Pushkar

There is a lot of magic in Pushkar, as well as several conflicting identities.  It is a very (VERY) old and important Hindu pilgrimage site, built around the shores of a sacred lake (here seen from a nearby hill).  It has also reinvented itself as a center for foreign tourists, and is filled with little cafes, hotels, handicraft shops, camel rides, and insistent touts.   There's a large camel fair on the Kartik full moon (October/November) which brings hundreds of thousands of buyers, sellers, and curious onlookers.  In the other times it is quieter, and if one can get out of town, it is positively peaceful. 

This was taken in Jan. 2003.

 

 In Hindu mythology, Pushkar was where the creator Brahma began the work of creation.  Locals claim that it happened on the banks of the sacred lake, which is one of the reasons that so many temples and bathing ghats have been built around it.  This photo looks across the lake to the Brahma ghat (just right of center).  Pilgrims go there to make offerings after going to the Brahma temple. 

 

 This photo was taken in Jan. 2003.

 

This looks down on Brahma ghat from the other side.  Note the inlaid marble patterns on the floor, for which the money was doubtless provided by some donor as a pious act.  There are some stalls selling the necessaries for worship (flowers, incense, etc.), as well as the ubiquitous donation-boxes. 

The little island with the cupola over it is supposed to have been the exact spot where Brahma began the work of creation. 

This photo was taken in Jan. 2003.

 

 An important feature of any Hindu religious place is the hereditary pilgrimage priests (tirtha purohits or pandas), who help their clients to perform various rituals (including memorials for the dead), and who can help them with a variety of other needs.  Pushkar's purohits often sit near this giant pipal (banyan) tree, which is very near the entrance to Brahma Ghat.  In winter (when we were there) people would be just as likely to be out in the sun, especially in the chill of the morning. 

This photo was taken in Jan. 2003.

 

Here's another view of one of the pathways leading down to from the main road to the lake; there are multiple ways there all along the south side of the lake.  You can see a shop selling religious articles, as well as various advertisements (painted signs, banners, and stuck-on signs), which are all trying to channel the human traffic (domestic pilgrim or foreign tourist) to one place rather than another. 

This picture was taken in Jan. 2003

 

This looks up from the lake level toward one of the elaborate gateways that frame the boundary.  If these buildings get painted regularly they look immaculate (as these do).  The little stall on the left is selling things for worship, the pile on the table is a mixture of puffed rice and sugar, which is the most common food offering (after it has been offered via the temple priest, most of it is returned to the pilgrims as sanctified food (prasad); and because it won't spoil, they can take it back home very easily.  The yellow can in the foreground is for plastic garbage (especially plastic bags), which have become a big problem in a lot of India.  Not only do they clog drains and sewers, but they are also eaten by cattle roaming the streets, which sometimes die as a result of this.

This picture was taken in Jan. 2003

 

More Photos of Pushkar

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Last modified 15 December 2003