Rajrappa, Waterfall and Hindu pilgrimage site in Ramgarh district, India

Rajrappa is a waterfall at the confluence of the Bhairavi (locally Bhera) and Damodar rivers in Ramgarh district, Jharkhand. The Bhera drops 9.1 metres over a rocky ledge into the Damodar, forming a hanging valley. The Damodar gorge below is an incised meander cut into a broader older valley.

The Damodar cut its wide, flat valley in a senile stage before Tertiary uplift, then rejuvenated during the Paleogene and Neogene (66 million to 1.8 million years ago) through the Himalayan orogeny, carving a deep, narrow youthful gorge inside the older valley. The Bhera, arriving from the Ranchi plateau, drops 9.1 metres at the confluence, a hanging-valley waterfall; the nearby gorge is an incised meander.

The Chhinnamasta temple here is also called Prachandachandika, and a rock slab along its northern wall bears a south-facing image of the goddess. The temple is counted among the Shakti Peethas in the Puranas, and its Tantric character is compared to that of Kamakhya in Assam. Special worship is held on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

Rajrappa lies off NH 23 between Ramgarh and Chas, about 20 km from Ramgarh, 70 km from Ranchi and 68 km from Bokaro Steel City. The temple and falls sit at the confluence of the Damodar and Bhairavi (Bhera) rivers, where the Bhera drops 9.1 metres. Tuesdays and Saturdays bring special worship and animal sacrifice, so expect larger crowds then.

Santal pilgrims call Rajrappa "Thel Kopi Ghat" (Water Ghat) in their folk songs, and after bathing they apply oil. Groups known as yatri come mostly in December from East and West Singhbhum and Saraikela districts to immerse the ashes of their dead in the Damodar, which their mythology holds to be their final resting place.