Pushkar
Radhekrishna. We boarded the train for Jaipur on 28th of Feb. from Bangalore and reached Jaipur on 2nd March 6 am. As the hotel where we were to stay had pick up arrangements from the station we reached there without any problem. We checked in to the hotel (The Golden Hotel) room which was very comfortable. We got ready by 9am. ready to see around Jaipur. We can get autos, taxis, etc. to take us around the city in plenty. We had hired an auto and started our tour.
Rajasthan in total is a state of fine architecture and Jaipur is no exemption. We first reached Birla mandir dedicated to Lord Lakshminarayana with His consort Goddess Lakshmi. The temple is made up of marble as almost all structures in Rajasthan are! It is situated on an elevated place with a beautiful garden around.
Our next destination was Jaipur zoo and museum. In the museum we can see various things used by the people in those days including the royal dresses, armours etc.
Inside the palace artificial water cascade is made. The wind blowing through it kept the atmosphere cool even during summers. There is also a temple dedicated to Sila Devi, a goddess of Chaithanya cult, given to Raja Mansingh, when he defeated the Raja of Jessore (Bangladesh). A big lake is in front of the palace meant to supply water for the people around. An old township existed around this palace which was the old Jaipur. Now almost all the buildings are dilapidated.
Next we saw the pink city which is separate from the town with Hawa mahal as its centre of attraction. All buildings inside the Pink city are retained as such and only pink colour is used there.Next we saw Jal mahal which is situated amidst the Man Sagar lake. It was built for the purpose of entertainment for the Royal family. Dance programs were held here on special occasions for special guests. The first floor remains under water. We can see only the top floor from the banks. Nobody is allowed to go there they said.
We also visited Jantar Mantar which is a marvel in astronomy. How they calculated date, time, astrological signs etc from the shadow falling on the structures designed by great men. Seeing all these we feel very proud of our country's rich heritage and culture. We saw Nahargarh fort only from a distance as our auto man did not take us there.
We went around some beautiful gardens and reached our hotel by evening. Next day we were planning to go to Pushkar by bus. But the taxi driver rang up to say that there are some people who would like to share the trip. So we decided to go by the taxi itself. We met two tamil speaking couples who had come from Chennai and the trip turned out to be a nice one.
Pushkar is situated near Ajmer. Some say that when Lord Siva shed tears after the death of his wife Sati, two ponds were formed. One is Pushkar in India and the other is supposed to be Ketaksha in the Chakwal district of Pakistan. According to another legend Pushkar was formed when the lotus (pushpa) from his hand (Kar) fell down on the earth and water appeared there. There is a temple for Lord Brahma but no pujas are conducted to the deity due to the curse of Lord Siva. It is said to be good to offer pirthru tharpanam in this place. In Srimad Bhagavatha this place is referred when Balarama conducts a pilgrimage. We did the offerings and sprinkled the water over us. A separate kumbha mela is held in Pushkar. Camel fair is also conducted annually.
On our way back we had to pass through Ajmer where a famous darghah is situated. We reached back our hotel by evening. We finished our dinner and started by the night train towards Udhaipur which was our next destination. We will be back with more news of Udhaipur in the next issue. Radhekrishna !
Next we saw the pink city which is separate from the town with Hawa mahal as its centre of attraction. All buildings inside the Pink city are retained as such and only pink colour is used there.Next we saw Jal mahal which is situated amidst the Man Sagar lake. It was built for the purpose of entertainment for the Royal family. Dance programs were held here on special occasions for special guests. The first floor remains under water. We can see only the top floor from the banks. Nobody is allowed to go there they said.
We also visited Jantar Mantar which is a marvel in astronomy. How they calculated date, time, astrological signs etc from the shadow falling on the structures designed by great men. Seeing all these we feel very proud of our country's rich heritage and culture. We saw Nahargarh fort only from a distance as our auto man did not take us there.
We went around some beautiful gardens and reached our hotel by evening. Next day we were planning to go to Pushkar by bus. But the taxi driver rang up to say that there are some people who would like to share the trip. So we decided to go by the taxi itself. We met two tamil speaking couples who had come from Chennai and the trip turned out to be a nice one.
Pushkar is situated near Ajmer. Some say that when Lord Siva shed tears after the death of his wife Sati, two ponds were formed. One is Pushkar in India and the other is supposed to be Ketaksha in the Chakwal district of Pakistan. According to another legend Pushkar was formed when the lotus (pushpa) from his hand (Kar) fell down on the earth and water appeared there. There is a temple for Lord Brahma but no pujas are conducted to the deity due to the curse of Lord Siva. It is said to be good to offer pirthru tharpanam in this place. In Srimad Bhagavatha this place is referred when Balarama conducts a pilgrimage. We did the offerings and sprinkled the water over us. A separate kumbha mela is held in Pushkar. Camel fair is also conducted annually.
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