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The Jambheswar Fair is held in the village Mukam of Tehsil
Nokha, Bikaner District, twice a year on
Phalgun Budi Amavasya and Ashvin Budi Amavasya, in memory of the founder
of the Bishnoi sect Jambheswar ji. His teachings are condensed into 120
'sabdas' (sayings), which propagate the cardinal virtues of self-control,
truth and non-violence. He taught 29 articles of religion and hence the
term Bishnoi from Bees (twenty) and Nau (nine). The Bishnois consider him
to be an incarnation of Vishnu.
Near the Nokha Town, there are two temples of Jambheswar ji, one in the
village Mukam ('mukam' literally means 'abode' because he resided here)
and the other on the sand dune of Samarthal. The temple at Mukam has the
samadhi of Jambheswar ji and a life-size portrait adorns the central hall.
On the ground floor, there are five rooms, one of which is used to store
grain offered by the visitors and the rest serve as a guest house. The
grain, which is offered at the temple is used to feed pigeons, peacocks
and birds throughout the year at fenced platforms beside the temple, built
specifically for this purpose.
A large fair is held in February-March on Phalgun Budi Amavasya every
year. It is attended by people from
Punjab ,
Delhi , Rajasthan and
Uttar Pradesh
, apart from the local visitors.
The second fair, which is a smaller, localised affair, is attended by
people coming in from neighbouring villages on camels, bullock carts and
even on foot. The number of shops is lesser and comprises mostly of
sellers from Nokha, Himmatsar and Bikaner. They
sell general merchandise, which caters to the needs of the rural people
such as foodstuff, hides, cloth etc. WORSHIP & RITUALS
The fair places no barrier to the participation of any caste or community
and anyone can visit the shrines and pay homage. The visitors go to the
temple at Mukam and the sand dune at Samarthal (where Jambhaji used to
preach) and take part in the worship and rituals. It is customary to take
some sand from the tank called Talai at Mukam and deposit it at the foot
of the dune at Samarthal.
Worship is performed at both these shrines by a priest or 'Sanyasi'
belonging to the Bishnoi community. A Deepak (an earthen lamp) is kept lit
round-the-clock at both the temples. 'Havans' are held to the
accompaniment of 'Vedic mantra' and 'Sabdas' of Jambheswar ji. Aarti is
sung in his praise to a melodious tune. Sanyasis deliver sermons, which
are heard with rapt attention by the gathering.
The ghee that is offered amounts to quintals and is used in 'havans' and
for lighting the perennial lamps at both the shrines. Among the Bishnois,
it is customary to offer the first ghee made from the milk of a cow to the
shrine.
Road: The village Mukam is 15 kms. away from Nokha. Regular buses plying from Bikaner to Jaipur, Bikaner to Salasar and Nokha to Sujangarh stop by at the Mukam bus stand. Nokha is 60 kms. from Bikaner on the Bikaner-Jodhpur Road. It is also a railhead of the Northern Railway.