'Mama' is a World Heritage site so I checked out what all the fuss is about! Being on Vancouver time I was awake at 2am so when I arrived at the Five Rathas for the opening time of 6am I had the place to myself (Indian standards of by myself :). The Five Rathas are carved from single pieces of rock and are low-laying monoliths. Each temple is dedicated to a Hindu god and named for one of the Pandavas, the five hero-brothers of the epic Mahabharata, plus their common wife - nothing like sharing the love! These shrines were hidden in sand until the British evacuated them 200 years ago.
Nakula-Sahadeva Ratha - dedicated to Indra
Dharmaraja Ratha
Bhima Ratha - Inside there is a shrine to Vishnu
Arjuna Ratha - dedicated to Shiva
Draupadi Ratha - dedicated to the goddess of Durga who represents femininity and fertility. There were lots of finger marks on her indicating many hands praying for a baby.
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