| Jagdish Temple | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Hinduism |
| District | Udaipur district |
| Location | |
| Location | Udaipur |
| State | Rajasthan |
| Country | India |
  Location in Udaipur | |
| Coordinates | 24°34′47.4024″N73°41′1.899″E / 24.579834000°N 73.68386083°E /24.579834000; 73.68386083 |
Jagdish Temple is a largeHindu temple in the middle ofUdaipur inRajasthan, just outside the royal palace. It has been in continuous worship since 1651. A big tourist attraction, the temple was originally called the temple of Jagannath Rai but is now called Jagdish-ji. It is a majormonument in Udaipur.[1]
The Jagdish Temple is raised on a tall terrace and was completed in 1651. It attaches a double-storey Mandapa (hall) to a double-storey saandhara (with a covered ambulatory) sanctum. The mandapa has another storey tucked within its pyramidal samavarna (bellroof) while the hollow clustered spire over the sanctum contains two more, nonfunctional stories. To reach the main shrine, one must climb 32 marble steps, intercepted by a Brass image ofGaruda in the end, being the mount (vahana) of GodVishnu. Shri Jagdish Temple is the most beautiful example ofHinduIconography, consisting of three stories of hand carved stone, with asteeple nearly 79 feet high and is the largest temple of Udaipur.[2]
Lanes taking off from many of the sheharpanah (city wall) converge on the Jagdish Temple. The most beautiful event in the temple is the annual Rath Yatra.[3]It was built byMaharana Jagat Singh in 1651.[4] Jagdish Temple is a splendid example of either Māha Māru orMāru-Gurjara architecture,[5] decorated by beautiful and ornate carvings. A short walk from the city palace will bring you to this temple. The temple sanctum has an idol of the deity LordJagannath, in local parlance of GodVishnu or GodKrishna, carved out of a single black stone, resplendent with four arms, flowers and finery.[6] Four smaller shrines, dedicated to LordGanesha,Surya, GoddessShakti and LordShiva form a circle around the main shrine, housing the idol of Lord Vishnu. It is said that an estimated RS 1.5 million (or 1,500,000) ($22023. 21) was spent to construct the building in 1651.
Aurangzeb attacked Mewar and plundered Udaipur, the citizens were safely escorted to Panarwa a hilly region by Rana Raj Singh but 63 temples in and around Udaipur were plundered and many villages were burned down by Aurangzeb's general Taj Khan. The Mughal army was eventually starved because of the scorched earth techniques and guerrilla warfare used by the Rana. Aurangzeb after a failed campaign left Mewar to his son Akbar and retreated to Ajmer. During that timenaruji barhath acharan warrior fought bravely to protect jagdish mandir from Aurangzeb army. He martyred himself while fighting to mughal army[7][8][9][10]
Sketch of Naruji Barhat from Rajsingh Charitra by Kesari Singh Barhath.jpg
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