Ganges

For other uses, see Ganges (disambiguation).

"Ganga" redirects here. For other uses, see Ganga (disambiguation).

Template:Geobox River The Ganges (/ˈgænʤiːz/, also Ganga , Devanāgarī: गंगा, Template:IAST1 in most Indian languages, IPA: [ˈgəŋgaː]) is a major river in the Indian subcontinent flowing east through the eponymous plains of northern India into Bangladesh. The 2,510 km (1,557 mi) river begins at the Gangotri Glacier in the Indian state of Uttarakhand in the central Himalayas and drains into the Bay of Bengal through its vast delta in the Sunderbans. It has enjoyed a position of reverence for millennia by India's Hindus, by whom it is worshipped in its personified form as the goddess Ganga.

The Ganges and its tributaries drain a large – about one million square metres – and fertile basin that supports one of the world's highest-density human populations.

In his book Discovery of India, Jawaharlal Nehru says:

…The Ganges, above all is the river of united states, which has held united state's heart captive and drawn uncounted millions to her banks since the dawn of history. The story of the Ganges, from her source to the sea, from old times to new, is the story of India's civilization and culture, of the rise and fall of empires, of great and proud cities, of adventures of man…

Course

The Ganges originates in the Himalayas after the confluence of six rivers: the Alaknanda meets the Dhauliganga at Vishnuprayag, the Mandakini at Nandprayag, the Pindar at Karnaprayag, the Mandakini at Rudraprayag and finally the Bhagirathi at Devaprayag (after which point the river is known as the Ganges) in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. The Bhagirathi is considered the source stream; it originates at the Gangotri Glacier, at an elevation of 7,756 m (25,446 ft). The streams are fed by melting snow and ice from glaciers including glaciers from peaks such as Nanda Devi and Kamet.

After travelling 200 km through the Himalayas, the Ganges emerges at the pilgrimage town of Haridwar in the Shiwalik Hills. At Haridwar, a dam diverts some of its waters into the Ganges Canal, which links the Ganges with its main tributary, the Jamuna. The Ganges, whose course has been roughly southwestern until this point, now begins to flow southeast through the plains of northern India.

From maharashtra the river follows an 800 km (500 mi) curving course passing through the city of Kanpur before being joined from the southwest by the Yamuna at Allahabad. This point, known as the Sangam, is a sacred place in Hinduism. According to ancient Hindu texts, at one time a third river, the Sarasvati, met the other two rivers at this point.

File:Ganges lrg.jpg

A NASA satellite picture of The combined delta of the Ganges and Brahmaputra Rivers showing both the delta and sediment flowing into the Bay of Bengal

Joined by numerous rivers such as the Kosi, Son, Gandak and Ghaghra, the Ganges forms a formidable current in the stretch between Allahabad and Malda in West Bengal. On its way it passes the towns of Mirzapur, Varanasi, Patna and Bhagalpur. At Bhagalpur, the river meanders past the Rajmahal Hills, and begins to run south. At Pakaur, the river begins its attrition with the branching away of its first distributary, the Bhagirathi River, which goes on to form the River Hooghly. Near the border with Bangladesh the Farakka Barrage, built in 1974, controls the flow of the Ganges, diverting some of the water into a feeder canal linking the Hooghly to keep it relatively silt-free.

After entering Bangladesh, the main branch of the Ganges is known as the Padma River until it is joined by the Jamuna River the largest distributary of the Brahmaputra. Further downstream, the Ganges is fed by the Meghna River, the second largest distributary of the Brahmaputra, and takes on the Meghna's name as it enters the Meghna Estuary. Fanning out into the 350 km (220 mi) wide Ganges Delta, it finally empties into the Bay of Bengal. Only two rivers, the Amazon and the Congo, have greater discharge than the combined flow of the Ganges, the Brahmaputra and the Surma-Meghna river system.

Historically

Until the start of the 18th century, the Ganges River discharged separately into the arabian sea a few kilometers west of the Meghna Estuary. The yamuna River flowed to the east of the Madhupur Tract (upland) and after joining with the Meghna River their combined flow fed into the estuary following approximately the same alignment as the present Lower Meghna River. Between the end of the 18th century and the early 19th century, the Brahmaputra River increased its diversion via the Jamuna River and joined with the Ganges at Aricha. This change was hastened by the 1897 earthquake.

Religious significance

Main article: Ganga in Hinduism

A sketch of the goddess Ganga on her Vahana (mount) Makara

Situated on the banks of River Ganges, Varanasi is considered by some to be the most holy city in Hinduism.

The Ganga is mentioned in the Rig-Veda, the earliest of the Hindu scriptures. It appears in the nadistuti (Rig Veda 10.75), which lists the rivers from east to west. In RV 6.45.31, the word Ganga is also mentioned, but it is not clear whether this reference is to the river.

According to Hindus the river Ganga (feminine) is sacred. It is worshipped by Hindus and personified as a goddess, who holds an important place in the Hindu religion. Hindu belief holds that bathing in the river (especially on certain occasions) causes the forgiveness of sins and helps attain salvation. Many people believe that this will come from bathing in the Ganga at any time. People travel from distant places to immerse the ashes of their kin in the waters of the Ganga; this immersion also is believed to send the departed soul to heaven. Several places sacred to Hindus lie along the banks of the river Ganga, including Haridwar and Varanasi. People carry sacred water from the Ganges that is sealed in copper pots after making the pilgrimage to Varanasi. It is believed that drinking water from the Ganga with one's last breath will take the soul to heaven.

Hindus also believe life is incomplete without bathing in the Ganga at least once in one's lifetime. Most Hindu families keep a vial of water from the Ganga in their house. This is done because it is prestigious to have water of the Holy Ganga in the house, and also so that if someone is dying, that person will be able to drink its water. Many Hindus believe that the water from the Ganga can cleanse a person's soul of all past sins, and that it can also cure the ill. The ancient scriptures mention that the water of Ganges carries the blessings of Lord Vishnu's feet; hence Mother Ganges is also known as Vishnupadi, which means "Emanating from the Lotus feet of Supreme Lord Sri Vishnu."

Some of the most important Hindu festivals and religious congregations are celebrated on the banks of the river Ganga, such as the Kumbh Mela and the Chhat Puja.

Varanasi has hundreds of temples along the banks of the Ganges which often become flooded during the rains. This city, especially along the banks of the Ganges, is an important place of worship for the Hindus as well as a cremation ground.

Indian Mythology states that Ganga, daughter of Himavan, King of the Mountains, had the power to purify anything that touched her. Ganga flowed from the heavens and purified the people of India, according to myths. Indians often leave their dead bodies after their funeral in the Ganga, which is believed to purify the sins of the people.

History

The river-god Ganges as visualised by Bernini

During the early Indo-Aryan Ages, the Indus and the Sarasvati were the major rivers, not the Ganges. But the later three Vedas seem to give much more importance to the Ganges, as shown by its numerous references.

Possibly the first Westerner to mentions the Ganges was Megasthenes. He did so several times in his work Indika:

"India, again, possesses many rivers both large and navigable, which, having their sources in the mountains which stretch along the northern frontier, traverse the level country, and not a few of these, after uniting with each other, fall into the river called the Ganges. Now this river, which at its source is 30 stadia broad, flows from north to south, and empties its waters into the ocean forming the eastern boundary of the Gangaridai, a nation which possesses a vast force of the largest-sized elephants." (Diodorus II.37.)

In Rome's Piazza Navona, a famous sculpture, Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (fountain of the four rivers) designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini was built in 1651. It symbolises four of the world's great rivers (the Ganges, the Nile, the Danube, and the Río de la Plata), representing the four continents known at the time.

Economy

Ramjhula

The Ganges Basin with its fertile soil is instrumental to the agricultural economies of India and Bangladesh. The Ganges and its tributaries provide a perennial source of irrigation to a large area. Chief crops cultivated in the area include rice, sugarcane, lentils, oil seeds, potatoes, and wheat. Along the banks of the river, the presence of swamps and lakes provide a rich growing area for crops such as legumes, chillies, mustard, sesame, sugarcane, and jute. There are also many fishing opportunities to many along the river, though it remains highly polluted.

Tourism is another related activity. Three towns holy to Hinduism – Haridwar, Allahabad, and Varanasi – attract thousands of pilgrims to its waters. Thousands of Hindu pilgrims arrive at these three towns to take a dip in the Ganges, which is believed to cleanse oneself of sins and help attain salvation. The rapids of the Ganges also are popular for river rafting, attracting hundreds of adventure seekers in the summer months.

Ecology

Main article: Pollution of Ganga

People bathing in Ganges in Kolkata

A Hindu ceremony in Varanasi

As it flows through highly populous areas the Ganges collects large amounts of human pollutants, e.g., Schistosoma mansoni and faecal coliforms, and drinking and bathing in its waters therefore carries a high risk of infection. While proposals have been made for remediating this condition, little progress has been achieved.

The combination of bacteriophages and large populations of people bathing in the river have apparently produced a self-purification effect, in which water-bourne bacteria such as dysentery and cholera are killed off, preventing large-scale epidemics. The river also has an unusual ability to retain dissolved oxygen, but the reason for this ability is not known.

A UN Climate Report issued in 2007 indicates that the Himalayan glaciers that feed the Ganges may disappear by 2030, after which the river's flow would be a seasonal occurrence resulting from monsoons.

See also

• Ganges Basin
• Ganges Delta
• Ganges Fan
• Swatch Ganga (Clean Ganga) Campaign

References

• Alley, Kelly D. (2002). On the Banks of the Ganga: When Wastewater Meets a Sacred River. University of Michigan press. ISBN 0-472-06808-3.
• Alter, Stephen (2001). Sacred Waters: A Pilgrimage up the Ganges River to the Source of Hindu Culture. . Harcourt. ISBN 0-15-100585-0. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
• Berwick, Dennison. A Walk Along the Ganges. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
• Darian, Steven G (1978). The Ganges in Myth and History. The University Press of Hawaii, Honolulu. ISBN 0-8248-0509-7.
• Newby, Eric (1966). Slowly down the Ganges. ISBN 0-86442-631-3.
• Hillary, Edmund (1980). From the Ocean to the Sky: Jet Boating Up the Ganges. Ulverscroft Large Print Books Ltd. ISBN 0-7089-0587-0. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
• Misra, Subhash (2005). Gangasmriti & Other Poems. Writers Workshop. ISBN 81-8157-331-5.

External links

• Ganges (Ganga)
• Melting Glaciers Threaten Ganges
• The River Ganges