Places

Out of the many other temples in and around Ratanpur, the important ones are the Bhairav Mandir, Lakhani Devi Mandir, Vrideshwar Nath Mandir (aka Budha Mahadev), the Girijabandh Hanuman Mandir and the Ram Tekri Mandir. Kaal-Bhairav Mandir is a must-see for all devotees, because of the popular belief that he is the door-keeper of Devi, and hence should be visited first. Without the Darshan and Puja of Kaal-Bhairav, one cannot – and should not – perform the puja of Maa Mahamaya. He is one of the 52 Bhairavs. The nine feet high statue is made of stone. This temple is situated about three kms away from Mahamaya Mandir, towards Bilaspur.

Lakhani Devi Mandir is on a hill surrounded by lush green vegetation. A stone stair case has been cut into the hill to assist climbing. This temple is built into th shape of classical Pushpak Vimaan. This temple was built in the 13th century by Pt. Gangadhar Shastri.


Situated on a hill, surrounded by greenery is the old temple of Ram Tekri. Ram Tekri is named after the hill on which is the Ram-Janaki mandir with its magnificient granite statues of Lord Ram, Sita and Lord Hanuman. This temple was built by Maratha king Shivaji Rao Bhonsle. Steep but motorable road leads you to this famous temple, which is just about three kms from Ratanpur. The other statues that you can see in this temple are of Lord Vishnu and Kaal Bhairav. This temple has a great historical as well as archeological value. Besides, you can see the panaromic view of the whole Ratanpur township from a single point of view.

Vridheshwar Nath Mandir and Girijabandh Hanuman Mandir are situated on each side of Ram Tekri and have an equally great number of devotees. Vridheshwar Nath (aka Budha Mahadev) is believed to be the most miraculous and mysterious temple of Ratanpur. The popular belief is that even if thousands of pitchers of water are offered (poured) over the Shiv Ling, the water-level never increases. Nor does it decrease in the extreme drought times, when all the ponds and lakes become dry. Made of bronze-alloy this Shiv Ling is a must-see for all.

Towards the east of Ram Tekri, the Girijabandh Hanumaan Mandir is situated. Built around year 1170, this temple was built by Kalchuriking Raja Prithvi Dev. Archeologically important, the temple dome is made of red stone. Inside, the statue of Shri Hanumaan is in all its grandeur, with Lord Rama on his shoulder. It is believed that a wish made before Lord Hanumaan is always fulfilled by Him.

In addition to these there are many small and meium temples in and around Ratanpur. Some of them are Bhubaneshwar Shiv Mandir (aka Laheshwar Mandir), Bairaag Ban, Jagannath Mandir, Khandoba Baba and Khichri Kedarnath Mandir. One of the prominent picnic spots of Bilaspur, Khoontaghat Dam is just ten kms away from Ratanpur.