Pushkar Lake

Pushkar Lake is a sacred freshwater lake at the centre of the pilgrimage town of Pushkar in Rajasthan, India, long revered in Hindu tradition and associated with the god Brahma.

The lake is ringed by stepped ghats used for ritual bathing and prayer and is flanked by numerous small temples, including the town’s prominent Brahma Temple. The site is also the focus of the annual Pushkar Camel Fair, a major seasonal event combining religious observance and trade.

The lake and its ghats have been a continuous centre of pilgrimage and local devotional practice for centuries, with many ghats and temple platforms rebuilt or restored over time to accommodate worshippers. Ritual bathing and festival processions remain core uses of the site.

Pushkar Lake lies in the town of Pushkar on the Aravalli foothills in Rajasthan, roughly within the regional area around Ajmer, and is accessible by road from nearby cities.

• Religious and festival significance: The lake is an important Hindu pilgrimage site associated with the nearby Brahma Temple and the annual Pushkar Camel Fair, which draws large numbers of pilgrims and visitors.
• Ghats: There are traditionally fifty-two bathing ghats around the lake that pilgrims use for ritual ablutions, many of them named and maintained by local families or temples.

What to See #

• Pilgrimage ghats: A continuous system of stepped bathing ghats surrounds the lake, traditionally used for ritual bathing and daily puja; many of the ghats are associated with adjacent small temples and shrines.