Eklingji Temple

Eklingji is the tutelary deity of the Mewar dynasty, one of the oldest surviving royal lineages in the world, and embodies the fusion of faith and statecraft in Rajput tradition. Its worship links the valorous history of Mewar — of Bappa Rawal, Rana Kumbha and Maharana Pratap — to living devotion. The four-faced lingam represents Shiva's cosmic completeness. It is one of the most historically significant Shiva temples of Rajasthan.

Founded, by tradition, in 734 CE by Bappa Rawal, the legendary founder of the Mewar line, the Eklingji complex is a walled ensemble of 108 temples in white marble and black granite, rebuilt and enlarged over the centuries. Its sanctum enshrines a striking four-faced (chaturmukhi) black-marble lingam of Shiva as Eklingji, before a silver Nandi. The Maharanas of Mewar have for centuries regarded themselves not as kings but as the Dewans (earthly ministers) of Eklingji, ruling in the god's name — a rare tradition of divine sovereignty. The temple remains the spiritual anchor of Mewar's proud heritage.