Where a Demon Is God: The Ravana Temple in Kanpur

Don’t be surprised if I tell you that this unique temple in Kanpur, known as the Kailash Temple, is built in the honour of the King of Demons – Ravana. Interestingly, when across the country, effigies of Ravana are being set on fire across hundreds of Dussehra grounds, hordes of devotees are seen swarming the premises of this temple within minutes of its opening. 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, after 12 hours, the temple is shut until the Dussehra the following year.

Same myths, different perspective

Many readings of the Ramayana have mentioned that Ravana was comparable to Rama in terms of intellect, strength and dedication. Also, since Ravana was a Shivabhakt (worshipper of Lord Shiva), his temple attracts devotees who don’t regard him as a negative figure and feel that his good side should be emphasized. 

And since the idea of worshipping Ravana is in itself unusual, a bunch of curious visitors also throng the premises every year to get a glimpse of the Ravana idol and the uniqueness of this 115-year-old temple.

Here's what the temple manager Anirrudh Prasad Bajpai has to say, ‘Ravana was a scholar and an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva (the reason why Ravana’s temple is built adjacent to Shiva’s). He always tried to find out ways to appease Shiva and thought that guarding Goddess Chinmastika would give him the edge. Ravana’s idol is, therefore, placed near the deity’s, symbolizing his devotion to Shiva. In fact, it is because of these very qualities that Ravana started being worshipped.’

The Out-of-the-box idol

Strangely enough, the five-feet tall idol of Ravana 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. Queues outside the temple stretch across three to four kilometres!

Quite the anti-hero in the Ramayana, Ravana does enjoy his share of fan following! So, this Dussehra, why not visit the Kailash Temple to witness all this for yourself?

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