Lake Manasarovar

Manasarovar at sunrise

Lake Manasarovar is a fresh-water lake in Tibet 

Autonomous Region of China 2,000 kilometres 

Manasarovar & Kailash

(1,200 mi)from Lhasa. To the west of Lake Manasa Sarovar is Lake Rakshastal and towards the north is KangrinboqêPeak. It is the highest body of freshwater in the world.Lake Manasarovar lies at 4,556 m (14947.5 ft) above mean sea level, making it the highest fresh-water lake in the world. It is relatively round in shape with a circumference of 88 kilometres (55 mi). Its depth is 90 m (300 ft) and its surface area is 320 square kilometres (120 sq mi). The lake freezes in winter and melts only in the spring. It is connected to nearby Lake Rakshastal by the natural Ganga Chhu channel. Manasarovar is the source of the Sutlej River which is the easternmost large tributary of the Indus. Nearby are the sources of the Brahmaputra River, the Indus River, and the Karnali River (Ghaghara) which is an important tributary of the Ganges River, so this region is the hydrographic nexus of the Himalaya. As per Hindu theology, Lake Manasa Sarovar is a personification of purity, and one who drinks water from the lake will go to the Abode of Lord Shiva after death. He is believed to be cleansed of all his sins committed over even a hundred lifetimes.

Like Mount Kailash, Lake Manasa Sarovar is a place

of pilgrimage, attracting religious people from India, 

Nepal, Tibet and the neighboring countries. Bathing 

in the Manasa Sarovar and drinking its water is

believed to cleanse all sins. Pilgrimage tours are 

organized regularly, especially from India, the most

famous of which is the Kailash Manasa Sarovar

Yatra which takes place every year. Pilgrims come to take ceremonial baths in the cleansing waters of the lake.Manasa Sarovar lake has long been viewed by

the pilgrims as the source of four of the greatest rivers

ofAsia namely Brahmaputra, Karnali, Indus and 

Sutlej. So it is an axial point which has been 

thronged by pilgrimsfor thousands of years.

According to Hindu religion, the lake was first

created in the mind of the Lord Brahma after which

it manifested on Earth.Hence, in Sanskrit it is called 

"Manas sarovara", which is a combination of the 

Manasarovar at noon

words manas (mind) and sarovara (lake). The lake

in Hindu religious belief, is also supposed to be the 

summer abode of swans. Considered as sacred birds, the swans (Sanskrit: Hansa) are an  important element in the symbology of the Subcontinent, representing wisdom and beauty.

Manasarovar Satellite picture