SIRMUR

The temple faces south, and, on the eighth day of the bright half of the month, offer- ings are made to the goddess. Sapara is also associated with Nagarkoti Devi, but the place has sanctity of its own, whether the goddess is present or absent. There is also a Nagarkoti Devi at Dalahan in tahsil Pachhad, known also as Dalahan Devi.

Special mention has to be made of Bhangain Devi at village Bhaung (tahsil rainka) where the Goddess is represented by a linga, which is generally the emblem of Shiva. It is said that certain cowherds used to graze cattle in a forest, and their children, seeing a pointed stone, broke it into pieces, but next day the pieces had joined together and there was left no trace of the breakage. This occurred several times, and so the cultivators of Dasakna, convinced of the linga's miraculous power, erected a temple there.

Another legend would have us believe that Bhangain Devi, actually a sweep-ress, at one time, at Delhi, was brought up by Shirigul and assigned the place where its temple now stands. Shirigul did so to reward her for a favor on her part which enabled him to shake off the fetters put on him by the emperor of Delhi. Shirigul is believed to have once gone to Delhi to show his miraculous feats to the emperor. He had 1. 1 kg (one-and-a-quarter seer) of mustard with him which, when put in a scale, could not be outweighed or even equalized by any quantity of commodities in the Delhi market.

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