ALSphere Foundation
Folklores/ Purans narrate how Suryavanshi King Bhagiratha of the Ikshvaku dynasty brought the celestial Ganga to Earth to bestow nirvana to his ancestors from the curse by Sage Kapila. The legend goes that since pristine Ganga would tear asunder the Bhulok with her torrential pace and devastating impact, Lord Shiva let her descend on His matted hair/jatta, and let it flow through his fanned tresses gently down the Himalayan slopes. To temper her force, she was said to have been split into many tributaries that flow to reunite at strategic locations.
The river Ganga has two main headstreams-Bhagirathi and Alaknanda. The Bhagirathi (mythological source) rises in Gangotri glacier at Gomukh and Alaknanda (hydrological source) at Satopanth glacier in Uttrakhand. As Bhagirithi commences the journey major headstreams merge in, namely Alaknanda, Dhauliganga, Nandakini, Pindar, Mandakini and their confluence is revered as the sacred Panchprayag, in descending order of river convergence, Vishnuprayag, Nandaprayag, Karnaprayag, Rudraprayag and Devprayag.
Ganga, Vishnupadi is the most sacred river, the personification of the Goddess and Hindus believe that bathing in the river on auspicious occasions helps attain salvation and man can seek forgiveness of transgressions. This summer the Divine provided an opportunity to visit Uttrakhand, the revered place of Chota Chaar Dhaam: Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri.
NH 334 moves on the outskirts of the inhabitation, and as our car crossed Haridwar, we stopped to perform obeisance and offer oblations at Har Ki Pauri, the pious Ganga Ghaat. From the plains the journey commences to foothills i.e. Rishikesh, the Yoga capital and the place of adventure sports. After a little stroll across the Lakshman Jhula and a customary take away bottle of Gangajal, the holy water, we moved on NH 34 to NH 7 to NH 58.
The entire scenic route, rather the pilgrimage, is a journey akin to moving from the material to the eternal. Hills on one side and the holy river flowing on the other transcend one into the realms of spiritualism. A hairpin bend lead to one of the most majestic, mesmerising sight I have seen. Religion, mythology, geography: all take a back seat.
The holy rivers Bhagirathi and Alaknanda merge into one and take the name Ganga. The emerald green on the left and the earthen brown on the right, converge, flow side by side and merge into one. They have been flowing so since creation, time seemed to stand still. We moved on, across Bhagirathi, on the opposite side and descended down on foot to witness the confluence of faith and nature. It is believed that Lord Rama and his father King Dasharath performed penance here. We stood mesmerized for a long time; but alas the worldly pursuits of us mortals beckoned. Time to move on.
A few kilometres on, we visited the Dhari Devi Temple. The locals believe that one must seek permission from Her to commence the Chaar Dham Yatra.
“Goddess we seek your benign blessings. Do grant us the holy pilgrimage.”
Dr Suruchi Kalra Choudhary
