Some of them have temples of Ravana, some of them claim their inheritance to him, the epitome of evil in Indian mythology is not that evil after all for some
The effigy of Ravana is set on fire on Dussera, everybody knows it. But what is not realized generally is that there are many exceptions to it too. Only in India, there are at least 9 such places, where, forget burning a Ravana effigy, the epitome of evil Ravana is actually worshipped like gods.
Let’s check them out
1) Mandsaur : Situated on Madhya Pradesh-Rajasthan border, Mandsaur was once called Dashpur and as per the legends it was home to Ravana’s wife Mandodiri. From Madodiri it got it’s present name of Mandsaur. Since Ravana is son-in-law of this town, the never burn his effigy and contrarily worship him. In the Rundi village of Mandsaur district, even an idol of Ravana is erect for all to worship him.
2) Chikhali : There lies a Chikhali village in Ujjain district where Ravana effigy is not burnt and istead his idol is worshipped. Villagers believe that if they don’t do it, the village itself will be set on fire by some natural calamity and will be reduced to ashes.
3) Amarawati : In Maharashtra’s Amarawati too Ravana is worshipped like some god. Especially the tribals of Gadhchiroli perform the ritual of Ravana worshipping. In fact a festival of tribals called Falgun is a way to extend edulations to Ravana, who with his son is considered the prominent deity by these people.
4) Bisrakh : Bisrakh is a village situated in Uttar Pradesh. It is believed that it was Ravana’s maternal grandfather’s place and it’s original name was Vishveshwara. Nobody knows whether it is true or not but Ravana idol is worshipped in Bisrakh village anyway.
5) Baijnath : In Himachal Pradesh’s Kangda district there goes a town called Baijnath, which is known for worshipping Ravana. It is said that this is the same place where Ravana had performed a rigorous Tapasya to appease Lord Shiva.
6) Kakinada : Situated in Andhra Pradesh, Kakinada is one of those few places where a temple of Ravana exist. Ravana is worshipped here mostly by fishermen’s community.
7) Jodhpur : The prominent city of Jodhpur in the state of Rajasthan also has a temple of Ravana. Many people from here claim their inheritance to the clan of Ravana.
8) Karnataka : There are two places in the Dravidian state of Karnataka where Ravana worship is performed. One is Malwalli Taluka in Mandya district. And the other is Kolar. Some of the Shiva devotee also worship Ravana.
9) Jaswantnagar : The case of Jaswantnagar, Uttar Pradesh is the most peculiar and intriguing of them all. After worshipping Ravana, they actually tear the Ravana idol apart and then take the remains of it to their homes. On the 13th day, they even perform Terahvi for Ravana.