Believe It or Not: This Temple Worships Rats And Devotees Hunt for the Elusive White One’s Blessing

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Karni Mata Mandir in Deshnoke, Bikaner district, Rajasthan tomorrow on 22nd May. The temple, also known as Madh Deshnoke, is an important temple for Hindus. Goddess Karni has been worshipped by the royal family of Bikaner for centuries. The temple, located at the Bikaner border, is a significant pilgrimage site for devotees of Charani sagatis. It also gained importance after the Partition, when access to the Hinglaj Mata Temple became restricted. Hinglaj Mata Temple, one of the 51 Shakti Piths, is located in Pakistan.

The temple is popularly known as the "Temple of Rats". There are more than 25,000 rats in the temple, and they are seen as her children. These rats are considered sacred and are also known as kābā.

Karni Mata is regarded as an incarnation of the Hindu goddess Jagadamba. According to religious beliefs, she was born in the year 1387 into a Charan family and was named Righubai in her childhood. She was married to Depaji Charan of the village Sathika. However, after becoming disillusioned with worldly life, she got her younger sister, Gulab, to marry her husband, for the continuation of the bloodline. She then immersed herself in a life of spiritual pursuits.

Due to her dedication to serving the goddess and helping the local community, people began to refer to her as Karni Mata. To this day, the temple still preserves the spot where she used to worship her chosen deity. According to traditional accounts, Karni Mata lived for 151 years. After her death, devotees installed an idol of her at the site, which has since become a place of worship.

It’s said that spotting a white mouse at the temple is considered auspicious. According to such a belief, on one occasion, Laxman, the child of her husband and her sister, drowned in the Kapil Sarovar. Following this tragedy, Karni Mata pleaded with Yama, the god of death and justice, to restore Laxman’s life. Compelled by her devotion, Yama revived him, but in the form of a rat. Since then, it is said that whenever a descendant of Karni Mata passes away, they are reborn as a rat and return to this temple.

An interesting feature of the rats at the Karni Mata Temple is that they emerge from their burrows during the daily rituals—specifically at 5 a.m. and 7 p.m.—to attend the aarti.