Today marks the eighth day (Ashtami) of Chaitra Navratri. Devotees across the country are offering prayers to Shakti Swaroopa Maa Durga, with grand celebrations underway at the historic Nausar Mata Mandir, located on Nag Pahadi in the Pushkar Valley of Ajmer. The temple, believed to be around 1200 years old, holds great spiritual significance and witnesses special worship and abhishek rituals during both Chaitra and Sharadiya Navratris each year.
Traditionally, bhog (food offering) is not made to the goddess until Saptami. On today’s Ashtami, devotees will offer food to Maa Durga following the puja. Evening rituals will include aarti, havan, and poornahuti, along with Kanya Pujan and cultural programs. The temple also hosts a grand Panchkundiya Yajna once every year.
The clay idol of Maa Durga enshrined in the temple is unique—it has nine heads and is revered as a powerful manifestation of Navdurga. According to the Padma Purana, this Navdurga Shaktipeeth has deep mythological roots. It is believed that Lord Brahma performed a yajna in the Pushkar region, and to protect it from demons, nine divine energies (Nav Shaktis) were established on the tongue of Nag mountain in the lap of the Aravallis.
The present temple was built approximately 1300 years ago by the descendants of Maratha Rajputs, under the patronage of the Gwalior Maharaj, on a land spread across 2000 bighas. Numerous legends highlight the divine power of Maa Durga. One such tale speaks of Prithviraj Chauhan defeating Mohammad Gauri through the blessings of Navdurga. In 1666 AD, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is said to have worshipped the goddess and established a trident (trishul) in her right hand—still present at the site today.
Despite attempts by Mughal ruler Aurangzeb to demolish Hindu temples between 1683 and 1686, he was unable to completely destroy the Nausar Mata temple. Though the final head of the nine-headed idol was damaged, the trident remained untouched. Later, Mahant Buddha Karan restored both the idol and the temple. A pond was also built atop the hill to address the water shortage—a source still used for temple rituals today.
Current Status of the Temple
The temple is currently spread across 62.5 bighas of land and is surrounded by a protective boundary wall. On 14 March 2015, Peethadheeshwar Oma Kumari passed away. Subsequently, on 29 March 2015, Ramakrishna Dev Ji was anointed as the new Peethadhishwar. On Shivratri, 1 March 2022, the Pran Pratishtha of a newly built Shiva temple named Gaurishwar Devalaya was also completed within the premises.
Kuldevi of Many Communities
Shri Nausar Mata is revered as the Kuldevi (family deity) by numerous communities and clans. In the Maheshwari community, clans such as Ajmera, Palod, Chitlangya, Jethaliy, Gelda, Maru, Dhamai, Baldi, and Lohia honor her as their Kuldevi.
Among Gurjars, clans include Hankla, Faguna, Mothsar, Halsar, Chechi, Sacheti, Nekadi, Bagdi, Barbara, Bagdawat, Dodia, Ratna, Meendka, Bug, Nikas, Baddi, Maroth, Farak, Motras, Dhabai, Khandela, Rajlana, Kathoda, Saradhna, Kangas, Juwana, Khalla, and Hadwa.
In Kumawat society, the revered clans are Ajmera, Aloudia, Morwal, Bhairunda, and Jhanjhawat. Other communities include Nausaria and Dhilliwal in the Dhobi society, Kadiwal and Prajapati Kumhar Sikhwal in the Teli society, Tripathi among Brahmins, Pahadia gotra among Meenas, Sevariya in the Gupta gotra, Kisanwat in the Rao society, and Kushmatya Bhardwaj Brahmins in Aadya Gaun.
Devotees from these lineages frequently visit the temple to offer their respects and seek blessings from Maa Nausar Mata.