There exists a temple about 45 minutes south of Bikaner in which the local people pray to rats. We took a slight detour from our recommended route to visit this temple and it was well worth the hassle.
Before entering Hindu temples it is important to remove your shoes, the Rat temple employed the same policy. So we deposited them in the locker outside and made our way into the temple. The myth says that the rats exist here as the reincarnations of storytellers after a slight altercation between the gods Karni Mata and Yama. I may be skeptical, but I have a slight suspicion it has more to do with the copious amount of food and drink supplied by the pilgrims than any godly act. After a quick sweep of the building Rory decided he had had quite enough of rats and went back outside. Sadly for Rory he was now the only member of the party with a camera so I persuaded him back inside to get a quick shot. We then both left trying to avoid standing on the rat droppings and rotten food in our bare feet.
