01Harit Rashi and Bappa
Mewar tradition says the boy Bappa grazed cattle in these hills and served the Pashupata sage Harit Rashi, who worshipped Ekalinga here. Pleased, the sage blessed him with the kingdom, and Bappa took Chittor. Every Guhila and Sisodia ruler after him signed state orders in Ekalingji’s name. The oldest dated record on the site is in the nearby Lakulisha temple: an inscription of 971 CE, in the reign of Naravahana, that names the Pashupata ascetics who served the shrine.
02The rebuilt temple
The shrine was damaged in the wars of the Delhi and Malwa sultans against Mewar, and the temple that stands today is the work of Rana Raimal in the late 15th century, with a double-storeyed mandapa and a tall shikhar in a walled court of 108 smaller temples. The linga is of black stone with four faces of Shiva, looking to the four directions. A silver Nandi faces it. The Maharana still comes for darshan on great days.
The life of this place
- 8th centuryBappa Rawal blessed here by Harit Rashi, by Mewar tradition.
- 971 CEInscription of Naravahana’s reign in the Lakulisha temple.
- late 15th centuryRana Raimal rebuilds the main temple.
Darshan is at set hours, morning, midday and evening; phones and cameras are kept outside.
