Balaji Hanuman Temple

Overview

Legend has it that the current day versions of the ‘Divine Trinity’ i.e. Balaji Hanuman, Pret Raj Sarkar and Kotwal Bhairav Ji, was found in the ‘Mehandipur Dham’ appeared around one thousand years ago in a valley, amidst the hills of the Aravali Range. This area was once covered by a thick and dense forest, full of wild animals. A priest had a dream in which Sri Balaji Maharaj had indicated three divine deities and a magnificent temple. He had also heard a divine voice ordering him to serve for Sri Balaji Hanuman's duty. He was unable to see any one initially but after years of "Sadhna", Lord Sri Balaji finally appeared and showed him the place in the forest where the temple and the three Divine Forms were found.

Mehendipur Balaji Temple Road, Jaipur Agra Road, Mehandipur, Rajasthan 321610, India The temple is situated in Todabhim, Karauli district of the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is 66 km from Jaipur, 44 km from Hindaun City and 35 km from Dausa and is quite close to the Bandikui railway station. The temple is located at 3 kms from the Jaipur - Agra national highway from Balaji Mod. This pilgrimage center is the roughly at the following distances from these places: For people, who don’t believe in ghosts, this is the place to come where evil spirits are exorcised. Mehandipur Balaji temple is located in Dausa district of Rajasthan, 255 km away from Delhi. There are three main deities of the temple- Lord Hanuman, Pret Raj (The King of spirits), Bhairav.

About The Temple

Sri Mehandipur Balaji Temple is situated in Dausa, Rajasthan. Shri Mehendipur Balaji Temple is Lord Hanuman Ji's Temple. Long ago the image of Lord Balaji and that of Pret Raja (the King of spirits) appeared from the Arawali hills. Now people suffering from malignant spirits and black magic or spell get their relief when they make an appeal for relief to Shri Bhairav ji and Shri Pret Raj Sarkar who holds his court and awards punishment to the malignant spirits, ghosts, goblins, ghouls, evil eyed witches etc. Shrines for Balaji, Court of Pret Raja, Pooja griha, Bhairav ji temple and Ram Darbar are some of the spots worth seeing here. Religious ritualistic performances, charity, feeding the poor, homeless and incapacitated people, water supply for all and fodder for cows and stray animals are the activities of this temple. Balaji temple at Mehandipur in Rajasthan is very powerful place.

It is believed that the deity in this temple has divine power to cure a person possessed with evil spirit. Hundreds of 'Sankatwalas', as the possessed people are referred to in local lingo, throng to the temple every day to offer prayers and have 'darshan'. The temple has also become a home and the last respite for the victims. The 'Mahant' of the temple, Shri Kishor Puri Ji, prescribes the treatment. It can include reading holy texts, following a strict vegetarian and simple diet, and even afflicts physical pain to one's body. One can witness people going through various physical therapies like keeping heavy stones on their body, on arms, legs and chest, to ease their pain. There are others who inhale the smoke that fumes out of the sweet Patasa's kept on smoldering cowpats. The ones with serious case of spirit possession, who tends to get violent, are even shackled in chains within the temple premises. This may appear a bit anachronistic at the first glance, but thousands of people are believed to have been cured in this way. Festival time (Holi, Hanuman Jayanti and Dusshera etc) are regarded as the most auspicious time to emancipate from the evil spirit Medical science may discard such approach to the ailment as self-deceptions based on blind faith, but for the believers, the power of Balaji is something supernatural, something beyond metaphysics.

About Mehndipur Balaji

Thousands of devotees of Lord Shri Balaji come every day to Mehandipur Balaji to pay homage. It is believed that Lord Shri Balaji not only helps settle problems, but also provides "Riddhi and Siddhi." As the legend goes, around 1000 years ago the images of Lord Shri Balaji, Shri Pretraj Sarkar and Shri Bhairav dev appeared in the valley of the hills of Arawali range. The appearance of Lord Shri Balaji in Arawali hills is chamatkar of this saga. Shri Ganesh Puri ji Maharaj was 11th Mahant of this temple. Earlier this area was thick and dense forest, full of wild animals. The ancestor of Shri Mahantji saw the lila of Shri Balaji in dreams indicating three divine deity and magnificent temple. He also heared divine voice ordering "get up and be prepared for my duty". But he was unable to see any one. Ultimately Lord Shri Balaji appeared before him and ordered "Take duty of serving me".

The ancestor of Shri Mahantji performed puja and arti regularly. In early days of puja some miscreants tried to dig out the deity but they could not reach the bottom of the statue as it is the part of the hill " Kanak Bhoodharakar Shareera". There is small pot in feet of deity . The water in this pot never dries due to continuous flow of water from left side of chest of statue of lord Shri Balaji .

On reaching Mehandipur Balaji the people come to know how malignant/ evil sprit and black magic cast their spell and how the sankatwalas get relief/cured from sprits and ailments.The disciples are advised not to be fooled by sants and fakirs but contact pujariji in his office.

Rituals need to be followed in the Mehandipur Balaji Temple

The rituals of this temple are very specific and need to follow in proper sequence without any mistake. Overall the rituals can be divided into three broad parts known as: Durkhasta, Arzi and Savamani. The first time devotees have to take small durkhasta ladoos, Two plates of these durkhasta laddoos, each containing 4-5 ladoos should be purchased from any shops outside the temple. The timing of Durkhasta is after Morning Prayer and before evening prayer. One plate is to inform the god that we have come for his blessings and the second one is for requesting his help to achieve something or solving the key problems. With great respect and clean heart we need to offer these two plates to the priests standing in front of Balaji Hanuman. The priest will pick the offering as much as he wants to add to the fire burning in front of the deity. We have to move with the crowd and then we do the same thing to Pretraj Sarkar and then Kotwal Bhairav Ji. After last offering, eat 2 ladoo out of the left over bhog in the hand from the 2 plates. There will be more left in the containers even after this. The devotees circumambulate the sanctum with these 2 containers on their head for about 7 times and then drop it backwards without looking behind. After Durkhast we ordered for ‘Arzi’ in the same shop that has a fix cost of 270 Rs that includes 1.25 kg of ‘ladoo’, 2.25 kg of ‘urad dal’ and 4.25 kg of ‘boiled rice’ that we suppose to get early morning. It is import that one should NEVER LOOK BACKWARDS and should not eat anything in that area. It is said so because it is believed that if there are any evil spirits following the devotee, then it will go with them. Once when the wish is fulfilled the devotees have to come back to pay respect and offer savamani(done only on Tuesday and Saturday).

Legend and Stories

Legend has it that the current day forms of the Divine Trinity that are found in Mehandipur once appeared around 1000 years ago in a valley amidst the hills in the Aravali Range. Shri Ganesh Puri ji Maharaj, the 11th Mahant of this pilgrimage center used to say that this area was covered by a thick and dense forest, full of wild animals, once upon a time. One of the ancestors of Shri Mahantji had dreams in which Sri Balaji Maharaj had indicated three divine deities and a magnificent temple. He had also heard a divine voice ordering him to get up and be prepared for Sri Balaji Hanuman's duty. He was unable to see any one initially but after years of "Sadhna", Lord Sri Balaji finally appeared and showed him the place in the forest where the temple and the three Divine Forms were found.

That ancestor of Shri Mahantji started "puja" and "arti" regularly at the sacred spot in the forest. In the early days of the religious activities of the first "Mahant", some miscreants tried to dig out the deity but they could not reach the bottom of the statue as it is a part of the hill surrounding the temple compound. There is a small pot at the feet of the "Presiding Deity" and the water in this pot never dries up due to continuous flow of "Blessed Holy Jal" from the left side of the chest of Lord Shri Balaji Hanuman. The "Divine Trinity" in the Mehandipur Dham comprises Pawanputra Sri Balaji Hanuman, Sri Bhairava Baba and "Swayam-Bhu" Sri Pret-Raj Sarkar.

Sri Mehandipur Balaji Temple is situated in Dausa,Rajasthan.Basically Shri Mehendipur Balaji Temple is Lord Hanuman Ji's Temple.Long ago the image of Lord Balaji and that of Pret Raja (the King of spirits) appeared from the Arawali hills. Now people suffering from malignant spirits and black magic or spell get their relief when they make an appeal for relief to Shri Bhairav ji and Shri Pret Raj Sarkar who holds his court and awards punishment to the malignant spirits, ghosts, goblins, ghouls, evil eyed witches etc.Shrine of Balaji, Court of Pret Raja, Pooja griha, Bhairav ji temple and Ram Darbar are some of the spots worth seeing here.

Religious ritualistic performances, charity, feeding the poor, homeless and incapacitated people, water supply for all and fodder for cows and stray animals are the activities of this temple.

Balaji temple at Mehandipur in Rajasthan is very a powerful place. It is believed that the deity in this temple has divine power to cure a person possessed with evil spirit.Hundreds of 'Sankatwalas', as the possessed people are referred to in local lingo, throng to the temple every day to offer prayers and have 'darshan'. The temple has also become a home and the last respite for the victims. The 'Mahant' of the temple, Shri Kishor Puri Ji, prescribes the treatment. It can include reading holy texts, following a strict vegetarian and simple diet, and even afflicts physical pain to one's body.

One can witness people going through various physical therapies like keeping heavy stones on their body, on arms, legs and chest, to ease their pain. There are others who inhale the smoke that fumes out of the sweet Patasa's kept on smoldering cowpats. The ones with serious case of spirit possession, who tend to get violent, are even shackled in chains within the temple premises.

The legend is that one who goes with a clean mind and respect dos and don’ts will be cured of all evil spirits or effects that could be affecting a person with or without his knowledge.

Accommodation

There are numerous Dharamshalas in area surrounding the temple which offers comfortable staying options. Dausa has few good hotels of quality services like the Hotel Madhuban. There are many budget hotels too. There is a Dharamshala around the temple too that provides accommodation at very nominal charges.

Best Time to visit

Timing to visit the temple is 9.00 pm in summer and up to 8.00 pm in winter. Festival time like Holi, Hanuman Jayanti and Dusshera, etc is being regarded as the most auspicious time to emancipate from the evil spirits.

Significance

Legend says that the deity in this temple has divine power to cure a person possessed with evil spirit. One can also say that Shri Bala Ji Maharaj saves his devotees from unfavourable graha dashas that is the planetary configurations. Long ago the image of Lord Balaji and even that of Pret Raja - the King of spirits appeared from the Arawali hills. Since then, the people suffering from malignant spirits and black magic or spell get their relief when they make an appeal here at the temple for relief to Shri Bhairav ji and Shri Pret Raj Sarkar who holds this court and awards punishment to the malignant spirits, ghosts, goblins, ghouls, evil eyed witches, and the like. Sri Mehandipur Balaji Temple is dedicated to Lord Hanuman, the symbol of courage in Hindu mythology. Many pilgrims come here from different states of India to get rid of their physical problems.

Hundreds of 'Sankatwalas', as the possessed people are referred to in local lingo, throng to the temple everyday to offer prayers and have 'darshan'. The temple has also become a home and the last respite for the victims. The 'Mahant' of the temple, Shri Kishor Puri Ji, prescribes the treatment. It usually includes reading holy texts and even follows a strict vegetarian and simple diet, and even afflicts physical pain to one's body. Religious ritualistic performances, charity, feeding the poor, homeless and incapacitated people, water supply for all and fodder for cows and stray animals are the activities of this temple.

One can witness people going through various physical therapies like keeping heavy stones on their body, on arms, legs and chest, to ease their pain. There are others who inhale the smoke that fumes out of the sweet Patasa's kept on smoldering cowpats. The ones with serious case of spirit possession, who tends to get violent, are even shackled in chains within the temple premises. This may appear a bit anachronistic at the first glance, but thousands of people are believed to have been cured in this way. Festival time (Holi, Hanuman Jayanti and Dusshera etc) are regarded as the most auspicious time to emancipate from the evil spirit. Medical science may discard such approach to the ailment as self-deceptions based on blind faith, but for the believers, the power of Balaji is something supernatural, something beyond metaphysics. Thousands of devotees flock to this temple to get cured and get evil spirits exorcised.

Nearby Places to Visit

The fantastic places of visiting for the devotees who come to Mehandipur Balaji Temple are Nilkanth Mahadev Temple, Mataji Ka Mandir, Pratap Vatika and Kaila Devi Temple. Some other interesting facts are Court of Pret Raja, Pooja griha; Bhairav ji temple and Ram Darbar which are some of the spots worth seeing here. The Mehandipur Balaji Temple at Dausa involves many charitable activities like providing food to the disabled and fodder to the cattle, etc.

Accessibility

Airport

Airport facilities to Delhi, Jaipur, and Agra are also there. The nearest airport is Sanganer, Jaipur (113 kms).

Railways

Rajasthan is connected to Agra, Jaipur, Alwar, Bharatpur and Dausa with train route from where bus service is available for Mehndipur Balaji temple. The Nearest Railway station is Bandikui (40 kms). Mehandipur Balaji is well connected to All major cities of North India .There is very frequent service of buses on Agra Jaipur highway. The journey can be performed by car from Delhi either via Alwar-Mahwa or mathura-Bharatpur-mahwa.

Road

The temple can be reached by road. The temple is well connected with stations of major cities in the country. There are very frequent services of buses available on Agra- Jaipur highway. One can also hire a car from Delhi either along the Alwar-Mahwa or Mathura-Bharatpur-Mahwa route.

Temple Address

Mehandipur Balaji's Temple,
Agra Dausa Rd, Dausa District, Mehandipur,
Rajasthan, Pincode – 303303.