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The YamunaThe river Yamuna is a major river of northern India, with a total length of around 1370 km. It is the largest tributary of river Ganga or Ganges. Its source is Yamunotri, in the Himalayas of Uttaranchal. It flows through the states of Delhi, Haryana and U River – a major river in its own right, and nearly as sacred – is a tributary of the Ganga, and their confluence is near what is the site of the traditional holy Hindu city of PrayagPrayag is the ancient name for what is today the city of Allahabad in India. It has a position of importance in the Hindu religion and mythology as the confluence point of the rivers Ganga, Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati. Apart from that, the city was, now known as AllahabadAllahabad is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh It is located in the southern part of the state, at 25. 50' E, and stands at the confluence of the Ganga ( Ganges) and Yamuna rivers. The modern settlement was built on or the site of the ancient ho.
Two species of dolphinThis article is about the dolphin mammal. For other uses of the term, please see dolphin (disambiguation). See article below. Dolphins are certain aquatic mammals related to whales and porpoises. The word is used in a few different ways. It can mean: #any can be found in the Ganges, the Ganges River Dolphin and the Irrawaddy DolphinIrrawaddy Dolphin range The Irrawaddy Dolphin Orcaella brevirostris is a species of dolphin found near coasts and in estuaries in parts of south-east Asia. Taxonomy The Irrawaddy Dolphin was identified by Owen in 1866 and is the only species in its genus.. The Ganges is also notable in that it contains a rare species of freshwater sharkThe river shark is one of 6 rare species of the genus Glyphis. The river sharks are members of the family Carcharhinidae, and thus share the basic characteristics of the group. Features of Glyphis spp. General characteristics In general, all river sharks, Glyphis gangeticus about which little is known.
People drinking water from the river during a Hindu ceremony in Varanasi. The Ganga is personified in Hinduism as a goddess: Ma (Mother) Ganga, mother of Karttikeya by Agni.
Several places sacred to Hindus lie along the banks of the river Ganga, including Haridwar and Varanasi. It is believed that dipping in the Ganga will wash away one's sins, and that having one's ashes disposed of in the Ganga after death may improve one's next life or even allow Moksha to be attained sooner. Devout Hindus make pilgrimages to bathe in the Ganga and to meditate on its banks.
According to the mythological legend, Brahma collected the sweat of Vishnu's feet and created Ganga. Being touched by two members of the Trimurthi, Ganga became very holy.
Several years later, a king named Sagar magically acquired sixty thousand sons. One day, King Sagar performed a ritual of worship for the good of the Kingdom. One of the integral parts of the ritual was a horse, which was stolen by the jealous Indra. Sagar sent all his sons all over the earth to search for the horse. They found it in the Underworld next to a penitent sage. Believing that the sage had stolen the horse, they hurled insults at him and caused his penance to be disturbed. The sage opened his eyes for the first time in several years, and looked at the sons of Sagar. With this glance, all sixty thousand burnt to death.
The souls of the sons of Sagar wandered as ghosts since their final rites had not been performed. When Bhagiratha, one of the descendants of Sagar by a second wife, learnt of this fate, he vowed to bring Ganga down to Earth so that she could sweep away the ashes to heaven.
Bhagiratha prayed to Brahma that Ganga come down to Earth. Brahma agreed, and he ordered Ganga to come down to the earth and then on to the Underworld so that the souls of Bhagiratha's ancestors would be able to go to Heaven. The vain Ganga felt that this was insulting and decided to sweep the whole Earth away as she fell from the Heavens. Alarmed, Bhagiratha prayed to Shiva that he break up Ganga's descent.
Ganga arrogantly fell on Shiva's head. But Shiva calmly trapped her in his hair and let her out in small streams. The touch of Shiva further sanctified Ganga. As Ganga travelled to the Underworld, she created a different stream to remain on Earth to help purify unfortunate souls there.
Ganges is also the name of a commune in the Hérault département in France.