Abhaneri

Abhaneri Abhaneri
village
Abhaneri Location in Rajasthan, India Abhaneri Abhaneri (India)
Coordinates: 26.9499868°N 76.6196097°E / 26.9499868; 76.6196097
Country	India
State	Rajasthan
District	Dausa
Languages
• Official	Hindi
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
ISO 3166 code	RJ-IN
Vehicle registration	RJ-
Coastline	0 kilometres (0 mi)

Abhaneri is a village in/near Bandikui Dausa district of Rajasthan state in India. It is rarely half an hour away from Bandikui. It is situated at a distance of 95 km from Jaipur, on the Jaipur-Agra road. The place is popular for the Chand Baori step well and Harshat Mata Temple.

History

The village of Abhaneri is believed to have been established by the Gurjar Pratihar king Samrat Mihir Bhoj. In mythology, Samrat Mihir Bhoja is presented as King Raja Chand.

Monuments

The village of Abhaneri was originally named Abha Nagri, meaning "city of brightness," but over time the name got distorted to its present form. The village is located between the city of Bandikui and the town of Sikandra that lies on the Jaipur-Agra highway. The village lies close to State Highway 25 (that connects Bandikui with Sikandra) about 90 km east of Jaipur and about 210 km south of Delhi. The village is now in ruins, but it attracts large number of tourists from across the globe.

Abhaneri is known for its 'Baori' or step well which was invented by the natives to harvest rain water. The Baori was used as a cool place of retreat and as a water source/reservoir during parched times of the year. Chand Baori remains one of India's deepest and largest stepwells. The Baori consists of three flight of stairs descending into the earth with a subterranean palace on one side. The flight of stairs and the palace are all arranged in a square pattern with the well lying at the very bottom. The flight of steps are thirteen storeys deep. The palace at the bottom of the Baori was a place for the royals to stay during hot summers days. There is a large courtyard all around the Baori from where great views of the Baori can be had. All around the courtyard there are covered areas housing intricately carved sandstone artifacts/idols dating as far back as 10th century.

The colossal, delicately carved well of Chand Baori is located very close to the ruins of Harshat Mata Temple. It was a ritual to wash hands and feet at the Chand Baori before visiting the Harshat Mata Temple. Harshat Mata Temple is dedicated to goddess Harshat Mata. Harshat Mata is considered to be the goddess of joy and happiness. According to myth, the goddess is always cheerful, and she imparts her joy and happiness to the whole village. Substantially destroyed by islamic invaders in the 10th century, the remains of the temple still boast of architectural and sculptural styles of 10th century India. The temple itself is on a raised platform from where unrestricted views of nearby fertile region can be had. There is a small village nearby where many artisans live.

Local Dances

The famous Local Dances of Abhaneri
1.Ghoomar
2.Kalbelia
3.Bhawai