Ramapir Temple

Ramdev is considered to be an incarnation of Vishnu as the Kalki avatar. King Ajmal (Ajaishinh) married Queen Minaldevi, daughter of Pamji Bhati of Chhahan Baru village. The childless king went to Dwaraka and pleaded with Krishna about his wish to have child like him. They had two sons, Viramdev and the younger Ramdev. Ramdev was born on Bhadra Shukla Dooj in V.S. 1409 at Ramderiya, Undu and Kashmir in Barmer district.nnMuslims venerate Ramdev as Ramshah Pir or Rama Shah Peer. He was said to have had miraculous powers and his fame reached far and wide. Legend has it that five Pirs from Mecca came to test Ramdev's powers. Ramdev after initial welcoming requested them to have lunch with him. But Pirs said they eat in their personal utensils, which are lying in Mecca, so they cannot have their meals. On this, Ramdev smiled and said look your utensils are coming and they saw that their eating bowls were coming flying in air from Mecca. After being convinced of his abilities and powers, they paid their homage to him and named him Rama Shah Peer.[2][5][6][7] The five Pirs, who came to test his powers, were so overwhelmed by his powers that they decided to stay with him and Samadhi of these five are also near Samadhi of Ramdev.[5]nnIn Rajasthan, Ramdev is the chief deity of the Meghwal community, worshiped during Vedwa Punam (August – September). The community's religious leader, Gokuldas, claims that Ramdev was himself a Meghwal in his 1982 book Meghwal Itihas, which constructs a history of Meghwal community.[8] However, this is a claim accepted only by Meghwal community themselves.nnRamdev believed in the equality of all human beings, be they high or low, rich or poor. He helped the down-trodden by granting them their wishes. He is often depicted on horseback. His worship crosses the Hindu-Muslim divide as well as the distinctions of caste. His followers are spread across cutting across caste-barriers in Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, Mumbai, Delhi and also in Sindh in Pakistan. Several Rajasthani fairs are held to commemorate him. Temples in his name are found in many states of India.nnFolklorennOne day, young Ramdev wanted to play with a toy horse. His father asked a toymaker to make one wooden horse and for the purpose, gave him sandalwood and new cloth. The toymaker, however, stole most of the new cloth for his wife, and made the wooden horse from a piece of old cloth, with only a cover from new cloth. When Ramdev sat on the horse it began to fly and disappeared into the sky along with the child. Ramdev's parents got angry with the toymaker and imprisoned him. Shortly afterward, Ramdev came back along with the horse and accused the toymaker of cheating. The toymaker confessed his crime and begged for forgiveness. Ramdev forgave him and accepted the horse. Wooden toy horses covered with cloth are among the most popular offerings at the temples dedicated to him.