Shingnapur village in India: why there are no thieves and doors in houses

In India, there are many places that can surprise travelers. One of them is the village of Shani Shingnapur, where there is not a single house in which there would be an entrance door. There are no people here who hunt thefts of other people's property, but not because there are many valiant policemen in the village of Shani Shingnapur who keep order.

The Shani village of Shingnapur, or Shingnapur, is located in Ahmednagar County, Maharashtra State, in western India. From the district center, the city of Ahmednagar, to the village - about 35 kilometers. Not so long ago, the inhabitants of this village were engaged in the cultivation of sugar cane and other crops, but now a significant part of the income of the local population is numerous tourists who come to see the village without doors. About 5,000 people live here, there is a school, post office, temple, shops and even a bank. By the way, the bank is the only building in the city in which there is still a door, but it is glass and without a lock, and serves only to protect against stray animals.

Such an unusual situation with the absence of doors and locks in a country where theft is not uncommon is due to the fact that the inhabitants of the village of Shingnapur live according to the precepts of the god Shani. Yes, in a country that is a nuclear power and has a rapidly developing economy, the majority of the billion people still live according to traditional beliefs. According to legend, in which all residents of Shingnapur believe without exception, a black stone slab was found on the banks of the local river. It turned out that this is an earthly incarnation of the god Shani, who appeared in a dream to a person who found a stove. God Shani ordered to put the found plate in the central square so that he could see everything that was going on around and keep order in the village. This nondescript plate still adorns the central square.

In addition, the god Shani told the person who found the stove that anyone who dares to enter a strange house and take something that does not belong to him will be punished with 7.5 years of bad luck. But the first troubles will begin for him immediately after the crime: the thief will flee all night, but will not budge.

The most amazing thing is that the god who commanded the residents of the village of Shani Shingnapur not to put doors or locks, really protects people from theft. And one of the local peasants, who decided to break the covenant of the god Shani and hang a castle on his barn, soon died, thus further strengthening the faith of the inhabitants of Shingnapur that they do not need doors and locks.

When a film was made about an unusual village at the end of the last century, a stream of tourists came here. Apparently, among the visitors there were people who were not very inspired by the legend of the god Shani, since several thefts were registered in the impeccable “doorless world”. But this did not greatly damage the village’s reputation, and the doors to the local houses did not appear. After all, on the square there is still a stove of the god Shani, who guards the order in this unusual settlement.