A visit to Pushkar and Ajmer

Pushkar is the place that has the only Brahma (the supreme Hindu god-the creator) temple in the country, while Ajmer is where Dargah of Sufi saint Kwaja Moinuddin Chisti (Garib nawaz) is located. I first came to both these places when I was around ten. Since then I have come here many times.

Both these places are different in many ways. Pushkar holy site is about assertion of life while Ajmer Dargah is about the link to god through spiritualism. Pushkar is about giving space to all living forms while Ajmer is about not neglecting the downtrodden. Pushkar is about taking the life in its chaotic turns while Ajmer is about seeking almighty in the shrill. These contradictions are what make these places interesting. It is as if Pushkar completes what Ajmer lacks and Ajmer completes what Pushkar lacks. They seem to complement, both have elements of truth. The reason why it is important to visit both these places. Beauty is that they are located about 10 odd Kms from each other, separated by a mountain.

In Pushkar you will find huge pond, with ghats and temples. I saw lots of fishes, as also birds (pigeons, sparrow, stilts, myna…so on). There are squirrels, cows, monkeys, dogs, donkeys so on, there is so much of vibrancy of life. People feed animals and birds, there seems to be god everywhere!!. And yes the place is strictly vegetarian; there is also high emphasis on taking care of animals. There are lots of foreigners, people from different part of the world stay here for months. It’s a terrific sight to see the sunset over the pond (the photo was taken at dusk, the place is usually crowded during festivals). Yet there are things that would make you cringe, it’s a place where you can get easily fleeced. Many people come here for ritualistic reasons; the wily Brahmins are ready to take them for a ride, capitalizing on superstitions. Somewhere in the mêlée the concept of God and goodness of scriptures and sacred thoughts are lost. It becomes crass commercial; exigencies and compulsions.

While Ajmer (Dargah) is about unconditional love to almighty, there is so much spiritual energy inside the dargah that one feels a sense of ecstatic running over the body. Despite the chaos there is a sense of peace, it’s pure. I sat at one of the corner for a long time. Later I went out and had lunch (very much Non veg). There is so much emphasis on charity for poor that it is hard to miss. There is also a sense of communitarian feeling. Yet one knows life not about human beings only, it’s also about birds and animals and that is what one starts to miss. The Nature, the vibrancy of different life forms not isolated from understanding of almighty…I start to feel that absence. Also one tends to find similar type of people the foreign backpacker crowd is absent. There is also feeling of restriction as one gets circumspect, that relative carefree of Pushkar is absent. Ajmer too is not isolated from commercial influence (I found some even selling mannat ka dhaga).

So if you go to Pushkar don’t miss Ajmer, vice versa true. And that is what I have been doing and believe me it’s an immensely satisfying journey. I guess in the end it’s about silence. It’s about awareness of silence in the music. I have nothing against religion but I prefer more silence, the nature. Sometimes a garden, a long walk in the woods can give you peace, understanding and awareness of what is referred to as almighty.

Post Script: in recent times cameras are not allowed inside these places of worship. I took photos from outside that I will put in photo blog in few days (I have been too much into my computer-reading many downloads and so on…so kind of tired, bear with me).