| Rewalsar Lake (Tso Pema) | |
|---|---|
 Rewalsar lake | |
  Rewalsar Lake (Tso Pema)  Rewalsar Lake (Tso Pema) | |
| Location | Mandi district,Himachal Pradesh, India |
| Coordinates | 31°38′02″N76°50′00″E / 31.63389°N 76.83333°E /31.63389; 76.83333 |
| Type | Mid altitude lake |
| Basin countries | India |
| Surface area | 160 square kilometres (62 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 10–20 metres (33–66 ft) |
| Max. depth | 25 metres (82 ft) |
| Shore length1 | 735 m (2,411 ft) |
| Surface elevation | 1,360 m (4,460 ft) |
| Settlements | Rewalsar |
| References | Himachal Pradesh Tourism Dept. |
| 1 Shore length isnot a well-defined measure. | |
Rewalsar Lake, also known asTso Pema, is a mid-altitude lake located in the mountains of theMandi district inHimachal Pradesh,India. It is located 22.5 km south-west from the town ofMandi, at an elevation of about 1,360 metres (4,460 ft) above sea level, with a shoreline of about 735 m. Rewalsar Lake is a sacred spot forHindus,Sikhs andBuddhists,[1][2] and sacred toTibetan Buddhists for theVajrayana practices ofPadmasambhava andMandarava, which are credited for the lake's creation.
There is a Colossus ofPadmasambhava, a shrine toMandarava, and threeBuddhist monasteries at Rewalsar Lake. The Rewaksar Lake also has threeHindu temples, dedicated to LordKrishna, LordShiva and to the sageLomasha. Anotherholy lake,Kunt Bhyog, which is about 1,750 metres (5,740 ft) above sea level, lies aboveRewalsar.[3] It is associated with the escape of 'Pandavas' from the burning palace of wax—an episode from the epicMahabharata.
After practicing with the local Relwasar king's daughter Mandarava, Padmasambhava and Mandarava departed forNepal, from which Padmasambhava travelled toTibet. Known to Tibetans asGuru Rinpoche, (the "Precious Master"), Padmasambhava revealed the teachings ofVajrayana Buddhism in Tibet. There are islands of floating reed on Rewalsar lake and the spirit of Padmasambhava is said to reside in them. It is also here that the sage Lomas did penance in devotion to Lord Shiva; and, the SikhGuru Gobind Singh (22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), the tenth Guru of Sikhism, also resided here for one month.
The Sisu fair held in late February/early march, and the festival of Baisakhi are important events at Rewalsar.
Mandarava andPadmasambhava were energetically drawn to one another. The local king Vihardhara, fearful of the contamination of the royal bloodline and what he perceived as Mandarava'sapostasy, endeavoured to have Mandarava and Padmasambhava purified byimmolation through the flames of apyre. Instead of finding their corpses incensed and charred, Vihardhara finds that the fire of the pyre has been transformed into Lake Rewalsar, out of which arises a bloominglotus that supports the unharmed Mandarava and Padmasambhava who through this manifestation of their realisation have achieved their secret names ofVajravarahi andHayagriva, respectively, after which Vihardhara furnishes the union with his unreservedblessings.
Legend has it that the great teacher Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) used his enormous power to take flight to Tibet from Rewalsar. In Rewalsar, his spirit is said to reside in the tiny island of floating reed that drifts over the water.
On April 1, 2012, a monumental statue ofPadmasambhava, measuring 37.5 m (123 ft), was consecrated, blessed and inaugurated by the14th Dalai Lama. The building project was spear-headed and overseen byWangdor Rinpoche and funded by donations. It took nearly 10 years to complete, with the foundation alone taking three years.[4]
The statue was constructed almost entirely by hand by tradespeople from the immediate Rewalsar area and by master artists from Nepal and Bhutan. It is made primarily of cement, layered by hand over a skeleton of iron rebar, while the walls are made of hand-cut stone. Bhutanese sculptors carved intricate details into the cement while still wet. It was then painted by masters from Nepal, who finished the delicate details by hand. The building's interior is filled with traditional dzong, tsa tsas,prayer flags and medicine pills made by local craftworkers.[4][5]
| Low-altitude lakes | |
|---|---|
| Mid-altitude lakes | |
| High-altitude lakes | |
| Reservoirs | |
| Related topics | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
