Aditi Abhishek Sharma
Centuries ago, the ten-headed man, Ravana- the Demon King of Lanka and one of the most popular characters of Hindu epic- Ramayana was considered as the most powerful king of Lankapuri. Basically, Ravana was an Agnihotri Brahman as he was a Rakshas by his maternal side and a prajapti from paternal side. Ravana was considered as a great devotee of Shiva. Ravana was ten- headed but sometimes depicted with only nine heads, because he sacrificed one head to convince lord Shiva during his prayer. Ravana possessed a thorough knowledge of Aryuveda, Political Science & had read the sacred books of Hindu Granth. It is said that Ravana possessed the nectar of immorality, which was stored in his belly, a boon by lord Brahama.
It is not a surprising fact that, The Demon King- Ravana is worshipped by many people in India too. There is a unique temple, known as Kailash Temple, in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, built in the honor of the Demon King- Ravana. The devotees believe that Ravana was an intellectual man of his times and deserves to be worshipped at the rare temple that exsists in his honor in the city. According to the temple Priest, the doors of the Dashanan temple in the town are opened once in a year on the day of Dussherra. In the morning, the idol of Ravan, is bathed with holy water & milk, and after purification, an arti is performed to worship the ten-headed Demon King. The entire area reverberates with chants of “Ravana Baba Namah” from morning till evening on Dussehra. A special puja is offered to Ravana on the occasion and the temple is shut after 12 hours until the Dussehra the following year. As per the tradition, the effigy of the Demon King Ravana is vilified and burnt in most of the parts of the country, hence in the evening; the doors of the temple are being shut for the next one year.
Strangely enough, the five feet tall idol of Ravana in this 115-year-old temple is placed inside a box and does not look anywhere close to an actual temple.
Irrespective of this, he is a clear winner in the number game – the popularity of this temple and the hordes of devotees lining right outside continue to grow with each passing year. Surprisingly, queues outside the temple stretch across three to four kilometers!
Quite the anti-hero in the Ramayana, Ravana does enjoy his share of fan following! Visit the Kailash Temple to witness all this and much more for yourself.
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