Karni Mata Temple (a.k.a Rat temple) Bikaner, Rajasthan

If you're following me on social media you might have noticed that I had a short trip to Rajasthan recently, on invitation from the newly launched Narendra Bhawan, Bikaner. During this trip we visited several places of interest in and around Bikaner. My next few posts will be on them.

I learnt about this Karni Ma temple, also known as Rat Temple on our first day at Bikaner. The brief history goes as below, as told to us:

Karni Mata used to fulfill wishes of her disciples way back in 14th century, taking care of well being of villagers and particularly the poor, oppressed by others. She is believed to be an incarnation of Goddess Durga and never denied any wish sought by people worshiping her. One day her sister's son drowned in the village lake and died. Hoping that Karni mata would bring him back to life, her sister rushed to Karni Mata with the dead son. Unfortunately Karni Mata couldn't bring the dead back to life, but she assured her sister that her dead son will be born as a rat. This logic extended into belief that every dead person in the village will be born as a rat and every dead rat will be reborn in someone's home as a human. The sum total of no. of rats and no of people in the village would thus remain constant.

On the net there're multiple variations of this story- use your discretion.

Because of this belief, villagers think one of the rat in the temple is indeed their family member who might have died recently. Thus rats are fed well and treated with lots of respect here.

Karni Ma ka Rat temple is located at a town called Deshnok, some 30kms from Bikaner. On the main road, a board invites you to this 'world famous' temple. It was built in 15th century by the Raja of Bikaner.

As we entered, first thing I spotted was this large Kadai

The outer view of Rat Temple below- looks at par with any other temple in the region and doesn't give a clue to the experience you will get once you step inside.


There are lots of intricate carvings on the main door

Notice rats in the carvings. It is said that dogs and cats in the vicinity never harm the rats. However wired protection could be found on the ceiling to prevent the birds from harming rats or taking away all the food meant for rats.

Interior looks like any other temple but the main difference being presence of rats everywhere.

Above left: Garbha gudi of Rat temple, notice lots of rodents on the floor.
Above right: As I kept my camera bag on the ground, one curious and brave rodent came close and sniffed it intensely in search of food.
Below: A walking corridor around the Garbha gudi- notice the rodents in the corner.

Below: A rat escaping into its hole as I moved the camera closer... Not the most hygienic place but in whatever close-up pics I clicked, rats appeared fairly clean enough.

The cooking area for rats

A musician was entertaining the visitors- I could see that he has been singing here for decades- take a close look at the keypads of the harmonium

A brave rat stood still for several minutes while I clicked some closeup pictures...

The lucky white rats:

The campus is believed to have very few - 4-5 white rats and sighting them is deemed auspicious and will make your wishes come true. I said I want India-US return ticket for Rs 10000, but unfortunately didn't spot any white rat for this to happen.

Silver compensation: If you kill or harm a rat, you're required to donate a silver rat of same size and weight.

The Museum:

There is a small museum next to the temple depicting life story of Karni ma. 

Photography inside the Karni ma temple costs Rs 30 per camera, video Rs 100. It was open early in the morning when we visited (like 6.30-7 AM). Toilet facilities are available in the campus and few petty shops sell rat food and other materials needed for temple visitors.

If you have someone in your group who are extremely scared of rats, visiting this temple will change their perception of rats or help reduce fear of rats. The rodents co-exist with humans here without harming each other. Though it might appear dirty and scary at present, you will appreciate yourself for going through the temple and experiencing a temple full of rodents.

With this I end year 2016. See you next year with more stories and photos. Thanks for your support.

Also see: Kiradu temple ruins * Lodhruva Jain temple *