India, renowned for its diversity and cultural wealth, boasts a myriad of religious traditions with thousands of deities being revered daily. Interestingly, in certain locations, people engage in a distinctive religious practice by worshiping Ravana. In this article, we’ll explore 10 such places where Ravana is venerated, elevating them to the status of sacred sites.
Mandsaur: Ravana is worshiped in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh. The real name of Mandsaur was Dashpur and it was the maternal home of Ravana’s wife Mandodari. Since Mandsaur was Ravana’s in-law’s house, and the daughter here was married to Ravana, hence due to the tradition of respecting the son-in-law, Ravana’s effigy is worshiped instead of being burnt. There is an idol of Ravana in Rundi of Mandsaur, which is worshipped.
Ujjain: Even in a village in the Ujjain district of MP, Ravana is not burnt but worshipped. Ujjain district’s Chikhali village is where Ravana lived. It is said here that the village will be burnt down on the worship of Ravana. Because of this fear, people here do not burn Ravana and worship his idol.
Amravati: Maharashtra Ravana is also worshiped as a god in Amravati. Here Ravana is worshiped by the tribal community at a place called Gadchiroli. Because the people of this community consider Ravana and his son as their gods.
Bisarkh: There is a temple of Ravana in a village named Bisarkh in UP, where he is worshipped. Bisrakh village was Ravana’s maternal home. Bisrakh was earlier named Vishveshara which was named after Ravana’s father.
Baijnath: This town of Kangra district situated in Himachal Pradesh is also known for the worship of Ravana. Ravana had performed penance for Lord Shiva here, due to which Lord Shiva was pleased and blessed him with salvation. That is why the effigy of Shiva is not burnt at this place.
Andhra Pradesh: There is a temple of Ravana at a place called Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh, where worship is done along with Lord Shiva. Here especially the fishermen community worships Ravana.
Jodhpur: Ravana’s temple and its statue are also established in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. People of certain communities worship Ravana here and consider themselves descendants of Ravana.
Karnataka: There is a temple of Ravana at a place called Malavalli Taluka in the Mandya district of Karnataka, where people worship him. Apart from this, people in Kolar also worship Ravana as a devotee of Shiva.
Ravana is especially worshiped in South India. It is believed that Ravana was a highly knowledgeable person, a scholar, and a devotee of Shiva. In some places of South India, Ravana is worshiped because of these qualities. They consider Ravana Dahan as the burning of bad qualities.
In Jaswantnagar, Uttar Pradesh, Ravana is worshiped by performing Aarti on Dussehra. Then he is beaten and cut into pieces. After this, people take the pieces of Ravana home and on the thirteenth day, Ravana’s Terhavi is also celebrated.
