Pushkar Lake is an artificial lake, located near the town of Pushkar in Ajmer District. The lake was created in the 12th century when a dam was built across the headwaters of the Luni River. Legend has it that the lake was created when a lotus blossom dropped from the hand of God Brahma into the Pushkar valley. It was also the site where the Sage Vishwamitra meditating reputedly for thousands of years. Thousands of pilgrims come to bathe in the waters of the lake during the festival of Kaartika Poornima in November.
Circled by some five hundred odd temples, the lake has 52 ghats, which
connect the temples to the water. These ghats were constructed by the
rulers of the different erstwhile princely states of Rajasthan and some
of them are aptly named after the states.
Prominent
among the ghats are Gau Ghat, Brahma Ghat and Varah Ghat. Also called
Main Ghat, Gau Ghat is the place from which ashes of Mahatma Gandhi were
sprinkled into the lake. Brahma Ghat is believed to be the spot where
Brahma himself is said to have worshipped. The Varah Ghat is famed to
be the place where Vishnu, the preserver of the Hindu Trinity, appeared
in the form of Varaha (a boar), third in the line of his nine incarnations.
It is advisable for the visitors, who travel to the Pushkar Lake, not
to take photos and to remove their shoes before going to the ghats.
Every
year on the day of auspicious Kartik Purnima, the full-moon phase of October/November,
Pushkar Lake attracts thousands of pilgrims from all over the country
to take a holy dip in its waters. It is believed that a dip at the lake
on this auspicious day is equal to the penances done for one hundred years.
The India profile offers tour packages for travel to Pushkar Lake.
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