Kaila Devi Temple

Overview

Kaila Devi Temple is a Hindu temple situated in the Kaila Devi Village of Karauli district, in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Nearest cities is Karauli (23 km), Gangapur City (34 km), Hindaun City (58 km). The temple is located on the banks of the Kalisil River, a tributary of the Banas River in the hills of Aravali."Kaila Devi Temple" is situated 23 km from Karauli in the Karauli District in Rajasthan State in India. The temple is located on the banks of the Kalisil River, a tributary of the Banas River in the hills of Trikut, 2 km to the north-west of Kaila village.

Temple is a marble structure with a large courtyard of a checkered floor. In one place, there are a number of red flags planted by devotees.A fair known as Kaila Devi Fair is held here every year in the month of Chaitra, starting from Chaitra Budi 12 and lasting for a fortnight.People around Karauli, Dholpur, Agra, Mathura and Morena and western Rajasthan also worship Kaila Devi as their Kuldevi.

There are two statues in the temple, one is of Kaila Devi and another is of Chamunda Devi both are sitting together. Bigger one is of Kaila Devi and head of statue is slightly bent. People come here from across the country especially during Navaratra (period of 9 days).

About the Temple

Legend says that king Bhompal received instructions from Goddess Kaila Devi to build the temple for her as he was a great devotee of Kaila Devi, he built this temple and since then the place has become so sacred that millions of people from far and wide come here for darshan. Later Maharaja Gopal Singh of Yadava clan built a big and beautiful temple with dome whose apex was made from gold. Maharaja Bhanwarpal fabricated many buildings and the area soon acquired immense for its sacredness and scenic charm. In the sanctum sanctorum, there are two idols. The idol of Kaila Devi is slightly reclined as the neck of the goddess is bent. The idols are very old and they are made of the locally available stone.

Kaila Devi temple history dates back to the 1100 AD during the rule of the Jadun Rajput rulers. The temple was dedicated as tutelary of the particular region. Tutelary meaning the main patroness of the region. Kaila Devi is adored as both Goddess Mahalaxmi that is the (Goddess of wealth) and Goddess Kali the (Goddess of Destruction). The heritage town of Karauli is associated with many legends. It is a popular belief that the princely state of Karauli was founded by Yaduvanshi Rajput Bijai Pal around 995 AD. It is believed that he was 88th generation of the Hindu deity, Lord Krishna. Little is however known about the early history of the family. Kaila Devi temple architecture has stood the test of time and is wonderful example of building contrivance. Till today the temple has not crumbled or being subject to ruins in any sort of manner. The frontage of the temple holds intricate mosaic and relief work. The large Shikhar of the temple is also an architectural marvel. There is chowk in front of the main temple that is opened and on either side there is a verandah. The area around the temple is also adorned with various statutes. Another unique feature is that the temple is located at the foothills of the mountain and is surrounded by greenery. The Jagmohan (prayer hall is also the same). The ornamental work, engraving and encarving have been done on walls and pillars. Red Stone of Karoli was used for construction of Temple.

Legend and Stories

The temple is dedicated to Goddess Kaila Devi, of the erstwhile princely Jadaun Rajput rulers of the Karauli state. It is a marble structure with a large courtyard of a chequered floor. In one place are a number of red flags planted by devotees. These Red flags existing in the Kaila devi mandir are placed by the devotees. Devotees used to put the bhog along with these flags there in kaila devi mandir on each day of the year. The Jagran by the bhagat ji is the most attractive thing here happens every night at 09:00 PM IST in the temple. Devotees used to come there by foot from different areas of Rajastha,UP,MP and all over India in the month of Chaitra. A detailed description of Kaila Devi Ji is given in the SkandaPurana in the 65th Adhyaya wherein the goddess is said to have proclaimed that in Kalyug her name would be “Kaila” and she would be worshipped as Kaileshwari by her devotees. Furthermore the Vedas say that in Kalyug the worship of Kaila Devi will grant immediate fulfillment.

The goddess Kaila Devi is considered to be a form of the same goddess-Maha-yogini Mahamaya who had taken birth as the child of Nanda-Yashoda, and with whom Lord Krishna was replaced as per the direction of Lord Vishnu. When Kansa tried to kill the girl child, she transformed into her Devi Roop and informed him that the one he attempted to kill was already safe and sound. She is now worshipped as Kaila Devi, and as Vindhyavasini and Hinglaj Mata at other places. The arrival of the goddess’s likeness to this destination is a fascinating story. The statue was being carried on a bullock cart by a Yogi baba, fleeing from Nagarkot, to protect it. Kaila Devi meanwhile appeared to the sage Kedargiri assuring him that she would come to the people of the area. The Yogi’s sole bullock stopped in the central part of the hill amid the dense forest and refused to budge. By divine ordinance the statue was established at that very place. With the blessings of Kaila Devi, the Yaduvanshi rulers of Karauli have always maintained a deep connection with the temple.

Maharaja Gopal Singh Ji laid the foundation of the temple in 1723 and the work was completed in 1730. He also established the statue of ChamundaJi, bringing it from the fort of Gagraun where it had been placed by the Khinchi ruler Mukund Das Ji in 1150. Arjun Pal Ji built a large Kund, which exists to this date and was one of the earliest large-scale, man-made sources of water in the area. Maharaja Bhanwar Pal Ji, coming to the throne in 1886, had the temple reconstructed with more modern architecture and had several facilities constructed for the pilgrims such as DurgaSagar well, and the BadiDharamshala. In 1927 Maharaja Bhom Pal Ji had improved roads constructed and established a power house. In 1947, Maharaja Ganesh Pal Ji had both the interior and exterior of the temple refurbished in marble. The current Maharaja, Krishna Chandra Pal Ji has also made several radical improvements and added multiple modern facilities. The courtyard has been expanded, and several additions made including the administrative block, the staff quarters, the Annapurna Canteen, a large pandal for waiting devotees, and demarcated channels to implement queues for darshan. New dharamshalas, Ram Bhavan and KansalBhavan have been built and some existing ones-SitaBhavan, Ratan Devi and the Dholpur Dharamshalahave been reconstructed.

Furthermore under the aegis of the Kaila Devi Charitable Trust a hundred bed hospital, the Kaila Devi Senior Secondary School with about 900 students, and a student’s hostel have been set up and are progressing rapidly. A large dam on the Kalisilriver has been repaired and expanded and two smaller dams have been constructed downstream. The Kaila Devi temple has a glorious past and with the blessings of Kaila Devi Ji herself and with the prayers of her worshippers, has an equally great presence in the future.

Katare Clan

The Katare's is a very respected clan in Hindus. They are the descendants of Maharishi Vasisth who was the guru of Lord Rama. They regard Kaila mata as their Kul Devi. Gupta, Mathur, Vaishya and all found in North India and Pakistan regard the Goddess as their Kul Devi. There are two statues in the temple, one is of Kaila Devi and one is of Chamunda Devi both are sitting together. Bigger one is of Kaila Devi and head of statue is slightly bent. people come here from across the country especially during Navratre(period of 9 days). This temple consist of the palace of the Maharaja in its background. Maharaja Shri Krishna Chandra Pal and his family used to come here on the big occasions and every Austmi.

Festivals

The annual fair of Kaila Devi is held at the village Kaila Devi in the month of Chaitra (Mar-Apr), lasting for a fortnight. Another attraction is the small temple dedicated to Bhairon, situated in the courtyard and facing the shrine of Kaila Devi is a temple of Hanuman locally called 'Languriya'. Approximately 20,00,000 devotees mainly from Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan states gather during the fair in Hindu 'Chaitra' month. The ritual of Kanak-Dandotis is observed by staunch devotees. They cover a distance of 15 to 20 km to reach the temple, not on foot but by lying prostrate, making lines with their hands in that position, advancing up to the line drawn and repeating this procedure till they reach the temple. While some eat food and take rest during the journey, others endure the rigors of the ritual without these. Groups of Mina tribesmen arrive in a spirit of gaiety dancing, singing and creating a lively atmosphere. The spacious courtyard becomes the venue for dances and songs sung in praise of the guardian deity.

Timings of Temple

A major part of the Kaila Devi rituals and observances are the mass prayers offered to the Goddess in the morning at 7:00 AM and 06:30 PM respectively. The atmosphere during these prayers is electrifyingly spiritual. Individual irrespective of the weather conditions line up to seek the graces and blessings of the Kalia Devi. During the evening prayers the ambiance of the temple is one of prayer high spirits.

Offerings

The goddess is offered Halva as Bhog. As the goddess is satvik and satoguni She is not offered liquor or meat.

Benefits of Kaila Devi temples prasad

Abundance and wealth will come in devotee’s life.
Bad effects of graha will be removed.
Business and career will become better.
All kind of positivity will be bestowed

Accommodation

Few yatri nivas, guest houses and Dharamshalas offers budget stay.

Best time to visit

Summer is not a good time to visit Karauli. The best time to visit this heritage town is from October to March

Interesting Fact

The green glass ‘Dhani’ bangles are worn by girls and married women alike. Young girls wear them for getting a suitable husband and the married women wear them for the long life of their husbands & to wish them well. Every year these bangles are sold in tens of thousands of numbers.

Accessibility

Airport

The closest airport for Kaila Devi the nearest airport is Jaipur Airport.

Railways

Gangapur is the nearest major rail-heads of the Western Railway near Kaila Devi. Mahaveer ji another minor stations for site. The site is approachable by well-maintained roads from Karauli, Hindaun City, Gangapur city and Shri Mahavirji. Kaila Devi is situated near the broad gauge Western Central Railway line on Delhi - Bombay route. Kaila Devi is well connected to Major railway station Gangapur city which in turn are connected to various parts of the country.

Road

During the fair, the State Transport as well as private operators provide hundreds of bus services and thousands of other vehicles keeping in mind the huge inflow of pilgrims. Connected by road to several major cities and towns. RSRTC operates Roadways Buses very frequently for Jaipur and Delhi. Buses for Hindaun City Bus Stand, Karauli, Gangapur City etc. are very frequent all over the day. RSRTC also operate some Gandhi Rath Buses (Semi Deluxe Bus) for Jaipur. Some of the major road distances are: Hindaun City (53 km), Jaipur (170 km), Bharatpur (90 km), Mathura (220 km), Agra (225 km), Delhi (325 km), Gangapur city (34 km) and Karauli (23 km).

Temple Address

Keladevi,
Karauli district,
Rajasthan,
India,
Pincode - 322 243.