The Pushkar Fair
The annual Pushkar fair in Pushkar is celebrated with great enthusiasm. The festival is an obeisance to lord Brahma, the creator of this world. Situated in Pushkar is the only temple of Brahma in the world. Celebrated on the occassion of Karthik Purnima (November), it is believed that Lord Brahma, Vishnu and others come down to Pushkar to bath in the lake Pushkar. So it is considered very holy to bath in the Pushkar lake on this auspicious occassion. The festival becomes a hub for the cultural activities of Rajasthan. People come from far places to take part in the festival celebrations. They stay in there tents, named after the village they belong to. They also bring herds of cattles along. These cattles are here for a show and for trading. Other cultural events of Rajasthan also takes place during the festival.

About Pushkar Festival

The little town of Pushkar in Rajasthan has gained international recognition as the venue of the largest camel fair in the world. Though the festival is primarily known for its camel trade, yet there are many more enjoyable aspects of the festivals that visitors can feel enthusiastic about. For international tourists, the colours and spirit of the Rajasthan is a big attraction while for the domestic tourists, it is also the religious aspect that holds significance.

Attractions of the Festival

The Pushkar Fair is celebrated for a period of seven days during the period of Kartik Purnima. The major attraction of the fair, the camel trade dominates for the first five days. The buyers and sellers flock in huge numbers to participate in the trading of camels. Smooth transaction is as common as heavy bargaining. Trading is not restricted to the camels as the sale of other animals like goats, sheep and horses are also carried on in full swing.

The importance of camels in the fair is demonstrated further when beautifully dressed, ornamented and even scented camels walk up to be a part of the camel pageant. There is absolutely no doubt that the camels, with all the decoration, draw more eyes than even the prettiest of women around. The best camel, ofcourse wins the coveted title.

However, this is not all about camels! There are camel race as well which has people shouting and encouraging their favourite camel. As the camels reach close to the finishing point, the noise first grows louder and then subsides as only the supporters of the victorious camels continue with their plaudits. The rest, though a little disappointed, know that they have plenty of things to cheer them up.

The women folk of the fair find a much better place to entertain themselves - the ornaments and garments stalls. The colourfully decorated stalls have so much of appeal that women are invariable drawn towards them. And then, there are tatoo stalls, the most loved stall of the women. The rural women may not have the same facilities as the urban women to look glamorous, nonetheless the tatto stalls give them a beauty mark for life that separates them from the rest of the clan.

The fair has more entertainment in store for the visitors in form of folk dances, acrobats balancing on tight rope and cartwheels and competition for best display of fruits and vegetables.

The enthusiasm of the festival finally gives way to religious fervour. Pushkar is the only place in India where a temple dedicated to Brahma exists. During the Pushkar festival, a dip in the Pushkar Lake is considered extremely auspicious to wash away all the sins of human body and mind. Infact, it will not be wrong to say that many visitors come to Pushkar fair just to offer their prayer to the creator of the universe. In the night, thousands of oil lamps are floated in the water in respect of Lord Brahma. The entire atmosphere glows with not only the illuminations of the lamps but also with the deep faith of the devotees. This prayer ceremony gives a beautiful conclusion to the Pushkar Festival.