Story of the Temple (Karni Maa Deshnok...)
The story of the temple is that a woman brought the body of her recently dead son to Karni Mata and asked her to restore the boy to life. Karni fell into a deep trance and encountered Yamaraja, the lord of death. But He told her that the boy had already accepted another body and could not be recalled. Karni refused to accept this and said that Yamaraja would no longer govern her tribe of Charans. At death they would enter the bodies of kabas, or sacred rats, and when the rats died they would be reborn as Charans. Karni Mata was an ascetic who led a righteous life dedicated to the service and upliftment of the poor and downtrodden of all communities. It is believed that she possessed supernatural powers. She laid the foundation of Deshnoke and her principal followers, Charans, as well as the rulers of Bikaner have worshiped her as a goddess.
Story of Nehriji
This is a nearly 600 year old ever green tree located roughly 2 KMs from the temple.
It is said that Shri Karni Mata sprinkled some curd and stuck a stick on the ground there. The stick has become evergreen tree. A small temple is constructed below this tree.
The Temple
The temple has huge silver gates and a marble door both donated by the Maharaja Ganga Singh. The temple has a beautiful silver door and a wire mesh over the courtyard to protect the rats from birds. An image of Karni Mata holding a trishul (trident), surrounded by rats can be seen in the temple. The rats are called kabas and if you injure a rat in the temple, you are expected to present a gold or silver replica to the temple or suffer misfortune. The rats eat from huge metal bowls filled with milk, sweets, and grains donated by devotees. It is considered auspicious to see a white kaba near the image of Karni Mata. Inside the shrine, a 75 cms. image of Karni Mata adorned with a mukut (tiara) and a garland is installed. Her image is accompanied by the images of her sisters and the sisters of Avad Mata.
Karni Mata Fair
The Fair is held twice a year at Deshnoke. Twice a year, devotees throng Deshnoke to worship Goddess Durga and her incarnations. This coincides with the Karni Mata festival, which is held in the months of Vaishakha (April/May) and Kartika (October/November). The Karni Mata Fair is held in her honour. The Karni Mata temple at Deshnoke is a stone and marble structure, which is also known as Madh. The Rajputs bring their children on jadula (their first hair cut) and place them at the deity's feet for blessing.
Worship and Rituals
Charan priests perform Mangla-Ki-Aarti and offer bhog (special food) as worship. A peculiar characteristic of the temple is the legion of brown rats roaming about in large numbers in the temple, which are considered to be auspicious and the devotees make offerings to these rats. Two kinds of offerings are made to Karni Mata. The Dwar Bhent is distributed to the priests and the workers. The Kalash Bhent is utilised for the temple maintenance and development.