Eklingji Temple

Overview

Eklingji Temple is a Shiva temple complex in Kailashpuri, a village on the Aravalli foothills about 22 kilometers north of Udaipur, and it has functioned as the family shrine of the Mewar royal house for more than a millennium. The presiding deity, worshipped here as Eklingji, is represented inside the Garbha Griha, or inner sanctum, by a four-faced lingam carved from black marble. Rather than a single structure, Eklingji is a walled complex of 108 shrines built largely of marble and sandstone, set on the bank of Indersagar Lake. For generations, the Maharanas of Mewar signed state documents as Diwan, or chief minister, of this deity rather than as sovereign rulers in their own right, a tradition that still shapes how the temple is administered today. Darshan here draws both pilgrims connected to Mewar's history and general visitors touring Udaipur's temple circuit.

Legend & Mythology

Temple tradition traces Eklingji's origin to a prince named Bappa Rawal, who lived in exile after his branch of the Guhilot clan, later renamed Sisodia, lost a war with a rival family. According to the Ekalinga Mahatmya, a Sanskrit text compiled around the 15th century, the young prince was raised in Nagda by a Brahmin family and worked there as a cowherd. While tending cattle in the forest, he met a Shaivite ascetic named Harit Rashi, who took him on as a disciple and initiated him into the Pashupata order of Shiva worship. Temple tradition holds that the sage then named him Diwan, or regent, of Lord Eklingji rather than an independent king, and promised him protection in battle. That single act set the political theology of Mewar for centuries, with the ruling family never claiming to own the land outright, only to govern it on the deity's behalf. Temple tradition places the first shrine at the spot of this initiation, associating it with the same period, 734 CE, that later chronicles credit to Bappa Rawal's capture of the fort at Chittor.

Historical Journey

The documented history of Eklingji is distinct from its founding legend, since most of what stands today dates to a series of medieval rebuildings rather than the 8th century. Sources describe earlier structures being damaged during Delhi Sultanate campaigns in the region, after which Rana Hamir Singh restored the shrine and installed a new idol in the 14th century. Maharana Mokal, who reigned from 1421 to 1433, carried out further repairs. The temple suffered again in the late 15th century when forces of Ghiyath Shah, the Sultan of Malwa, attacked the site.

Maharana Raimal, who ruled Mewar from 1473 to 1509, defeated the Malwa army and used the ransom from Ghiyath Shah's release to fund the temple's last major rebuilding, including the four-faced black marble idol still worshipped in the sanctum today. His father, Rana Kumbha, had already left his mark. An inscription dated 1460 describes Kumbha as the personal servant of Eklingji, continuing the tradition of Mewar's rulers governing as Diwan rather than sovereign. A smaller shrine within the complex, Nathon Ka Mandir, carries inscriptions from the 10th century, a reminder that the wider Kailashpuri site carried religious significance long before this final rebuilding. The complex is maintained today by the Shri Eklingji Trust, established by the royal family, which continues the same custodial relationship the dynasty has held with the deity since Bappa Rawal's era.

Architecture & Sacred Geography

Eklingji's temple complex spans 108 individual shrines enclosed within walls of marble and sandstone, standing on the edge of Indersagar Lake in the Aravalli hills. The principal shrine is a double-storied structure topped by a pyramidal roof and a shikhara, the tapering tower that marks the sanctum below. Its Garbha Griha holds the four-faced Shiva lingam in black marble, and each face is read locally as a distinct aspect of the god, one reason devotees describe darshan here as covering all directions at once. Visitors enter through a pillared mandap, or assembly hall, on the temple's western side, its columns carved in relief with figures and floral patterns.

Maharana Bhagwat Singh, who served as custodian from 1955 to 1984, added a silver enclosure between the sanctum and the assembly hall, a later addition to a structure otherwise built through the medieval period. Smaller shrines elsewhere in the complex are dedicated to other deities associated with the Mewar court, and the hill setting keeps the temple physically distinct from the market town that has grown around it in Kailashpuri.

Devotee Experience

General visitors at Eklingji Temple perform darshan from the pillared mandap rather than entering the Garbha Griha itself, which stays reserved for temple priests, with the Maharana of Mewar retaining a ceremonial role in its worship. This restriction follows from the Diwan tradition described earlier, since the ruling family treats its link to Eklingji as a personal, hereditary duty rather than a public office, so the inner sanctum stays outside general access even though the wider complex is open to visitors of all faiths. Daily aarti accompanies the morning and evening darshan sessions, though exact timing can shift around festivals and is worth confirming locally.

In December 2024, temple management introduced a formal dress code, barring entry to visitors in mini skirts, bermuda shorts, or nightwear, and began requiring mobile phones to be deposited at a counter before entry rather than merely switched off. Mahashivratri draws the largest crowds of the year, with extended darshan hours and additional pooja through the night. Two sites nearby are commonly folded into the same visit.

• Sas-Bahu Temples, about 2.7 km away in Nagda, twin 10th-century temples built in a similar marble-and-sandstone style and paired with Eklingji on the same day trip
• Shrinathji Temple, about 26 km away in Nathdwara, a major Krishna pilgrimage site commonly combined with Eklingji darshan on a single day tour from Udaipur

Photography and videography are not permitted inside the temple premises, especially near the sanctum, and mobile phones must be deposited at a counter before entry rather than simply switched off. Modest, respectful attire is expected; entry has been formally refused since December 2024 to visitors wearing mini skirts, bermuda shorts, or nightwear. General darshan takes place from the pillared mandap rather than the inner sanctum, which is reserved for temple priests; visitors should plan to deposit phones and similar items at the entrance counter before proceeding.