Langar Khana
Encyclopedia
A Langar Khana is the place in a Sufi Dergah where free food called Langar
is distributed to all, and where food is prepared to be given to the poor.
s (cauldrons for cooking food) on either side of the Saham Chiragh (courtyard lamp) fixed into solid masonry in which a palatable mixture of rice sugar, ghee (butter) and dried fruits is cooked for distribution to the public as tabarruk. The circumference at the edge of the larger cauldron is 10-1/4 feet. It cooks 70 mounds of rice, while the smaller Deg takes 28 mounds. In the Dergah at Ajmer
one of them was presented by Akbar in 1567 A.D. The princes or the well-to-do pilgrims order these Degs to be cooked generally during the Urs
period.
Chhoti Deg : It is located on the left side of Buland Darwaza inside Sahan-e-Chiragh. It was presented by Sultan Nooruddin Jahangir in 1013 Hijra. Eighty mounds of rice can be cooked in it at a time.
Langar (Sufism)
Langar is the provision of free food to the needy in a religious context. Even though use of the word "Langar" is mostly associated with a more fundamental element of Indian Sikh and some Hindu religious traditions, communal serving of food has also been a rich tradition in Indian and Persian...
is distributed to all, and where food is prepared to be given to the poor.
The Degs
In a large Dergah there are two DegDEG
DEG or deg is an acronym or initialism that can mean:* Diethylene glycol, an organic compound* Degree **Degree , a measurement of plane angle**Degree , used in several scales of temperature...
s (cauldrons for cooking food) on either side of the Saham Chiragh (courtyard lamp) fixed into solid masonry in which a palatable mixture of rice sugar, ghee (butter) and dried fruits is cooked for distribution to the public as tabarruk. The circumference at the edge of the larger cauldron is 10-1/4 feet. It cooks 70 mounds of rice, while the smaller Deg takes 28 mounds. In the Dergah at Ajmer
Ajmer
Ajmer , formerly written as Ajmere, is a city in Ajmer District in Rajasthan state in India. Ajmer has a population of around 800,000 , and is located west of the Rajasthan state capital Jaipur, 200 km from Jodhpur, 274 km from Udaipur, 439 km from Jaisalmer, and 391 km from...
one of them was presented by Akbar in 1567 A.D. The princes or the well-to-do pilgrims order these Degs to be cooked generally during the Urs
Urs
Urs is the death anniversary of a Sufi saint in South Asia, usually held at the saint's dargah . South Asian Sufis being mainly Chishtiyya, refer to their saints as lovers and God as beloved...
period.
The Langar Khana at Ajmer
Bari Deg : Inside the Sahan-e-Chiragh and on the right side of Buland Darwaza is located Bari Deg. Emperor Akbar pledged to visit Ajmer Sharif on foot and presented a large cauldron if victorious in Chittaurgarh battle. So he kept his word after winning the battle. So he kept his words after winning the battle. The circumference of the cauldron (Deg) is 12.5 yards and 125 mounds of rice can be cooked in it at a time. It was presented in 976 Hijra.Chhoti Deg : It is located on the left side of Buland Darwaza inside Sahan-e-Chiragh. It was presented by Sultan Nooruddin Jahangir in 1013 Hijra. Eighty mounds of rice can be cooked in it at a time.