Barmer Kiradu Temples, Rajasthan

Address

Barmer Kiradu Temples, Sihani, Rajasthan 344502

Diety

Shiva, Vishnu

Introduction

Located at a distance of about 35 Kilometre from Barmer, Kiradu temples are the main attractions in this area.. These are 5 temples that exhibit marvelous Solanki style architecture. These temples are dedicated to Lord Shiva and Vishnu. Some of these temples resemble the sculpture of Khajuraho temples. Hence, these are also famous as the Khajuraho of Rajasthan. The temples here were built in the 11th century. Kiradu is also called Khajuraho of Rajasthan but Kiradu could not get the fame like Khajuraho because this place is deserted for last 900 years. The Vishnu temple is at the other end of the group, with only the highly carved columns of the mandapa still standing.

Puranic Significance

These temples date back to the 11th century. This land was known as Kiradkot during those times. King Someshwar of the Kirad clan ruled this place during the 12th century. It was a prosperous and happy land during those times. The fear of foreign invasion upset the King and the general public. In order to keep his people and kingdom safe from foreign invasion, the king requested a sage to bless and stay in his kingdom. He offered to take good care of him and his disciples. Blessed with the presence of the great saint, the king’s land was happy and prosperous again. One day the saint decided to leave the place but asked one of his disciples to stay in the kingdom to safeguard it. In the absence of the saint, the king and his people forgot about the saint’s disciple and got busy in their own lives. Meanwhile, the saint’s disciple fell sick but nobody except a potter’s wife paid any heed to him. When the saint returned back to the king’s land, he got furious seeing his disciple’s ill health. He cursed the people of that land saying- ‘A place which has no humanity, must not be burdened with humankind.’ As a result of his curse all the people turned into stones. The saint only let the potter’s wife free of this curse. He told her to leave the village as soon as she could and not to look back while leaving. The woman followed saint’s advice but as she was almost out of the village, she looked back out of curiosity. This made her turn into stone too. It is believed that that’s the reason nobody lives around this place as it is cursed to stay abandoned. It is a common belief that anyone staying at this place at night would turn into stone. Many people also believe that those who turned into rocks, turned into sand over a period of time. Nobody visits this place after sunset due to these kinds of stories behind Kiradu temples.