Ajmer Sharif Dargah Deg | 5000 kgs rice cooked | Ajmer Sharif Urs 2021 | Garib Nawaz Langar Khana скачать в хорошем качестве

Ajmer Sharif Dargah Deg | 5000 kgs rice cooked | Ajmer Sharif Urs 2021 | Garib Nawaz Langar Khana

AJMER: The traditional Indian 'khichdi' made headlines recently after noted chef Sanjeev Kapoor cooked up a Guinness World Record, making about 918kg of the superfood at one go.  This didn't come as much of a surprise for the caretakers of the shrine of Khawaja Gharib Nawaz in Ajmer, where about 4,800kg of the 'deg-ka-khana', a highly nutritious khichdi-like sweet dish, has been cooked in the  'bade deg ' (big cauldron) for devotees over the last 450 years. While the 'bade deg' was donated by Mughal Emperor Akbar in 1567AD, the dargah also has a 'chote deg', given by Akbar's son Jehangir in 1613AD, that can cook up to of 2,400kg of the sweet dish made up of rice, wheat, sugar, saffron and dry fruits. But food is cooked to capacity in these cauldrons only on auspicious days or when the number of devotees at the dargah is very high. Otherwise, food is prepared to about half or two-third of the capacity. It will also depend on donations made by devotees," says  Syed Salman Chishti,  a 'khadim' and 'gaddi nahin' at Ajmer dargah. "Food has been served for centuries here and represents the true ethos of  Sufi traditions . It is an example of serving humanity selflessly," Chishti says. But preparing the sweet dish in these cauldrons is no cakewalk. Five families are in charge of cooking and have been doing it over generations. The process can take four to seven hours, depending on the quantity and weather. Generally, it is done during the night and served at dawn. Muzaffar Bharti, a member of one of the families who have been cooking food since the time of Akbar, says, "In the first step, we empty the cauldron of offerings made by devotees. Then, the deg is filled with water, 4,000 litres or 2,400 litres depending on the cauldron. Rice is added to the water after it heats up." The ingredients used in the dish were decided by a  Mughal-era 'hakim'  to make it nutritious enough to sustain a person for a day. Along with rice and sugar, saffron, turmeric, dry fruits,  lotus seeds , apricots, pine nuts, wheat and an all-purpose flour are added. For full capacity, the cauldron requires 1,868kg rice and sugar along with 150kg pure ghee and 150kg dry fruits. Rest of the ingredients will weigh up to 25kg. Food is made as an offering by devotees to thank the Sufi saint or to grant him a wish. The cost of preparing the food in the big cauldron to full capacity comes to about Rs 2 lakh, while that of the small one is Rs 1 lakh. Cooking in cauldrons that have depths of 15 feet and 8 feet, respectively, is not easy and done using jumbo-sized ladles attached with ropes. What is your religion?”, My fellow traveler asked while I was leaving from Udaipur to Ajmer to visit Dargah Ajmer Sharif. “Wanderer”, I responded with great eagerness. His eyes were wide open and there was a question mark on his face. Then when I explained everything to him in detail, he understood the reasoning behind my answer. We have such a belief that one gets the privilege of visiting religious places located in remote areas only when a call has come from there or it is written to go there. Something similar happened to me. On 2 January 2020, our return train to Lucknow #ajmerdargha #badideg #ajmerurs #ajmer2021