Shri Khatu Shyam Mandir is a vibrant temple dedicated to Khatu Shyam ji (Barbarik), located in the Selaqui area near Prem Nagar / Chakrata Road. The shrine has a beautiful entrance, colourful interiors and a richly decorated idol of Shyam Baba with mor-mukut, flower malas and shining ornaments. A large hall in front of the garbha-griha is used for bhajan sandhya, kirtan and satsang, where devotees sing “Hare ka Sahara, Khatu Shyam Hamara” late into the night on special days. Regular aartis, Shyam rasoi, and sewa activities keep the temple busy; on Ekadashi, Shyam Jayanti, New Year and weekends, Selaqui’s streets fill with devotees arriving from Dehradun city, nearby industrial colonies and villages. Many people visiting Selaqui for work or study also stop here to bow to Shyam Baba for job, business, exam and family wishes.
About this place
History & highlights
The Selaqui temple is part of the wider Khatu Shyam bhakti tradition that originates from the famous Khatu Shyam Mandir in Rajasthan, where the head of Barbarika (grandson of Bhima) is worshipped. According to legend, Barbarika offered his head to Lord Krishna before the Mahabharata war; pleased with his sacrifice, Krishna granted him the boon that in Kali Yuga he would be worshipped as Shyam, the deity of hope for the distressed. Inspired by this lineage, devotees in Selaqui established their own Shyam Mandir so that people of Uttarakhand could have darshan closer to home. Local articles describe it as a rising spiritual centre of the industrial town, with regular bhandaras, Shyam bhajan nights and processions that bring together traders, factory workers, students and families. Though comparatively new in construction (modern marble, lights, sound system), the temple’s faith history is very deep, connecting Selaqui directly to the centuries-old Khatu Shyam tradition of Rajasthan and to the Mahabharata legend of Barbarika’s supreme daan.
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