Pandupol Hanuman Temple (Sariska)
Alwar, Rajasthan · temple
Remote, devotional and wild — bells and chants set against silent Aravalli forest, with a stream and waterfall beside the shrine.
- Days OpenOpen daily
- Entry FeeFree Entry
- Best SeasonWinter (October–March) for comfortable touring; monsoon (July–September) for the waterfall.
- Time NeededAllow a half day: 1.5–2 hours at the shrine and waterfall, plus 45–60 minutes each way on the forest road from the gate.
- Crowd LevelsQuiet on most days; busy on Tuesdays and Saturdays when private vehicles are allowed, and heavily crowded during Chaitra Navratri (March–April) and Hanuman-linked festivals.
- Kid Friendly3 of 5
- Wheelchair AccessPartial
Few temples in India sit inside a working tiger reserve, and fewer still ask you to time your visit to the days a forest barrier lifts. Pandupol Hanuman Temple is both. Hidden in a fold of the Aravalli hills deep within Sariska, roughly 21 km inside the main Thanagazi gate, it is reached along a lonely forest road that threads past dry deciduous scrub, langur troops and the occasional peacock. The shrine's great distinction is its idol: Hanuman shown reclining rather than standing or kneeling — one of the rare 'lying' Hanuman forms in the country — housed in a simple, whitewashed complex that hums with bell-song and the calls of the surrounding jungle.
Where to Eat Nearby
Nearby Vegetarian Eats
Pandupol temple chai & prasad stalls
0 km awayHot chai and boondi or laddu prasad — the only refreshment inside the reserve, vegetarian by ritual tradition; carry your own food otherwise.
Prem Pavitra Bhojnalaya, Alwar
55 km awayPure-veg Rajasthani thali and kachori — a reliable meal on the way in or out via Alwar town.
Baba Thakur Das & Sons, Alwar
55 km awayAlwar ka mawa / milk cake (kalakand) — the town's signature sweet from its most famous shop.
About
Few temples in India sit inside a working tiger reserve, and fewer still ask you to time your visit to the days a forest barrier lifts.
- Pandupol Hanuman Temple is both.
- Hidden in a fold of the Aravalli hills deep within Sariska, roughly 21 km inside the main Thanagazi gate, it is reached along a lonely forest road that threads past dry deciduous scrub, langur troops and the occasional peacock.
- The shrine's great distinction is its idol: Hanuman shown reclining rather than standing or kneeling — one of the rare 'lying' Hanuman forms in the country — housed in a simple, whitewashed complex that hums with bell-song and the calls of the surrounding jungle.
- The name carries the Mahabharata with it.
- 'Pandupol' is read as the Pandavas' gate, and local tradition holds that Bhima, wandering here during the brothers' exile, met an old monkey lying across his path.
- Told to lift the creature's tail, the mighty warrior could not budge it, and the monkey revealed himself as Hanuman — a lesson in humility retold at the temple to this day.
- A cleft in the rock is pointed out as the passage Bhima is said to have driven through the hillside with his mace, giving the site its 'gate'.
- Beside the temple, a natural stream drops over a rock face into a pool — a modest cascade for much of the year that swells into a genuine waterfall through the monsoon (roughly July to September), when the ravine turns green and loud with water.
- A small tank and prasad stalls sit near the shrine; otherwise this is raw forest, and silence returns the moment the bells stop.
- Vegetarian travellers will feel entirely at home: this is a Hanuman shrine inside a wildlife sanctuary, so the food footprint is minimal and meat-free by nature — expect chai and simple boondi or laddu prasad at the stalls, nothing more.
- There are no proper restaurants inside the reserve, so carry your own vegetarian snacks and plenty of water; Alwar town, about 55 km away, is where the trusted pure-veg kitchens are. The practical catch is access.
- To protect the tigers, private vehicles are usually permitted up to the temple only on Tuesdays and Saturdays (the days honouring Hanuman), typically within fixed daytime hours and for a modest fee; on other days you must hire a park gypsy/canter or a permitted vehicle.
- Always confirm the current arrangement with the Sariska forest office before setting out, dress modestly, keep noise down, and be out of the core zone by dusk.
Timings & Entry Fee
Entry Fee: The temple itself has no entry charge; darshan is free. To drive in on the permitted days you pay Sariska Tiger Reserve entry/vehicle charges (broadly ~INR 20 per Indian visitor and higher for the vehicle/foreigners, with figures quoted between roughly INR 250 and INR 455 for a private-car permit). Rates change often — confirm the current fee at the forest gate.
Verified: July 2026
Location & How to Reach
Address
Pandupol, inside Sariska Tiger Reserve, Thanagazi tehsil, Alwar district, Rajasthan, Alwar, Rajasthan, 301022
Distance from
- • Sariska main gate (Thanagazi): 21 km (~50 min)
- • Alwar town: 55 km (~100 min)
- • Jaipur: 110 km (~150 min)
- • Delhi: 215 km (~330 min)
How to Reach: Pandupol lies inside Sariska Tiger Reserve, about 21 km from the main Thanagazi/Sariska gate on the Alwar–Jaipur road. The gate is roughly 35 km from Alwar town (about 55 km of driving to the temple) and around 110 km from Jaipur. On Tuesdays and Saturdays private vehicles are usually allowed up to the shrine for a fee; on other days take a permitted forest gypsy/canter from the gate. Nearest railhead and bus stand: Alwar. Delhi is about 215 km (5–6 hours).
Best Time to Visit
History & Significance
History
Pandupol's story is rooted in the Mahabharata rather than a datable founding. Tradition holds that the Pandavas passed through these Aravalli hills during their exile, and that Bhima met Lord Hanuman here disguised as an aged monkey — the encounter that humbled the strongman and gave the temple its dedication.
- The place-name 'Pandupol' (the Pandavas' gate) is tied to a natural cleft in the rock, said locally to have been forced open by Bhima's mace.
- The reclining Hanuman idol enshrined here is unusual and central to the site's fame.
- The surrounding landscape was later protected as the Sariska sanctuary and Tiger Reserve, which is why the temple today sits inside a regulated wildlife zone.
Significance
The temple is one of the most venerated Hanuman shrines in the Alwar region and a rare example of a 'sleeping' or reclining Hanuman form.
- Its Mahabharata association draws pilgrims year-round and huge crowds on Hanuman festival days, while its setting inside Sariska makes it an unusual meeting point of faith and forest.
- For travellers it pairs devotion with a genuine wilderness drive rarely found at a temple.
Places to Visit Nearby
Sariska Tiger Reserve (core safari zone)
21 km awayAravalli tiger reserve with jeep safaris, dry forest and ruins
Neelkanth Mahadev Temple, Sariska
15 km awayAncient Shiva temple group among carved ruins deep in the hills
Bhartrihari Temple
12 km awayPopular hillside shrine to the sage-king Bhartrihari
Siliserh Lake
45 km awayScenic lake with a lakeside palace near Alwar
Bala Quila (Alwar Fort)
55 km awaySprawling hilltop fort overlooking Alwar city
Family & Accessibility
Family Highlights
- • A temple reached by an adventurous drive through real tiger-reserve forest
- • A waterfall and stream pool beside the shrine, best in the monsoon
- • The Bhima-and-Hanuman legend brings the Mahabharata to life for children
Photography & Drone
💰 Equipment Fees: No temple photography fee; forest/vehicle permit rules apply inside Sariska. Confirm any camera rules at the gate.
📍 The Golden Spot: The waterfall pool beside the shrine, framed by the rock cleft, especially in monsoon light.
🌅 Best Light Time: Soft morning light soon after the gate opens, when the forest is quiet and the water catches the sun.
Tips & Safety
💡 Insider Tips
🌅 Secret View: Walk the short path from the shrine to the waterfall pool early after the gate opens — in monsoon the cascade is loudest and the ravine mist hangs in the trees before day-trippers arrive.
🎯 Crowd Hack: Avoid Tuesday and Saturday if you want quiet: take a permitted forest gypsy on a weekday instead of driving in, and you may have the shrine almost to yourself.
💎 Secret Fact: The idol here is a reclining Hanuman — a rare posture said to show the deity resting after the Bhima encounter, unlike the standing or flying forms seen at most Hanuman temples.
⚡ Express Tour
Short on time: darshan at the shrine, a few minutes at the rock cleft that gives Pandupol its name, and a quick look at the waterfall — about 45 minutes at the site.
🔭 Deep Dive Tour
Combine Pandupol with a Sariska safari and the Neelkanth Mahadev temple group deeper in the reserve, then loop back via Siliserh Lake and Alwar's Bala Quila for a full Aravalli day.
🙏 Etiquette & Dress Code
Do's
- Confirm the current private-vehicle days and forest fees with the Sariska office before setting out
- Carry your own vegetarian food and plenty of drinking water
- Dress modestly and remove footwear before entering the shrine
- Keep noise low and leave the core forest zone before dusk
- Carry cash for the gate fee and prasad — there are no ATMs inside
Don'ts
- Don't assume you can drive in any day — access is usually limited to Tuesdays and Saturdays
- Don't feed, chase or get out to approach wildlife on the forest road
- Don't litter or bring single-use plastic into the reserve
- Don't rely on mobile signal or shops inside — plan to be self-sufficient
- Don't play loud music or use drones without permission in the sanctuary
📷 Photography Rules: Photography of the temple exterior, waterfall and forest is generally fine; be discreet around the sanctum and follow any signs. Drones require prior permission from the forest authorities inside the tiger reserve.
Good to Know
💳 Money & Connectivity
🏧 Nearest ATM: In Thanagazi town or Alwar; there are no ATMs inside the reserve, so carry cash.
🆘 Emergency & Health
👮 Tourist Police: Nearest police assistance is at Thanagazi and in Alwar; forest guards staff the Sariska gate and checkposts.
🎒 Lost & Found: Report lost items to the forest gate staff at the Sariska entry or to the temple committee at the shrine.
💊 Nearest Pharmacy: Basic pharmacies are in Thanagazi; well-stocked chemists are in Alwar town, about 55 km away.
Air Quality: Air quality inside the reserve is clean forest air for most of the year; winter mornings can be foggy and cold, so start a little later on hazy days.
Water Safety: Carry sealed bottled or filtered water — there is no reliable drinking-water supply inside the reserve; do not drink from the stream.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I drive my own car up to Pandupol Hanuman Temple?
Usually only on Tuesdays and Saturdays, when private vehicles are permitted up to the shrine for a fee within fixed daytime hours. On other days you must take a permitted forest gypsy or canter from the gate. Because rules change to protect the tigers, confirm the current arrangement with the Sariska forest office before travelling.
Why is the temple called Pandupol?
'Pandupol' is read as the Pandavas' gate. Tradition says Bhima met Hanuman here during the Pandavas' exile and drove a passage through the rock with his mace — a natural cleft still pointed out at the site.
Is there really a waterfall at the temple?
Yes. A stream drops over a rock face beside the shrine into a pool. It is modest for much of the year but becomes a proper waterfall during the monsoon, roughly July to September.
How far is Pandupol from Alwar and Delhi?
The Sariska main gate is about 35 km from Alwar town, and the temple is roughly 21 km further inside — around 55 km of driving from Alwar. Delhi is about 215 km, a 5–6 hour drive.
Is there anywhere to eat inside the reserve?
No proper restaurants — only the temple's chai and prasad stalls, which are vegetarian by tradition. Carry your own vegetarian food and water; the nearest trusted pure-veg kitchens are in Alwar town, about 55 km away.
What should I keep in mind visiting a temple inside a tiger reserve?
Dress modestly, remove footwear before the shrine, keep noise down, do not feed or approach wildlife, avoid single-use plastic, and be out of the core zone before dusk. Photography of the forest is fine; follow any restrictions near the sanctum.