The temple of Mahadeo lies one mile north of Purana-nagar in the Bahal tehsil It is a stone building and the pindi (upper part of Shiva ling) of Mahadeo is made of black stone, nearly one span in height and about two feet in circumference.
The pujaris employed belong to the Kondal gotra of Gaur Brahmins and are called Rawals by the Hindus. They aver that their forefathers came from Bengal with the ancestors of the rulers of Suket and that the temple and its Pindi already existed there. The story about the templeโs foundation, as told by their forefathers, was that it was built in a single night by the order of a certain Raja of the Pandavas. The building as it now exists and the forms of pillar and pindi of Mahadeo clearly show them to have been made in very ancient times but the date and year of its foundation are not known.
The place on which the Pindi stands has a great natural rock under it. The Pindi has been carved out of this rock. The fret-work around the Pindi is also of stone and the floor is paved with stones. Four large and four small columns of black stone rise from this pavement to support the roof, which is so built to be divided into small parts furnished with stone slabs.
The story of the worship of the Pindi is that formerly the site which it now occupies was a mere jungle and entirely remote from all habitations. A certain Jat had a milch cow which yielded nothing when he tried to milk her. In his anxiety to find out the cause, the Jat enquired and found that the cow used to go out to the Pindi of Mahadeo and standing over it, produced milk from her udders. Since then the people have cherished a belief in it and worshipped it.
The restrictions in connection with the Pindi are that no Hindus except the Pujaris may eat the offerings made to it and that none of them may cross the stream of water that flows from the Pindi. This stream is believed to be Parbati, the wife of Shiva. The offerings made to it are not eaten because:-
Kacha para Braham is Shiv nirmal jo Khae ,
Kahe Mahadeo sun Parbati jaron mul se jae.
A fair is held at Mahadeo in honour of the god on the 25th of Jeth every year. The people keep awake in the temple on the Shivratri day.
