Rajasthan Quiz: Fairs and Festivals of Rajasthan

The Pushkar fair is held at Pushkar in Ajmer district on the full moon of the month of Kartik, beside the Pushkar lake and the Brahma temple, and it is both a bathing fair and the state's most famous camel and cattle market.

The Baneshwar fair is held in Magh at the Baneshwar temple in Dungarpur district, where the Som meets the Mahi, and because the Bhils of the region gather there in very large numbers it is called the Kumbh of the tribals; it combines the worship of Shiva with the Vaishnav…

The shrine of Baba Ramdev is at Ramdevra, also called Runicha, in the Pokhran tehsil of Jaisalmer district, and the fair there is held in the month of Bhadrapad, drawing pilgrims of every community, since Ramdev is honoured as the saint of the oppressed.

Gogaji, worshipped across Rajasthan as the deity who protects against snakes, has his principal shrine at Gogamedi in Hanumangarh district, and the fair there is held in the month of Bhadrapad on Gogaji Navami.

The temple of Karni Mata at Deshnok, about thirty kilometres from Bikaner city, is famous for the rats that live in it and are regarded as sacred, and fairs are held there during the Navratras of Chaitra and of Ashwin.

Gangaur is the worship of Gauri, that is Parvati, with Ishar, that is Shiva, and the name itself joins Gan for Shiva with Gaur for Gauri.

The Elephant Festival is held at Jaipur around Holi, with decorated elephants in procession, and it is one of the tourism festivals promoted by the state.

The dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, the founder of the Chishti order in India, is at Ajmer, and the Urs held there in the Islamic month of Rajab is the largest Muslim gathering in Rajasthan, attended by pilgrims of many faiths.

The Mallinath cattle fair is held at Tilwara in Barmer district in the month of Chaitra, on the bank of the Luni, and it is the great horse fair of Rajasthan, where animals of the Malani breed are bought and sold; it is named after the folk hero Rao Mallinath.

The Desert Festival is held at Jaisalmer in the month of Magh, in the cool season, with camel races, turban tying competitions, folk music and dance in the sands near the Sam dunes, and it is among the best known tourism events of the state.