| Karni Mata Temple | |
|---|---|
करणी माता मंदिर | |
 Karni Mata Temple | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Hinduism |
| District | Bikaner |
| Deity | Karni Mata |
| Location | |
| Location | Deshnoke |
| State | Rajasthan |
| Country | India |
  Location in Rajasthan  Karni Mata Temple (India) | |
| Geographic coordinates | 27°47′26″N 73°20′27″E / 27.79056°N 73.34083°E |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Rajput |
| Creator | Maharaja Ganga Singh |
| Completed | 15th - 20th century |
| Website | |
| https://www.tourism.rajasthan.gov.in/karni-mata-temple.html | |
Karni Mata Temple of Deshnoke (Hindi: करणी माता मंदिर), also known as Madh Deshnoke, is a prominent Hindu temple dedicated to Karni Mata at the town of Deshnoke, located 30 km south of Bikaner, in Rajasthan. It has become the most important pilgrimage site for devotees of Charani sagatis after access to Hinglaj was restricted following the partition of India. The temple is also a popular destination for tourists and pilgrims and is renowned, both in India and internationally, as the "Temple of Rats" due to the numerous rodents known as kābā which are considered holy and treated with utmost care by devotees. This is sometimes upheld as exemplary of an "environmentally conscious Hindu ethos". The temple draws visitors from across the country for blessings, as well as curious tourists from around the world.[1][2]
The temple was originally constituted around 1530, after the mahaprayan of Karni Mata. It initially began with the inner sanctum covered by the dome and grew in size with constructions being added by the devotees through the following centuries.[3]
- ^ Rats. Dir. Morgan Spurlock. Perf. Dr. Michael Blum, Ed Sheehan, Bobby Corrigan . Discovery Channel, 2016. Netflix. Chapter: Temple of the Rats
- ^ Trembley, Kyle J. (18 April 2022). "Jatikaran: Caste, Rats, and the control of space at the Karni Mata Mandir". Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space. 6 (2): 717–735. doi:10.1177/25148486221094132. ISSN 2514-8486. S2CID 248248576.
- ^ Ujwal, Kailash Dan S. (1985). Bhagwati Shri Karniji Maharaj: A Biography. [s.n.]].