One of Asia’s biggest and lost in the Thar Desert: This ‘secret’ underground library in Jaisalmer has over 9,00,000 books

We all know about the famous forts of Rajasthan and their grandeur. But do we know that one of Asia’s biggest library is in Rajasthan? One treasure trove that didn’t catch our sight is the underground library, situated beneath a temple in Bhadariya village of Pokaran Tehsil in Jaisalmer district.

The library was built by Harbansh Singh Nirmal, who is also known as Bhadariya Maharaj (saint). Hailing from Punjab, he himself was an avid reader. The collection of the library consists of books from different regions of the world.

The books range from science to astrology to astronomy to epics, history, dictionaries, atlas and many more preserved in 562 glass shelves. That too 16 feet under the ground. However, the location helps keep it cool even during scorching summers.

The corridors are full of embedded wooden frames holding a plethora of books. At the end of each aisle, there is a mirror, reflecting the upcoming adventure that awaits ahead in the world of books. The pastel shades on the wall have appealing charm and make this quaint library worth visiting, even for non-readers.

For scholars and learners, who visit this bibliotheca from across the globe, it’s a huge treasure trove of knowledge. With a collection of around 900,000 books and the capacity to seat 4,000 people.

There are thousands of books that were gifted to him on various occasions by people. He started collecting these books in the year 1998 and then funds were allotted to construct a temple for a goddess here.

But Bhadariya Maharaj also had an idea of investing a huge amount in building vast chambers of knowledge. He himself stayed in a room for many years and read almost all the books available in this library, according to villagers.

The library is being looked after by the villagers as well as the devotees of the temple.