India is known as the land of 64 crore gods and goddesses, with many shrines of spiritual gurus and holy cities to the motorcycle. It is not surprising that you will witness the temple every step of the way. However, many are weird, strange, odd, or unusual in different ways. A few of these mysterious temples of India are popular for their exorcism rites, some because of their unconventional deities, and some are more than 2000 years old.
12 Popular Mysterious Temples in India
Here is a list of strange temples in India that might be very surprising and unusual to you. You need to look to check how much you have heard about the prominent mysterious temples of India.
1. Kamakhya Devi Temple, Assam
- Kamakhya Devi temple is among the pilgrimage sites in India, situated on the top of Nilachal Hiir, Guwahati, in Assam. It is considered Shakti Peetha in the Indian subcontinent and among the oldest ones. You will not get any goddesses or god sculptures to worship, whereas in this temple, however, you have to worship the yoni (Vagian) of Devi Sati, who is known as the wife of Lord Shiva. Furthermore, the yoni is Surrounded by a red silk saree. Every year, during the monsoon season, the Goddess menstruates; therefore, the temple remains closed for around three days. The tantric fertility festival, or the Ambubachi Mela, is celebrated in this temple during this time and continues till the fourth day when the temple reopens. In addition, it is believed that the underground spring that flows in the temple’s sanctum changes red during these three days. Pilgrims are provided with a piece of red cloth to cover the stone yoni during the three days as a prasad.
- Best Time To Visit: June
2. Mehandipur Balaji Temple, Rajasthan
- Mehandipur Balaji is very popular among everyone living in any state of India. It is located in Rajasthan and is considered one of the religious places in India. Devotees visit there to get rid of evil spirits or demons every day. Offering extreme punishment in every possible way, hanging from the ceiling, pouring water on oneself, banging their heads against the walls, and chaining themselves to walls is believed or said to free a person of all the bad evils, ghosts, etc. Moreover, it is also among the most mysterious temples in India and famous for being the single place in India where expulsion by priests is still recorded. In addition, there are no prasad offerings at this temple, and it is strictly instructed that after leaving the temple, you must not see or turn back to look towards it, as it is considered that the evil spirit might take it as an invitation to inhabit your body.
- Best Time To Visit: Anytime Throughout the Year
3. Stambhjeshwar Mahadev, Gujarat
- It is among the most mysterious temples in India that appears and disappears throughout the day. Doesn’t it sound weird? Well, it is weird, but the fact behind it is that the temple shares shores with the great Arabian Sea. Plus, you can be there only during the low tide hours of the day. Moreover, during the high tides, the sea swallows the temple, and the temple is visible again as the water decreases. Despite that, if you are a devotee of Lord Shiva, then you must visit this temple.
- Best Time to Visit: December to February
4. Venkateshwara Temple, Andhra Pradesh
- Home of Lord Shiva, Venkateswara Temple is one of the most well-known temples in India and is called for its unique side of sacrificing human hair. Rather than any kind of charity, offering, or donations, all pilgrims visit the temple and donate their hair. Plus, whenever you visit and explore this temple, you will see two huge walls where barbers can shave the heads of all the devotees each day. The tons of hair are then sold to the Italian wig manufacturers and the Chinese, who even utilize hair removal to preserve food.
- Best Time to Visit: December to February
5. Kal Bhairav Nath Temple, Varanasi
The unique fact about the Kal Bhairav Nath temple is that the devotees offer alcohol rather than flowers, sweets, blogs, and flowers to the Hindu gods and Goddesses. You can visit there and offer wine and whisky or anything in the temple. Furthermore, the alcohol is poured into the idol’s mouth, and then the rest is provided to the devotees as prasad. One of the special things to observe here is the number of shops that sell alcohol outside the temple.
- Best Time to Visit: October to February
6. Kodungallur Bhagavathy Temple, Kerala
- This temple is home to the Goddess Bhadrakali, a gentler renaissance of Goddess Kali. Plus, the Kodungallur Bhagavathy temple experiences a bizarre seven-day festival celebrated yearly, popular as the Bharani Festival. Both men and women wearing red apparel and carrying swords swarm this Indian temple, walking around in a trance-like state. They hit themselves, their head with swords, blood pours uncontrollably, and they visit the temple hurling abuses and singing lewd songs about the Devil. They also don’t offer sweets, flowers, or sweets; rather, they are thrown at the statue of the Goddess, and the temple rafters are hit continuously with sticks. The temple is shut down for seven days once the festival is actually to clean the blood stains.
- Best Time to Visit: December to February
7. Devji Maharaj Mandir, Madhya Pradesh
- During the full moon each month, the Devji Maharaja Mandir in Madhya Pradesh is where pilgrims all over India come to free themselves of demons, evil, and ghosts. As a recompensation, the general practice is lighting tablets on bare palms to scare whatever demons or evil souls reside within from leaving the body. Further, running around or being smacked by a room are other substitutes. However, the boot mela, or the ghost fair, is considered the weirdest tradition, held on the temple grounds to satisfy all the negative spirits. It is considered one of the mysteries of India. Are you daring enough to visit there?
- Best Time to Visit: February
8. Devaragattu Temple, Andhra Pradesh
- Devaragattu temple, located in Andhra Pradesh, is also one of India’s most popular and mysterious temples. It is popular for the Bani Festival, situated on the territory of Karnataka, every year on Dussehra, pilgrims from both states come together in massive numbers with lathis to hit each other on their heads till midnight. Around more than 100 years old, this festival was celebrated by using axes and spears rather than lathis. All the medical attendants and police, unfortunately, remain the witness to this extreme frenzy.
- Best Time to Visit: During the Dushehra
9. Jagannath Temple, Odisha
- Jagannath Temple is among the most revered temples in Puri, Odisha. Apart from the fact that the temple is famous for the Rath Yatra, it is also so popular because of the mysterious facts linked with the temple. Plus, this mysterious temple is also called the temple of opposites. The flag placed on the top flies in opposite directions of the wind. All the priests climb around 20 feet high to change the flag daily without any problem. If the ritual is missed even for a day, the temple will stay closed for almost 18 years.
- Best Time to Visit: April-June
10. Nidhivan Temple, Uttar Pradesh
- In case you lean toward Krishna Bhakti, then this temple is definitely meant for you. You can go there and explore different vibes. The place is covered with trees that remain green apart from the dry region. Moreover, the trees are not too tall and are negotiated with each other; the roots and trunks of these trees are hollow, which is a very strange and uneven thing. Apart from that, the place is completely filled with monkeys in the daytime, and it is believed that in the evening, the monkeys leave the place, and Shree KJrishan arrives there to perform Ras Leela. In the evening, the priests leave a few offerings inside the temple and find them scattered in the morning every day.
- Best Time to Visit: September-December
11. Padmanabhaswamy Temple, Kerala
- It is considered the richest temple in the world. The temple is located in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, and holds a 22-million-dollar vault that was once opened only at the order of the Supreme Court. After which, almost six chambers out of 7 were opened on request, and the approximate ornaments were calculated to a whopping amount of various dollars. The 7th Chamber, with no lock, remains the secret Chamber that is believed to keep tonnes of treasures that are mysterious. It is predicted that the entire Chamber is built of gold. The door of this 7th secret Chamber can only be opened if there is a lot of chanting; therefore, it remains a secret. Additionally, it is believed that in case the door is opened, it may cause disaster.
- Best Time to Visit: April- June
12. Meenakshi Amman Temple, Madurai, Tamil Nadu
- Because of its mythological and historical significance, Meenakshi Amman Temple is known as one of the most mysterious temples in India. Additionally, it is believed that this is where Lord Shiva changed into Sundareshwar to marry Goddess Meenakshi. It is the only place in India where you can see Lord Shiva with a smiling face. Apart from being dedicated to both Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, Meenakshi Amman is worshiped first by all the devotees and locals.
- Best Time to Visit: Anytime Throughout the Year
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Frequently Asked Questions
Which is considered the temple city of India?
Bhubaneshwar is popular as the Temple City of India as you will observe different 6th-13th century CE Hindu temples there. Plus, there is Lingaraj Temple, Mukteshwar Temple, Brahmeshwar Temple, Yogini Temple, and Rajarani Temple are a few of the most well-known temples in Bhubaneshwar. Many people prefer to visit Konark and Puri on their trip to Bhubaneswar. These three cities together create a Golden Triangle of spirituality in the Western region.
What is the name of the oldest temple in India?
The temple of Bihar, known as Mundeshwari Devi Temple at Kauara in Kaimur district, is the oldest and most mysterious temple in India. The ancient temple is devoted to Lord Shiva and Shakti. As per the archaeologists, the temple’s existence dates back to 635 CE.
Which is the largest temple in India?
Sri Ranganathaswamy temple in Tiruchirapalli, located in Tamil Nadu, is known as the largest temple in India, followed by the Akshardham Temple in Delhi.
Which is the first temple in the world?
As per the studies and historians, Gobekli Tepe in Turkey is popular as the first temple in the world. Additionally, the temple is so old that the megaliths predate Stonehenge by approximately 6,000 years.
Which temple has the hidden treasure in India?
The Padmanabhaswamy temple has hidden treasures. Moreover, the treasure is a collection of expensive and valuable objects, such as gold thrones, crowns, coins, statues and ornaments, diamonds, and other precious stones.