Jagatpita Brahma Temple
One of very few temples in India dedicated to Brahma, and the most prominent — marble and stone under a red spire, beside the lake it is bound to.
The god almost nobody builds for
Brahma is one of the principal gods of Hinduism and one of the least often given a temple. Pushkar holds one of the very few in India dedicated to him, and the most prominent of those. The present structure dates to the fourteenth century with later partial rebuilding, and tradition holds that the eighth-century philosopher Adi Shankara renovated an earlier temple on the site — an attribution carried by legend rather than by dated record. The building is marble and stone slabs under a red spire about seventy feet high, marked with the hamsa, the goose that is Brahma's mount. It stands beside Pushkar Lake, to which its origin story is tied.
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What there is to see
A compact temple whose significance is out of proportion to its size.
🔺 The red spire
- A shikhara of roughly seventy feet, red, and the landmark of the temple from the town
🦢 The hamsa
- Brahma's goose appears as the temple's emblem through the fabric of the building
🛕 The sanctum
- Brahma is enshrined with his consort Gayatri
- Only sanyasis — ascetics — enter the inner sanctum; householders make offerings from the outer hall through the priests
🌊 The lake below
- The temple and Pushkar Lake are a single religious complex in practice; pilgrims bathe before visiting
Getting there
In the town, a short walk from the ghats.
🚶 On foot
- Pushkar is small and the temple is reached on foot from the lake and the bazaar
🧭 Position
- Pushkar is in Ajmer district, Rajasthan, set around its lake
When to go
A pilgrimage town with one overwhelming date in its calendar.
🌕 Kartik Purnima
- The full moon of Kartik, in October or November, brings thousands to bathe in the lake
- The camel fair takes place nearby at the same season — the town is at its fullest and its most crowded
📅 Otherwise
- The cooler months for ordinary visits; Rajasthan summer is punishing here as elsewhere
Before you go
An active and strictly observed temple.
🙏 Etiquette
- Footwear is removed; dress as for a place of worship
- The sanctum restriction is observed and is not a formality — offerings go through the priests
🕯️ Around the lake
- The ghats have their own customs and their own expectations of visitors
Close by
The lake the temple belongs to, and the town around it.
Frequently asked
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