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Jambeshwar Fair, Bikaner |
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The Jambheswar Fair
is held in the village Mukam of tehsil Nokha, Bikaner District,
twice a year on Phalgun Budi Amavasya and Ashvin Budi Amavasya,
in memory of the founder of the Bishnoi sect -Jambheswarji. His
teachings are condensed into 120 sayings which propagate the cardinal
virtues of self-control, truth and non-violence. He taught 29
articles of religion and hence the term Bishnoi from Bees (twenty)
and Nau (nine). The Bishnois consider him to be an incarnation
of Vishnu. Near the Nokha Town, there are two temples of Jambheswarji,
one in the village Mukam (mukam literally means abode) and the
other on the sand dune of Samarthal.
 The
temple at Mukam has the samadhi of Jambheswarji and a life-size
portrait adorns the central hall. On the ground floor, there are
five rooms, one of which is used to store grain offered by the
visitors and the rest serve as a guest house. The grain which
is offered at the temple is used to feed pigeons, peacocks and
birds throughout the year beside the temple, built specifically
for this purpose.
A large fair is held in February-March on Phagun Budi Amavasya
every year. It is attended by people from Punjab, Delhi, Rajasthan
and Uttar Pradesh, apart from the local visitors. The second fair
which is a smaller, localised affair, is attended by people coming
in from neighbouring villages on camels, bullock carts and even
on foot. The number of shops is lesser and comprises mostly of
sellers from Nokha, Himmatsar and Bikaner. The visitors go to
the temple at Mukam and the sand dune at Samarthal (where Jambhaji
used to preach) and take part in the worship and rituals. It is
customary to take some sand from the tank called Talai at Mukam
and deposit it at the foot of the dune at Samarthal.
The village Mukam is 15 kms. away from Nokha. Regular buses plying
from Bikaner to Jaipur, Bikaner to Salasar and Nokha to Sujangarh
stop by at the Mukam bus stand. Nokha is 60 kms. from Bikaner
on the Bikaner-Jodhpur road. It is also a rail head of the Northern
Railway.
 Back
to Rajasthan Fair Festivals
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