also called Parshuram Nagari.

The name is derived from the word Muniwar. It was called the land of saints and monks. The Hindu god Parshuram was said to have meditated there for a long time. Maharshi Parshuram Dham temple was built there in the 16th century.

Maniyar is situated on the banks of Saryu or Ghaghra river.

Nawka Baba temple is a place of Brahma (Hindi:ब्रह्म) worship. The temple is known for its spirits, which are said to leave people's bodies as they enter the temple due to black magic. A pond is nearby, which is said to have the power to cure skin diseases if a person takes a bath. A fair is held here in April and October where thousands of people visit and cure themselves. There is an interesting story behind Nawka Baba. The story goes this way: There were two brothers named Ramsharan Choubey and Shivasharan Choubey who used to live in Chainpur village in Bihar. The two brothers were very handsome and talented and were very extraordinary even since childhood but were orphans. They used to do labour and work in the farms at the house of a rich zamindar to earn some money. There was a witch or Daayan just behind the zamindar house. She saw the two young brothers and she thought to use them for her Tantrik rituals. So, she invited both of them to her house to have some food. The brothers were very hungry after working, so they agreed and went to her house. She intentionally mixed Poison in their food and they both died there. After this incident, she imprisoned the spirits of the brothers in a small glass bottle and used it for her black magic deeds, and she secretly vanished their bodies somewhere. After some decades, the marriage of her daughter took place in village so she ordered her daughter to take the bottle with her in her Sinhora or vermillion box and throw it in the Saryu river from her boat. The daughter was unable to throw the bottle from the boat because there were Baratis and the groom in the boat, so if she had done that, everyone would have noticed it. So, she brought it to Maniyar, dug a small hole in her house and put the bottle inside and covered it with Chakki or 'Jant' or wheat grinder. After many years, the daughter got old and the chakki was removed by her family members making the spirits free from imprisonment. In the night, horror incidents started happening in the house. Blood started coming from the roof of the rooms along with pieces of flesh and meat. One day, a fire broke out for unknown reasons and burnt the house, and scary and horrifying figures were seen in the house by her family members. One night, the spirit of the two brothers told the lady to gurmukh them and give them a place in her dream. Everyone got terrified, so they sought the help of a pandit who refused at first, but after that, his house also caught fire for unknown reasons, so he agreed at last. Then, they were given their place, and a landlord built the temple after he saw the magic of how he was cured from his disease by bathing in the pond and worshipping the brahm baba. Locals say thousands of people are cured daily from possession by evil spirits by worshipping the Pinds of the brothers, which are now called Nawka Baba. Indeed, wishes really come true after visiting here, according to locals. Sataku Baba is another small temple 100 meters from Nawka Baba. Sataku Baba, also known as Bhudhwa Baba temple, is known for the same reasons as Nawka Baba.

Parshuram temple was built in the 16th century of lakhauri bricks with old plaster. Architectural elements can be seen on it and, according to some locals, Lord Parshuram meditated there. Small temples surround the complex. Barahdwari (or twelve gateways) was built by traders Lachhu Bhagat and Billar Bhagat in the 18th century. Miniature paintings were made on the ceilings, but cannot be seen because locals painted over them.

This mathiya belongs to Das Tradition. "Baba Jhalak Das" is a Saint of Das Tradition Mahanth in this mathiya in the 20th century. He was born in 1927 in a Suhwal village near Sahtwar. Tapsi Das Jamuna Das Narayan Das was formerly Mahanth. In this mathia Thakur Ji and lord Shambhushek shivlinga established by Baba Jhalakdas.

As of 2001 India census,^[1] Maniyar had a population of 18,750. Males constitute 51% of the population, and females made up 49 %. Maniyar has an average literacy rate of 47 %, lower than the national average of 59.5 %. Male literacy is 57 %, and female literacy is 36 %. 18 % of the population is under 6.

In Kerala, one Maniyar is a village in Kollam district. Another Maniyar is a village in Pathanamthitta district. A nearby dam has the same name.