Pushkar Mela 2016

Fifty thousand camels in a dune town, ending in a bathe on Kartik Purnima.

Pushkar Mela takes place in the desert town of Pushkar near Ajmer, Rajasthan, joining a long-standing livestock trading gathering with a major Hindu pilgrimage on Kartik Purnima. Merchants and herders traditionally bring camels, horses and other animals for sale and exchange, while craftspeople and performers present Rajasthani music, clothing and skills. The fair changes over several days, and the livestock market does not always coincide with the busiest pilgrimage hours.

Pushkar's sacred geography centres on its lake and Brahma temple. A devotional legend tells that Brahma dropped a lotus, from which the sacred lake arose; other accounts connect the place with Brahma's sacrifice. These explain the town's spiritual identity in Hindu tradition but are not archaeological evidence for the lake's formation or the fair's exact founding year. Pilgrims pray and undertake ritual bathing at the lake's ghats on the full moon.

The fair's schedule varies by year and includes livestock events, cultural programmes and the culminating Kartik Purnima observance. The existing full-moon date identifies the religious high point only. Livestock trading and public event dates must come from local schedules. Responsible treatment of animals and safe, respectful use of the sacred ghats are essential.

The market half is what the photographs are of and the bathing half is what the date is for. Both are old, and the fair only makes sense as the two together.

Livestock trading, cultural performances, temple worship and Kartik Purnima bathing where safe.

Pushkar, Ajmer district, Rajasthan; market and pilgrimage span multiple days.