1400-Year-Old Temple Offers 56 Delicacies to Lord Thakur Ji

Udaipur, – In the ancient temple of Thakur Shri Pitamber Rai Ji Maharaj, located in Lakadwas, an offering of 56 delicacies was made to Lord Thakur Ji, continuing a tradition held every year. These offerings included a variety of sweets and savories like *besan chakki*, *kaju katli*, laddoos, *ghevar*, namkeen, and fruits. Built during the reign of Bappa Rawal, this 1,400-year-old temple has been the site where villagers and the Thakur family from Lakadwas have made this traditional offering for centuries. This year, the temple administration also extended their support.

Local theater and film actor Kalyan Vaishnav shared that Lakadwas, which predates Udaipur, was originally called Lakkadgarh. In ancient times, crops, trees, and wood in the village would burn due to severe frost, a phenomenon the villagers called "Lakkad Dah." At one point, a saint visited the Shri Sukeshwar Mahadev temple on the hill near Udaysagar. After being offered sugarcane juice by the Patel community, the saint found it extremely bitter and asked the villagers why. They explained that the severe frost had turned even the sugarcane bitter.

Hearing this, the saint sprinkled water from his *kamandal* in the village’s direction and blessed it, declaring that such extreme frost would never occur there again. Since then, for nearly 1,200 years, the village has not experienced frost as severe as it once did. In gratitude, the villagers have continued the tradition of offering 56 delicacies to Lord Pitamber Rai Ji Maharaj.

Mahant Shri Kishor Das Ji Vaishnav of Mahalaxmi Ashram and Yoga Guru Advocate Uday Singh Devda explained that the Vaishnav family has been serving in this temple since then. Currently, Pushkar Das Tulsi Das Ji Vaishnav, the ninth generation, continues this age-old tradition of service.