holy bathing ghats Review

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holy bathing ghats

Fodor's Review:

During auspicious pilgrimage times, tens of thousands of people swarm the holy bathing ghats (flights of steps) on Pushkar Lake and get blessings from local Brahmins. Make sure you spend some time at these ghats. Many of the marble ghats were constructed for pilgrims by royal families who wanted to ensure power and prosperity in their kingdoms throughout Rajasthan by appeasing the gods. Even the British Raj built a ghat for Queen Elizabeth. When you pass an entrance to a ghat, be prepared for a priest to solicit you—he'll want you to receive a blessing, the "Pushkar Passport." He'll lead you to the water's edge, say a prayer, and will ask you to recite a blessing in Sanskrit (you'll repeat after him). Then he'll paste a tilak (rice and colored powder dot) on your forehead and tie a raki (a string bracelet, denoting a blessing) to your wrist. After the ceremony, you're expected to give a donation: don't give much more than Rs. 100.

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