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The
scenic lake of Pushkar is situated in a valley about 10 kms to the
northwest of Ajmer. Pushkar Lake is enclosed by hills and desert.
Pushkar Lake is one of the most holy place for Hindus. There are about
52 Ghats and 400 temples in Pushkar which are situated on the banks of
the Pushkar Lake. It is considered that the famed waters of the
Pushkar wash away the sins of whole life.
Pilgrims from all over come to take bath in the holy waters of Pushkar
on the day of Kartik Purnima or on any of the four days before the day
of Kartik Purnima and also worship at the Ghats. The spiritual water
of the Lake is also considered to treat skin diseases, making Pushkar
"the Lourdes of the East". |
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The history
of Pushkar Lake dates back to 4th century BC. The creation of Pushkar
Lake, as an artificial lake goes back to12th century. In 1615–16, the
Mughal emperor Jahangir set up his hunting lodge on the shores of the
Pushkar Lake. He came to this lodge for hunting when he was staying in
Ajmer, about 20 kilometres from Pushkar. This act breaks the local
custom of in which animals are not to be killed in the areas of the
holy lake. Later, grandson of Jahangir named Aurangzeb (1618–1707)
destroyed some of the temples of the pushkar which were built again
afterwards. The Rajput rulers of Amber, Bundi, Bikaner and Jaisalmer
put their maximum efforts to re-establish the significance of the lake
and its nearby temples.
Ghats of the Pushkar Lake are also renovated and also temples are
built around it by various rulers like Maharaja Man Singh I of Amber,
Daulat Rao Scindia, Maha Rana Pratap etc. |
