Just completed a wonderful meal at the restaurant of our hotel. It’s the the Hotel New- Park and it is only a kilometre walk to the ghats and main market of Pushkar.
Pushkar is in the top four of the devotee list of most holy Hindu cities or places in India. Hinduism is interesting as a religion as it is so confined to the land of India. It’s heroes, stories, sages, sacred writings ( Vedas and Upanishads) and holy places, mean it is very difficult to be a fully participating Hindu away from mother India. Hinduism is in the very substance of what it means to be Indian for a Hindu. I’m sure the millions of Muslims who still call India their home may disagree but I cannot see how they can deny that Islam is an international faith; It is at home anywhere. Pushkar has a large square lake at its heart, around which are some fourteen ghats, where acolytes can make offerings, seek blessings and beseech the gods for favours. They can perform ritual bathing or simply sit on the steps lost in meditation in this peaceful place. Outside the ghats, there is a busy, noisy market selling all the normal tourist tat. I don’t see Indians wearing many of the clothes, the loose patterned cotton pants, the coarse vegetable dye shirts or wearing dreadlocks as worn by many of the Caucasians. It is a time warp, where the 1960s persists for some tourists and spiritual seekers; hippy culture and beliefs warping into today’s india transmuted into a model of business. Very few Indians I have met, are willing to sacrifice family and or career to lead the holy life of renunciation and prayer. Most Indians worship their favourite deities such as Shiva, Ganesh, Lakshmi, Rana on a rotating basis over the week. There are thousands of gods to choose from. There are many festivals to celebrate different gods. Now, there are many Shiva festivals in India, typically they are loud noisy affairs, with drums, music, singing and colourfully wrapped elephants; lots of people having fun. 
There are temples in each home, any business, and off the streets. There are religious paintings on the walls or on windows, of architraves. Hinduism is alive and well but it is changing; the rising independence and aspirations of young women. This causes angst in parents who themselves were in arranged marriages and have trouble understanding these changes in their daughters. The increasing flexibility of opportunities despite caste. Previously untouchables ( Harijans or Dalits) could never get a desirable government job but now are allotted into reserved positions just for them. This social evolution in India causes strain in Indian society, but most Indians have the good grace to accept these changes are for the best. 
On the way here this morning, another vehicle swiped the back of the vehicle taking us from Ajmer to Pushkar. What a fuss! He was clearly in the wrong, several witnesses saw it happen, but in India, no one ever accepts they were wrong. The solution in all cases, is that costs get split fifty fifty and everyone moves on. At the edge of Pushkar is a road block where every driver is asked about alcohol in the car. It is a long established tradition in Pushkar that neither meat nor alcohol are permitted to be brought in or consumed in the city. 
Pushkar is surrounded by steep hills, that create an early sunset as sunlight is occluded by these same hills. There are temples built high up on some of these hills with fine views for the hiker or gondola passenger. 700 steps up, which is a bit much on a warm day! We will avail ourselves of the gondola tomorrow.

The lake is very beautiful, but it is surrounded by steps or buildings on all its shore. It is no match for the much vaster Lake Pichola with its tree lined fringes. But the beauty of this lake is in its spiritual significance;in particular, Ghandi’s ashes are somewhere in this lake.
 Even in the late afternoon when we visited, there are are people at the lake, they are nearly all well dressed Indians, clean suits or jeans for the men and modern saris for the women. They are sitting, some are talking, a few are doing a brief prayer hands pressed together and bowed forwards, or just gazing over this very special place. Some just have their feet in the water as if not certain how committed they want to be. The only Hindu holy men were scam artists who want to bless a tourist for money. I’m sure that there are truly holy men and women who visit, just not when we were there today.