The State of Rajasthan is one of the most popular tourist destinations due to its rich cultural heritage, historical places and monuments. However, one such tourist attraction exists that is renowned for being haunted and hence attracts visitors.
Village - Kuldhara
District and City - Jaisalmer
State - Rajasthan
Renowned As - Haunted Village
Distance from the city of Jaisalmer - 20 km
Managed By - Archaeological Survey of India
( ASI )
Entry Fees - ₹10 / Person and ₹ 50 / Car
Timings - 8.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m.
Time Required For A Visit - 2 to 3 hours
Best time to Visit - Winter Months ( October to February )
The village of Kuldhara is a popular tourist site that can be reached via vehicles from the nearest city of Jaisalmer. The popularity of the abandoned village lies on the local legend that is very intriguing to say the least. It is believed that the village was founded in the 13th century by a Brahim by the name of Kandhan who dug a well and named it Udhansar. Historical accounts of those times show that this region had a number of villages centred around a temple of a Goddess. It was majorly populated by the Paliwal Brahmins. Until the 18th Century it was a well - settled region with a population of about 1000 residents. There are inscriptions found on the ruined walls of the temple, various pillars around the wells that show sculptures of Lord Vishnu, Lord Ganesh, Mahishasura Mardini. The group of villages were bustling and leading their lives by means of agriculture, trade and banking.
However, the eerie legend states that the 85 odd villages with a population of 1000 plus villagers disappeared overnight and no one knows where they went and settled.
The reason being that the evil state minister Salim Singh who would already levy unreasonable taxes on the villagers, once got smitten with the daughter of the village chief and asked for her hand in marriage. The Chief requested for a night to ponder and within the night he commanded all the villages to be emptied to escape from the atrocities of the minister. It is believed that the villagers cursed the place while leaving and to this day no one has resettled the place and the belief is that it is haunted.
However, modern day historians and archeologists believe that the reason for mass migration might be the shortage of water due to the drying up of a nearby river Kakni , the 3 wells and a step well and / or tectonic activity.
Today, the site is full of ruins of the village houses, wells, cremation grounds and the temple. There are houses with no roofs, walls crumbling and the scientists concur that this disintegration is not on par with natural processes that occur with time. Hence, the theory of earthquake and / or dwindling water supply may be a more logical explanation.However, the locals do believe the legend and there have been instances where reporters, paranormal experts have felt the presence of spirits, shadows and unexplained voices.
Visitors who are interested in paranormal activities like to conduct experiments to check for them.Those interested in the sad history of the place feel emotional on seeing the wiping out a bustling and prosperous community from their homeland.
Images - Wikipedia
