Manesar Lake – Jammu and Kashmir
Mansar Lake is at a distance of 62 km from the beautiful valley of Jammu. It is surrounded by dense green hills and is a popular tourist destination in India. Mansar Lake is a holy site which shares its traditional values with the sacred Manasarovar Lake. There are two ancient temples near Mansar Lake, known by the name of Umapati Mahadev & Narasimha, the temple of Goddess Durga.
The history of mansar and surinsar goes back to the time of Mahabhartata. Babar Vahan, son of Arjun and Ulpi (daughter of king Nag), was ruling this area during Mahabhartata. After the war of the mahabhartata arjun performed “Ashwamegh Yagya” to prove his supriority over the land. The horse (used as sign of power for Ashwamegh Yagya) was captured by Babar Vahan at village ‘khoon’ nearby village Ramkot on dhar Udhampur road where Arjun was killed by babar vahan. With joy of victory, babar vahan presented the head of Arjun to his mother Ulpi.
She told him that he has killed his father. To make arjun alive again, mani from sheshnag was required. Hence babar vahan made a surang through his arrow and formed surangsar which is now named as surinsar. After defeating sheshnag and capturing mani, babar vahan came out at manisar later on known as mansar.
Mansar can be reached from Jammu on the National Highway while traveling from Jammu to bordering state of Punjab. You can also reach from Udhampur (A District Headquarters, Udhampur is a town approximately 60 Kilometers away from Jammu on the National Highway while traveling from Jammu to Srinagar) on National Highway 1A.
This Mansar lake road joins to another important road that directly links Pathankot (Punjab) to Udhampur (Jammu & Kashmir, Jammu Province. Udhampur is a Town of strategic importance, again on National Highway No. 1A. The shortcut road from Mansar or Samba to Udhampur by-passes the Jammu town. Surinsar Lake, a smaller lake that is linked to Mansar, is 24 km from Jammu (via a bypass road).
Mansar is a holy site as well, sharing the legend and sanctity of Lake Mansarovar. There are ancient temples on the lake side, which are often visited by devotees in large numbers. Some Hindus from the region perform Mundan (First hair cut) ceremony of the male baby here.
Apart from its religious importance and heritage, the Mansar Lake is also picking up as a great tourist spot for all its scenic beauty, flora & fauna. The lake has proper walk way all around with required illumination, with projected view decks to enjoy flickering of seasonal birds, tortoise and fishes of different species. There is a wild life Sanctuary housing jungle life like Spotted Deer, Neelgai etc. besides other water birds such as Cranes, Ducks etc.
Being a hub of spirituality and sanctity, many devotees, especially newlyweds and babies, make their way to Mansar Jheel. It is considered auspicious to perform circumambulations (Parikrama) around this place. The ritual is performed to receive blessings from the Snake God called the Holy Sheshnag. Mansar Lake is well-connected via road. It is at a distance of 10 km from National Highway No. 1A. It is also famous for its rich flora and fauna. Mansar provides facilities for boating with all the necessary safety measures.
Mansar Lake is no ordinary lake but a blessed site where the gods live. It is believed that the sanctity of this lake is equivalent to that of Mansarovar Lake of Tibet because its water has the power to absolve a person of his or her sins. The location of this lake is in the middle of a dense forest, hills and small gardens. Although the lake is believed to be more than a mile long and half a mile wide, legend has it that there is no such end to the dimensions of this mystical lake.
There are two old shrines located at the site of Mansar Lake – Umapati Mahadev and Narasimha Temple as well a temple of Durga Devi. There is also an interested shrine of Sheshna, the first serpent born on earth, who is believed to support the globe with his hood since the ancient times. In fact, many newlyweds visit the lake shrine of Sheshnag to obtain his blessings by circumambulating the lake.
