Rats Temple - Karni Mata Temple

Karni Mata (October 2, 1387(1387-10-02) – March 23, 1538) was a female Hindu sage born in the Charan caste and is worshiped as the incarnation of the goddess Durga by her followers. She is an official deity of the royal family of Jodhpur and Bikaner. During her lifetime, she laid the foundation stone of two of the important forts in Rajputana. She lived an ascetic  life, and most of the temples dedicated to her were dedicated during her lifetime. The temple dedicated to her during her lifetime does not contain an image or idol of her instead they contain foot-print to symbolize her visit to that place. The most famous of all of her temples is the temple of Deshnoke, which was created following her mysterious disappearance from her home. The temple is famous for its rats, which are treated as sacred and given protection in the temple. This temple is near to Bikaner  and Nokha. The second name of Karni mata is (Nari bai). Contrary to some reports, the temple is of the Hindu sect and is not affiliated with the Jain faith.

 

 

 

 

The Karni Mata temple at Deshnoke, 30 km from [Bikaner, in its present form was completed in the early 20th century in the late Mughal style by Maharaja Ganga Singh of Bikaner]. The temple was further enhanced by Kundanlal Verma of Hyderabad-based Karni Jewelers in 1999. The huge silver gates to the temple and the marble carvings were also donated by him.

Throughout the year, pilgrims from around India come to pay religious tribute to Karni Mata at the Deshnoke temple. Outside Rajasthan, she is respected and loved in areas such as Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Haryana. During Navratri thousands travel to the temple by foot. If one of the rats is killed, it must be replaced with one made of solid gold. Sighting a white rat amidst hordes of black rats is considered specially auspicious.

According to a local legend, Karni Mata, the 14th century mystic and an incarnation of Hindu goddess Durga, implored, Yama, the god of death to restore to life, the son of a storyteller, and upon his refusal she incarnated the dead son, and all of the storytellers as a rat, under her protection.