Bike rides are always exciting, and riding through the vast desert is a different experience. Today, ‘Footlooseinme’ will take you on a bike ride to Tanot from Jaisalmer. Tanot is known for Tanot Mata Temple, located close to the Pakistan border and near the battle site of Laungewala. With many interesting places to explore and stories to share, I start my ride to Tanot through the Great Indian Desert.
Hiring a bike in Jaisalmer was very simple. We searched online for Bike rentals in the city and after checking all the reviews and the terms and conditions we selected the one that best suited us. The Bike rental service guy was accommodating and they delivered the bike to our stay in the city.
The bike was a brand new, bright yellow Royal Enfield Meteor. This new bike still needed its number plate. After all the formalities, we started our ride to Tanot through the desert city. After a few kilometres, we filled our tank at the fuelling station and then straight we rode through the desert.
The road was straight within the vast emptiness. The road ran through the empty fields with desert shrubs and breaking this monotony, stood these tall winged structures at regular intervals. These windmills are placed all across the desert expanse. We were the only travellers on the roads for many kilometres rarely did we come across other vehicles. The road seemed to be all ours.
There were patches where the strong winds carried the sand particles and dumped them on the road and there was no visible sign of the roads. It was an adventure ride of a different kind. We enjoyed every moment of the ride and every moment of loneliness on this empty desert road. After a long ride, we reached the small village of Ramgarh where there are eateries and shops for the travellers to rest and recharge.
We took a small snack break here and then we continued on the road again. With the straight road going on and on, there was no compulsion to look for the maps and carefully yet carelessly, we road through the desert. The strong gust of desert winds was showering us with love by covering us with sand particles.
We crossed another small settlement at Ranao before we reached our destination. We reached the Tanot Rai temple or the Tanot Mata temple. A small BRO structure was on the crossroad in front of the temple. We parked the bike here and paid a visit to the temple. This is a much-revered temple here and has a story associated with it.
Tanot Mata was born Aavad Mata in the Charan caste (animal rearer) to Mamadji Charan (Gadhvi) and led the life of a sage warrior. She was believed to be the incarnation of the Goddess of War, Mata Hinglaj. Mamadji had no child, and with the wish to attain the blessings of Mata Hinglaj for a child, he travelled to the faraway temple by foot. Pleased by his devotion Mata Hinglaj appeared in his dreams and asked for his wish to have a son or a daughter. He asked the Goddess to be born as his daughter. His wish was fulfilled and Aavad was born.
The Bhati Rajput King Tanu Rao built the temple and installed the idol of Tanot Mata in the year 828 AD. Since then the Bhati dynasty as well as the people of Jaisalmer worship this deity with great faith and devotion. The temple is located close to the India-Pakistan border. During the 1965 Indo-Pak war, 3000 bombs were targetted towards the temple and it is said that the bombs either missed the target or did not explode. Many such shells are displayed within the temple premises.
Again during the 1971 India-Pakistan War, Tanot Mata temple was under attack, where many locals took shelter. This time many enemy tanks were targeted towards the temple and its people. This time the tanks got stuck in the sand which allowed the Indian Army to capture the tanks. A few of these tanks are on display at Laungewala War Museum, a few kilometres away.
After paying a visit to the Tanot Mata temple we had to acquire permission to visit the Indo-Pak border. Two-wheelers are not allowed beyond this point. So we left the bike and boarded a car to visit the Bawliyan-Bilal border checkpost. The last checkpost on the Indian side is Bawliyan while the one on the other side is Bilal. Through the straight road that travelled up and down the desert terrain, we drove. At one point our driver showed us both the checkpost at a distance from a high point.
We reached the Bawliyan checkpoint. There was a gateway that said ‘Welcome to Indo-Pak Border.’ Photography was not allowed beyond this point for obvious security reasons. We were allowed to walk to the barbed wire border. We interacted with the brave soldiers who constantly guard our border to keep us safe. After seeing the western border we returned to Tanot Mata temple and were back on the bike again.
Read my previous post on India Bangladesh Border.
Read my previous post on India Pakistan Border at Amritsar.
Our next destination was the Laungewala War Memorial. The battle of Laungewala was one of the most important and decisive battles fought on the western frontier. In December 1971, Pakistan forces comprising 4000 soldiers, T-59 & Sherman tanks, and a medium artillery battery attacked the Laungewala border post. Indian soldiers bravely held their post despite being outnumbered and with the help of the IAF destroyed and captured all the tanks and vehicles, killed the enemy soldiers and foiled the advance of the Pakistan army.
To commemorate this huge victory the Laungewala War Memorial was built on the same site situated near the border of India and Pakistan. The superhit Bollywood Movie ‘Border’ was based on the war of Laungewala. This War Memorial not only educates the masses about history but also narrates the tale of the bravery and patriotism of the Indian soldiers who stood against the Pakistani attack and thwarted their plot.
Read my previous post on the Rezang La War Memorial in Ladakh.
Paying our tribute to the great Indian heroes we were back on the road to return to our stay in the desert city of Jaisalmer. Our ride to Tanot was more than exciting and was interestingly different from all the other rides that we undertook. As every different place has its essence so does the road leading to them offer a different experience. With this lovely memory of a super smooth ride to Tanot, I end my penultimate post on the Jaisalmer series. Stay tuned for my final post on the Desert Nation Park of Jaisalmer.
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