Experience Rajasthani culture like never before at the Pushkar festival
India can be truly called an incredible country because of its varied geography, languages and religions as well as its culture, food, traditions and festivals. One such festival that we will be introducing you to today is – Pushkar Mela – which is held in the city of Pushkar in Rajasthan.
ORIGINS OF THE FESTIVAL
Pushkar is a lake town in the Ajmer district of northern Rajasthan. It is named after the Pushkar lake located in the city. The name “Pushkar” is derived from Sanskrit words “Pushp” meaning flower and “Kar” meaning hand(s). According to Hindu mythology, Pushkar got its name because the petals of the lotus flower carried by Brahma fell here. The city is also known for its Brahma Temple, which is the only temple dedicated to the deity in the world.
Interestingly, the reason why Brahma has just one temple to his name is because he was cursed. There are numerous ancient legends regarding this. For example, the Shiv Puran says that once Vishnu and Brahma were trying to discover the origin of the universe or Shiv by travelling in south and north respectively, while Vishnu gave up, Brahma lied to Shiv about his discovery by asking Shiv’s beloved flower to become a witness of his fake discovery. This angered Shiv and he placed a curse on him that henceforth no one would worship Brahma because of his lie.
Another legend says that Brahma wanted to perform a Yagna near the banks of the Pushkar Lake. However, the rules required that one can only perform the sacred ritual along with his wife. Since Brahma’s wife, Saraswati, was unable to arrive on time, he decided to marry a local Gujjar woman named Gayatri and then performed the Yagna. This infuriated Saraswati, who then cursed her husband that he would only be worshipped in Pushkar and nowhere else. Hence, the temple at Pushkar has the idols of Brahma and his wife Gayatri.
Pushkar is also known as Tirth Raj (king of Pilgrimage) and the lake is also counted among the “panchsarovar” (five lakes) of Hinduism, namely Manasarovar, Bindu Sarovar, Narayan Sarovar, Pampa Sarovar and Pushkar sarovar. Moreover, Hindus also believe that whoever takes a dip in the holy lake on the first full moon day after the festival of Diwali (Kartik purnima) will be cured of all the sins and skin diseases.
THE PUSHKAR MELA / PUSHKAR FAIR
The Pushkar festival is apparently the largest camel fair in Asia. Locals also trade sheep, cows and horses in the yearly meet. The fair is organised on the month of October and November and sees visitors from different regions due to its religious significance for centuries.
Today lakhs of devotees and tourists from all over the world flock to this place to experience the richness of Rajasthani culture, cuisine and art. The town of Pushkar becomes very lively during the festive season. Markets are filled with new temporary shops that sell everything from headgear to footwear, Rajasthani traditional artefacts, paintings, home decor products, and most importantly delicious Rajasthani food.
It’s not only the locals but even a few foreigners come here to do business, i.e. they rent a shop and sell Rajasthani artefacts and home decor designs of traditional hand-woven clothing.
The festival, which goes on for five days, can be truly enjoyed at the Mela ground. This is a government playground, which is used to host a variety of events that range from camel races, tug of war fights (between different village teams), competitions for the longest moustache and even the strongest moustache. There are many other activities where even non-locals or tourists can participate. This directly helps to bridge the social gap between the locals and visitors
CAMEL TRADING
Camel trading is the actual origin of this annual meet in the lake town. Since Rajasthan is an arid zone, camels were and in many places even today are the most preferred mode of transportation. These camels are bred by the local villagers and traded between buyers and owners that come from different districts and villages.
It is really an amazing experience to watch this unique buying and selling of animals. The bargaining for the price of the animal may even continue for more than two days! Not only camels but other animals like donkeys, horses are also traded at the festival.
PUPPET SHOWS A SPECIALTY
The local government also does a good job of encouraging the locals and villagers to conduct puppet shows at the festival. These puppet shows are not just a means of preserving Rajasthani tradition and culture but can also for public awareness campaigns.
There are puppet shows are conducted in Marwari, Hindi and English in order to educate and bring awareness about social problems and give solutions to root out blind faith among the people. They are known for their humorous elements but at the same time can effectively spread social messages like the importance of the girl child, significance of cleanliness and sanitation, women’s education, saying no to child marriage, using modern or semi modern techniques in farming for better productivity, importance of saving water and much more.
FOOD
Food is an integral part of any culture or civilization. Rajasthani cuisine is no different and is considered a favourite by many Indian Indian food lovers around the world.
Rajasthan cuisine clearly reflects its desert geography since its preparation requires time and can be consumed without cooking or heating it for the second time. Also in the preparation of sweets, milk and dairy products are generously used. As non-vegetarian or meat dishes are not typically considered as part of the Hindu culture in Rajasthan and especially since Pushkar being a Hindu pilgrimage destination, it is totally avoided in the fair. Meat is considered more of luxury food item because of its scarcity. When one talks about Rajasthani cuisine, the first thing that comes to your mind is “Dal Bati Churma” and different types of “Kachori.” As markets flourish during the festive season, temporary food stalls too spring up as one can’t just simply shop all day long.
Food stalls serve a host of traditional dishes like Dal bati churma, gatte ki sabzi, papad ki sabzi, puri and aloo ki sabji, aloo matar ki sabji, aloo pyaz ki sabji. Sweets include malpua, ghewar, gulab jamun, rabri, jalebi, gajar ka halwa and list goes on.
You can also escape the desert heat by drinking Nimbu paani, masala chaas, flavoured kulfi, lassi and even masala soda. The evenings are even more interesting with their demonstrations of vintage cars, jeeps, horses, guns and display of the weapons belonging to the numerous royal families of Rajasthan.
AFTER THE SUNSET
As the sun sets and the temperatures cool, the Mela ground turns into an open auditorium where local artists showcase their talent and Rajasthani art forms. This event is organized by the Tourism Department of the state. The art forms usually include traditional dances, songs, dance with fire rings, fire pots and balancing acts on a bicycle wheel and music dance combo with traditional musical instruments.
Another way tourists can soak in the traditional Rajasthani culture is by trying out Rajasthani attire complete with a fake moustache and a traditional turban and pose for fun pictures. If lucky, you could even get to hold a Rajputana sword for added effect.
Children will love indulging in ice-cream, kulfi, sugar candies, popcorn and the famous Rajasthani street food – Kachori with tangy tamarind chutney. Opportunities to ride on giant wheels, roller coaster rides and even merry-go-rounds are commonplace at the venue.
HOW TO GET THERE
It’s simple – you could choose to drive from Ajmer city (16 Kms ~ 40 minutes). If you are flying, the nearest airport is in Jaipur (150 Kms ~ 3 Hours). You can also travel by train #59607 or #59608 Ajmer Pushkar Passenger, which run every day except on Tuesdays and Fridays.
Roaming around Pushkar is recommended on foot as that’s the best way to explore the place. However, bicycles and motor bikes are available on rent too. Other than the festival, Pushkar as mentioned earlier has as a lot of religious significance. There are a lot of places to visit in and around Pushkar like the Ranthambore tiger reserve, Bharatpur migratory bird sanctuary, Jaipur and even Agra.
