Rajasthan, is one those destinations in India, which is globally renowned for its historical and cultural heritage. It is the land of forts and palaces. But not to forget, it is also well known for its enchanting festivals and fairs. Almost 90% percent of the population here are Hindus. They are sacred and worship a lot of deities. The Karni Mata Festival is one of the most popular festivals in the state. The festival is also one of the major tourist allurements in Rajasthan.
Deshnok town in Bikaner is the host of this auspicious occasion. The festival is held twice a year. The bigger festival is held for 10 days during Navaratas i.e. from March-April. You can also take part in the festival between September-October which will be not as big as the former. The people open-heartedly celebrate this festival.
There is an interesting background to Karni Mata Festival. It is dedicated to mystic Karni Mata who was believed to have supernatural powers. She lived her life serving poor and needy people. She was worshipped as a Goddess in the whole district of Bikaner. After her mysterious disappearance from her house, her devotees established a temple for worship. Since then, people visit this 600 year old temple for blessings from deity Karni Mata.
The temple is made of marbles and stones. It is also home to thousands of brown rats. They are considered very sacred and highly protected. They have been residing in the temple for years but yet today amazingly there have been no reports of any rat diseases. This very fact has also led to accruing tourists in the festival every year. It is believed that feeding the rats would bring good luck. So, people gather in line to feed the holy rats. The offerings are generally in the form of milk, grains and sweets.
Special preparations are made in the temple for the festival. The idol of deity Karni Mata is wonderfully decorated with a golden crown. It is also decorated with expensive jewelleries and garlands. The local Brahmin starts the festival with a prayer service and aarti. The temple is made open to visitors from 4 am. People start gathering in the temple early in the morning with bhog(Prasad) and garlands for the deity.
Various stalls and shops are installed outside the temple dealing especially with sacred and holy things that people like to offer. The ten day festival remains crowded all the time.
The Karni Mata Festival is very emotionally attached to the local people here. They try and make every possible contribution for the festival. Universal brotherhood and love are clearly reflected. Tourists are heartily welcome and people are very genial. May be this is the reason why the festival attracts more and more visitors not just from India but also around the world.
Tourists attend the festival to explore the rich cultural and religious traditions of the place. The famous temple is situated 30 kms away from Bikaner. You can easily land there through bus or taxi services. Sincerely speaking, the Karni Mata Festival is one of the must see festivals in entire India.
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