India has strong roots of spirituality and religion. There are various religious and spiritual places to visit in India. The spiritual land of India is home to 64 crore deities. There are seven sacred cities in India namely Mathura, Kashi, Haridwar, Ujjain, Kanchipuram, Ayodhya and Dwarka. The other Holy cities are Rishikesh, Amritsar and Bodhgaya. That makes a total of 10 must see Spiritual destinations in India. Apart from the above mentioned spiritual destinations, there are few strange and most unusual temples in India. Following is a list of Top 5 such strange temples.
Chinese Kali Temple, Tangra, Kolkata
There is nothing different about the Kali idol. But, at the time of Kali puja one must have a look at the bhog (prasad); it comprises of noodles, chop suey, rice-and-vegetables dishes. Tangra is a small Chinatown in the heart of Kolkata. A large number of Chinese population lives here since generations. Though they are predominantly Buddhist and Christians but here stands an unique symbol of cultural syntheses- a Chinese Kali Temple.
Trishund Ganapati Temple, Pune
As the name suggests “Trishund” actually means three trunks. Amidst of narrow lanes of Somvar Peth area of Pune lies a temple dedicated to Lord Ganesh. This Ganpati temple was built in between 1754 – 1770 AD. It was constructed by Bhimjigiri Gosavi. This is also supposed to be the only temple in Pune that is built in stone masonry.
Ravana Temple, Ravangram, Vidisha
The Ravana Temple is unusual to many Indians as In hindu mythology Ravan was depicted as a demon who kidnapped Sita mata at the time of Ramayana. This might be true to others but not for people of Ravangram village n Vidisha district. The people of Ravangram village worship Ravana and here lies an ancient 10 feet idol of Ravana in a reclining position which is worshiped by all the devotees.
Kali Singh Temple, Muzaffarnagar district, UP
The Kali Singh temple is dedicated to cattle. This unique temple is located in Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh. Here devotees coming from far off places offer prayers as well as milk for the animals. Women prepare Kheer from their milking cattle inside the temple premises and offer it to the deity.
Hadimba temple, Manali
Located in Manali another unusual temple is Hadimba Temple or Hidimba temple. Hidimba was Bhima’s (Bhima the second of the 5 Pandava brothers) wife and Ghatotkachh’s mother. It is a three storey wooden temple built in pagoda style and is located in the middle of Dhungiri Van Vihar. It is believed that it was here that Hadimba had meditated and she became Devi Hadimba. The temple was erected in 1553 AD.