The
town of Eklingji is full of temples. Ekligji (Kailashpuri)
is a town situated in a beautiful valley and it attracts multitudes
of visitors throughout the year. Eklingji is located about
twelve miles to the North of Udaipur in Rajasthan. Eklingji
(Shiva) whose temple is located here, is said to be the guardian
deity of Mewar. This deity was regarded as the virtual ruler,
by the Maharajas of Mewar - who considered themselves to be
regents (Dewans) under Eklingji. The existing structure, is
one built out of the ruins of a previously destroyed structure
and it dates back to the 15th century CE. The architecture
resembles that of the Jain temples of Gujarat Shiva is worshipped
here as a four faced black marble image, the four faces representing
Bhrama facing west, Vishnu facing North, Maheshwar facing
South and Surya (Sun) facing the east. The flat top of the
composite idol is covered with a Yantra, a mystic symbolic
drawing, standing for the ultimate reality. Shiva here is
worshipped as the Ultimate Reality, the supreme power, and
the wholesome one - Parabhrama. There are about 70 temples
in all. Mention must be made of the Sas-Bahu marble temple,
dating back to the 11th century. It is a fine specimen of
ancient art with sculptural details. The Adbhudji Jain temple
is of black marble and it dates back to the 15th century CE.
Other temples in Kailashpuri include those of Pataleshwar
Mahadeo, Arbada Mata, Rathasan Devi, Vindhyavasini Devi.
The temple occupies an area of about 2500 sq. feet and is
about 65 feet in height. This temple is said to have been
founded by Acharya Viswaroopa a contemporary of Adi Sankaracharya
and is linked with the Sharada Math at Dwaraka founded again
by Adi Sankaracharya. The temple area is fortified and a strong
wall runs around it. The main entrance to the temple on the
Western side welcomes visitors into a big hall resting on
profusely carved pillars. In this hall, is a silver image
of Nandi. There are two more Nandis in the temple, one made
of black stone and the other of brass. Other deities housed
in the temple complex include Parvati, Ganesh, Ganga, Kartikeya
, Yamuna and Saraswathi. There are also small temples dedicated
to Ambamata, Kalka Mata and Ganesh in the temple complex.
There is another temple called Nathon Ka Mandir in the temple
complex with inscriptions dating back to the 10th century
CE. No worship is offered here.
There are two tanks situated on the Northern side of the temple
- Karz Kund and Tulsi Kund. Water from these tanks is utilized
for temple services. Temple services are performed in a very
elaborate manner in the Vedic and Tantric styles - everyday
beginninG at 4 in the morning. Shivratri is an important religious
event, when the image of the deity is decked with jewellery.
One of the legends relating to Ekilngil is that after killing
Vrakshasur, Indra had meditated and prayed to eklingji in
repentance and to be free of the curse. According to another
legend, Bapparawa had seen the Shivlinga in his dream when
he was in trouble and when the problem was solved, he constructed
the temple and later build Mewar. The ruler of Mewar regards
Eklangji as the real kingdom. There are around a hundred more
temples, big and small, around the Eklagji temple.
