Renuka lake is in the

Sirmaur district Sirmaur is the southernmost district of Himachal Pradesh, northern India. It is largely mountainous and rural, with 90% of its population living in villages. Some of its towns include the capital Nahan, Tuheri, Bhawan, Shamra, UchaTik ...

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and it is 672 m above the sea level. It is the largest

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

in Himachal Pradesh, with a circumference of about 3214 m. This lake was named after the goddess

Renuka Renuka, also known as Yellamma, is a Hindu goddess worshipped predominantly in the South Indian states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and western state of Maharashtra. She is also known as the mother of Parashurama ...

and is designated as

Ramsar site A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O) *** Permanent 8 ha (P) *** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts) **

Parwanoo Parwanoo or Parwanu is a municipal council in Solan district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is an industrial town. It has himachal's biggest wholesale market. It borders Panchkula district of Haryana, and is after the towns of Pinjor ...

: 123 km. *Distance from

Paonta Sahib Paonta Sahib is an industrial town of Himachal Pradesh in India. It is located in the south of Sirmaur district, on National Highway 72 ( New NH 7). Paonta Sahib is an important place of worship for Sikhs, hosting a large Gurdwara named Gurudw ...

: via Sataun 51 km *Distance from

Nahan Nahan is a town in Himachal Pradesh in India and is the headquarters of the Sirmaur District It was the capital of the former Sirmur princely state.Nahan is also known as the Town of ponds. Geography Nahan is located at . It has a ...

: 38 km.himachaltourism.gov.in
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History of Renuka Fair

On the eve of

Prabodhini Ekadashi Prabodhini Ekadashi (), also known as Deva Uttana Ekadashi (), is the 11th lunar day ( ''ekadashi'') in the bright fortnight (Shukla Paksha) of the Hindu month of Kartika. It marks the end of the four-month period of Chaturmasya, when the god V ...

, the Five day long International level Shri Renuka Ji fair begins with the arrival of son Lord Parshuram at Shri Renuka Ji the Lake in

Himachal Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...

, the home of his divine mother Shri Renuka Ji. During five day fair several lakhs of devotees from all over the country arrives here to witness the holy occasion of divine meeting of Lord Parshum &his mother Renuka Ji . According to

Puranas Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...

, the Renuka Tirth is considered as birthplace of

Lord Parshuram Parashurama (), also referred to as Rama Jamadagnya, Rama Bhargava and Veerarama, is the sixth avatar among the Dashavatara of the preserver god Vishnu in Hinduism. He is believed to be one of the ''Chiranjeevis'' (Immortals), who will appea ...

, the sixth incarnation of Lord

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...

. Maharish Jamdagni and his wife Bhagwati Renuka Ji had meditated for long time at a hillock known as Tape Ka Tiba near Renuka lake. With the blessings of Lord Shiva, Lord Vishnu fulfilled divine promise and took birth as their son. Sixth incarnation of Lord Vishnu and son of Renuka Ji pleased Lord Shiva with the performance of Tapa igh intensity meditationgot a new name Parshuram after getting divine weapon Parshu from Lord Shiva. He has been referred every where in the Shashtras with the popular name Parshuram and not his childhood name Ram s per Brahmand Puran which he got from his parents. He always supported the cause of good governance where worries of every citizen are addressed judiciously by the rulers. To get people rid of atrocities of cruel rulers Lord Parshuram eliminated 21 times, cruel and atrocious rulers from the earth. He also killed King Sahastrabahu and his Army as King had attacked Tape ka Tiba Ashram in his absence, to get the

Kamdhenu Kamadhenu ( sa, कामधेनु, , ), also known as Surabhi (, or , ), is a divine bovine-goddess described in Hinduism as the mother of all cows. She is a miraculous cow of plenty who provides her owner whatever he desires and is often ...

cow from Maharishi. After Maharishi pleaded that the Kamdhenu Cow was given him by Lord Indra in trust and he can not breach the trust by passing it to someone else. Shastrabahu killed Maharishi Jamdagni. Lord Parshurams mother Bhagwati Renuka Ji jumped in the Ram Sarovar and took Jal Samadhi. Purans narrates that Ram Sarovar immediately took the shape of a lady and since then it is known as Renuka Ji Lake. After eliminating Sahashtrabahu in fierce battle he gave a new life to his father with his divine powers and came on the bank of the Lake and prayed his mother to come out of the Lake. Mother responded to his prayers and lord vowed in her feet. She said that she will permanently live in the Lake, but on the request of Lord Parshuram she promised that she will come out of the Lake on the occasion of Devprabodhini Ekadashi every year to meet her son. Bhagwati also promised that people gracing this pious occasion of mothers affection and sons devotion, would be showered with divine blessings . One day advance, on Dashmi the palanquin of Lord Parshuram is brought to Renuka Ji from the ancient temple in Jamu Koti village in traditional procession known a ‘Shobha Yatra’, attended by lakhs of devotees. Saints from every part of country come to Renuka Ji to witness holy and divine assembly of mother and son.

Sanctuary

The sanctuary is situated in Sirmour district in

. The sanctuary is well connected by the network of motorable roads. The total area of the sanctuary is about 4.028 km². The entire sanctuary consists of Renuka Reserve Forest and has been declared as Abhayaranya. An area of roughly about 3 km² that lies outside the sanctuary has been declared as a buffer belt. The sanctuary falls in the biogeographical zone IV and biogeographical province IV as per the classification done by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII). According to forest types classification, the area falls under group 5B/C2, i.e., dry mixed

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

forest and group 5/051, i.e., dry sal forest.

Threats

The lake is threatened by continuously shrinking size. The silt which is being deposited in the lake is causing a worry to the locals and the administration. The main cause of this is the soil being deposited on the banks, with the rain water and landslides in the nearby mountains. Also the waste of construction material is being dumped into the lake for years, which is a big threat to the environment. Administration and Renuka Vikas Smiti are trying their best to protect the lake. Plastic bags are banned in the entire region.

Gallery

File:Renuka Lake, Himachal.jpg, Lotus flowers in Renuka Lake, Himachal Pradesh File:Renuka Lake , Himachal Pradesh,India.JPG, Renuka Lake, Himachal Pradesh File:Renuka lake.JPG, Renuka lake,district Sirmaur Himachal Pradesh File:Renuka ji temple, Himachal Pradesh.JPG, Renuka ji temple, Himachal Pradesh File:Renuka Lake, Himachal Pradesh.JPG, Renuka Lake,district Sirmaur, Himachal Pradesh File:Renuka Temple in Renuka Lake.JPG, Renuka Temple, district Sirmaur Himachal Pradesh File:Pershuram Temple, Himachal Pardesh.JPG, Renuka Temple Himachal Pardesh File:Pershuram Temple,Renuka Lake,Himachal Pardesh, India.JPG, Renuka Temple, Renuka Lake, Himachal Pradesh File:Pershuram Talab , Renuka lake.JPG, Pershuram Sarovar, Renuka lake File:Renuka Lake.jpg, Renuka lake,district Sirmaur Himachal Pradesh

References

Citations

External links

himachaltourism.nic.in

hptdc.gov.in
* http://www.ramsar.org/renuka-wetland {{Ramsar sites in India Lakes of Himachal Pradesh Geography of Sirmaur district Ramsar sites in India Renuka