Temples in Deshnok
Karni Mata Temple
Karni Mata, who was born in 1387 nearhalodi, is said to be an incarnation of goddess Durga. This temple is famous because there are rats running all over the temple room floor.
The temple has a beautiful silver door and a wire mesh over the courtyard to protect the rats, who crawl all over the temple, from birds.The temple has an Image of Karni Mata holding a trishul (trident), surrounded by rats. The are called kabas. If you injure a rat while you are in the temple you have to present a gold or silver replica to the temple or suffer misfortune. The rats eat huge metal bowls full of milk, sweets, and grains donated by devotees. It is considered auspicious to see a white kaba near the image of Karni Mata.
The story of the temple is that a woman brought to Karni Mata the body of her recently dead son asked restore the boy to life. Karni fell into a deep trance and encountered Yamaraja, the lord of death. He told her already taken another body and could not be recalled. Karni refused to accept this and said that her tribe of Charans would not be governed by Yamaraja. At death they would enter the bodies of kabas, or sacred rats, and when the rats died they would be reborn as Charans. This is the story behind the rats in the temple.
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