Surya Pahar is one of the most significant heritage sites of the ancient remains in Assam. It is located about 12 km southeast of Goalpara. Surya Pahar translates to ‘Hill of the Sun’ in English.
The name implies that the site was associated with the cult of sun worship. The archaeological findings discovered from the area are kept in the local museum. This relatively unknown site near Goalpara in Assam is high on archaeological value. Calling it an archaeologist’s gold mine will not be an overstatement.
The sacred Sri Surya Pahar is a stretch of shivlingas approximately extending up to a kilometer. The lingas are said to be formed by boulder and big rocks. It is believed that the great sage Vyasa himself laid the foundations for Surya Prahar modelling it on Kashi with 99,999 Shiv Lingams dotted across the mountain face and it was a thriving civilization and a major trading city long ago with maritime trade routes through the mighty Brahmaputra. Being an amalgamation of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, it enjoyed great status. Some historians even believe that Sri Suraya Pahar was the ancient seat of the Pragjyotish kingdom and not Guwahati.
Many Hindu rock carvings have been discovered in this place along with some rock-cut antiques, 25 stupas and the deities belonging to Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. These are kept at a museum in Surya Pahar. Jainism did not have a strong foothold anywhere in the North East except for its presence in Suraya Pahar, which hence, is of great significance. 25 stupas in the eastern periphery are proof of the presence of Buddhism.
Sri Surjya Pahar is open to all religions. It merges three religions together with its myriad scriptures and antiques of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.
As per the Hindu religion Sri Surjya Pahar is believed to be a slab of a carved stone correlated to Surya (sun). The inner center of the carved stone was spotted as prajapati’ whereas the outer has been identified as twelve lotus petals. As per the Jains there remains nothing except for the footprints of the Rishabhanath followers. However, the Buddhist remains are differently shaped and 25 stupas have been found.
Source:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_Surya_Pahar
https://www.tourmyindia.com/states/assam/sri-surya-pahar.html