Punrasar Balaji is a holy site dedicated to the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

deity

Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Temple

Punrasar Balaji temple was established on Jaisth Sudhi Purnima of

Vikram Samvat Vikram Samvat (IAST: ''Vikrama Samvat''; abbreviated VS) or Bikram Sambat B.S. and also known as the Vikrami calendar, is a Hindu calendar historically used in the Indian subcontinent. Vikram Samvat is generally 57 years ahead of Gregorian Calend ...

1775. This place is surrounded by the sand dunes and is about 57 km away from

Bikaner Bikaner () is a city in the northwest of the state of Rajasthan, India. It is located northwest of the state capital, Jaipur. Bikaner city is the administrative headquarters of Bikaner District and Bikaner division. Formerly the capital of ...

. Besides the main Nij Temple, there is also a statue of Hanumanji at the tree of Khejdi. At Khejdi, the ancient Hindu custom of ''Jhadula'' (cutting the hairs of new born children) takes place. Churma Prasadi, a sweet dish made up of

wheat flour Wheat flour is a powder made from the grinding of wheat used for human consumption. Wheat varieties are called "soft" or "weak" if gluten content is low, and are called "hard" or "strong" if they have high gluten content. Hard flour, or ''bread ...

butter Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 80% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread, melted as a condiment ...

and

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double ...

is provided to the devotees of by the

Pujari Pūjari is a designation given to a Hindu temple priest who performs pūja. The word comes from the Sanskrit word "पूजा" meaning worship. They are responsible for performing temple rituals, including ''pūjā'' and ''aarti''. ''Pujari'' ...

and his family members as the

prasad 200px, Prasad thaal offered to Swaminarayan temple in Ahmedabad ">Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Ahmedabad">Swaminarayan temple in Ahmedabad Prasada (, Sanskrit: प्रसाद, ), Prasadam or Prasad is a religious offering in Hinduism. Most o ...

. The prasad is first offered to Hanumanji for

bhog ''Bhog'' (n. 'pleasure' or 'delight', v. 'to end' or 'to conclude') is a term used in Hinduism and Sikhism. In Sikhism, it is used for observances that are fulfilled along with the reading of the concluding part of the Guru Granth Sahib. It can b ...

and is then distributed to the devotees. Three famous fairs are held every year in Punrasar. They take place on Chaitra Sudhi Purnima, Asoj Sudhi Purnima and the month of

Bhadrapad Bhadra or Bhadrapada or Bhādo or Bhadraba (Bengali: ভাদ্র ''bhādro''; ) (Hindi: भादों ''bhādo''; )(Sanskrit: भाद्रपद ''bhādrapada'';) ( ne, भाद्र ''Bhādra'';) ( or, ଭାଦ୍ରବ ''Bhadraba;' ...

each. There are many rooms situated in the temple premises which are available for the devotees at no cost. There also exists a newly constructed

Dharamshala Dharamshala (; also spelled Dharamsala) is the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh, India. It serves as administrative headquarters of the Kangra district after being relocated from Kangra, a city located away from Dharamshala, in 1855. The ...

having A.C. and Non A.C. Rooms named Jairam Dharamshala. A Bhojnalaya(for food) is also running by Temple governing Body ( i.e. Mandir sri Punrasar Hanumanji Pujari Trust) at free of Cost which is famous for its delicious food.

Location

Punrasar is a part of Bikaner district in Rajasthan and it is situated on the National Highway 11. It is 57 km away from Bikaner, 43 km from Shri Dungargarh and 15 km away from Seruna.

History

According to the legend, a famine took place in Punrasar in 1774. The people started fleeing in search of food and wages. Jairam Das Bothra, a resident of Punrasar, went to Punjab in search of grain. When he was leaving with laden sacks on a camel cart, the camel's leg got broken and it was unable to walk. Bothra convinced his colleagues to go back to the village and then he went to sleep. Suddenly he felt as if someone was calling him; he got awoken and looked around but could not find anyone. He went to sleep but heard the same sound again, and he still did not found anyone. He remembered Hanuman and folded his hands, asking the one who was making that sound to appear. Then Hanuman appeared as a

pandit A Pandit ( sa, पण्डित, paṇḍit; hi, पंडित; also spelled Pundit, pronounced ; abbreviated Pt.) is a man with specialised knowledge or a teacher of any field of knowledge whether it is shashtra (Holy Books) or shastra (Wea ...

and said,"O devotee! I know that you are in trouble, but as from now on all your troubles are solved". After saying this he pointed out to the Hanuman statue and asked Bothra to take the statue with him and establish it in the village, adding that this will solve all his troubles. Bothra replied that his camel's leg is broken so he cannot move on. Then the pandit said that his camel is alright, and Bothra was astonished to see that his camel was fine and ready to go. He took Hanuman's statue with him and established it. The pandit told Bothra that he himself or his family members would have to take care of the deity. Since then the successors of Bothra are taking care of the temple. The Bothra family belongs to the Jain Bothra

Baniya __NOTOC__ The Bania (also spelled Baniya, Banija, Banya, Vaniya, Vani, Vania and Vanya) is a Vaishya community mainly found in Indian states of Gujarat, and Rajasthan, but they are also found in Madhya Pradesh. Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh, Del ...

References

{{Reflist Hanuman temples Hindu temples in Rajasthan