Pushkar

Pushkar is a small, ancient town on the shore of a sacred lake in the Ajmer district of Rajasthan, ringed by the Aravalli hills. It is one of the holiest pilgrimage places in India, called Tirtha Raj, the king of tirthas, and it is home to the Jagatpita Brahma Mandir, the most important temple in the world dedicated to the creator god Brahma.

Why is Pushkar sacred?

The Padma Purana tells that Brahma, searching for a place to perform a great sacrifice, let a lotus fall from his hand. Where its petals struck the earth, water sprang up, and the largest of these became the Pushkar lake; the name is linked with pushpa (flower) and kar (hand). Brahma chose this spot for his yajna. When his wife Savitri was delayed, he married Gayatri so that the rite could begin on time, and the angry Savitri cursed that he would be worshipped on earth only at Pushkar. This is the best-known explanation of why Brahma has so few temples.

Savitri is said to have withdrawn to the hill of Ratnagiri above the town, where her temple stands; a temple to Gayatri stands on another hill. Pilgrims often climb to the Savitri temple at dawn for the view over the lake.

The Brahma temple

The temple stands on a high plinth near the lake, with a red spire (shikhara) and a hamsa, Brahma’s swan, above its gate. In the sanctum Brahma is shown four-faced, seated with Gayatri and Savitri. The present building largely dates from the 14th century and has been repaired many times. A popular belief holds that married men should not enter the inner sanctum, because of Savitri’s curse; it is a local custom, not a rule of scripture.

The lake and the fair

The lake is surrounded by 52 ghats, where pilgrims bathe, especially on Kartik Purnima, the full moon of Kartika, which tradition links with Brahma’s sacrifice. The Pushkar Mela held around that full moon is one of the largest livestock fairs in Asia, famous for its camels, and draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims and visitors. The ashes of Mahatma Gandhi were among those immersed here, at Gandhi Ghat.

How to reach Pushkar

Pushkar lies about 15 km from Ajmer, which has a major railway station; the nearest airport is at Kishangarh, and Jaipur is about 150 km away. Pushkar is a sacred town where meat, alcohol and eggs are not permitted.

Pushkar is sacred as the place of Brahma's great sacrifice and as the tirtha where his lotus fell to earth. Bathing in the lake on Kartik Purnima is believed to bring the merit of many pilgrimages, and the town is counted, with Kurukshetra, Gaya and Prayag, among the greatest tirthas.