Holy Pilgrimage – Temples in Uttara Pradesh State -5 at 6:16 AM

Holy Pilgrimage – Temples in  Uttara Pradesh State

JK Temple, Kanpur

The JK Temple is a temple in the Indian city of Kanpur. Considered to be a unique blend of ancient and modern architecture, its mandapas have been constructed with high roof for adequate ventilation of light and air. The J. K. Trust has constructed this temple.

Location

Located in commercial and industrial city of Kanpur, it has many great significance. The Kanpur Airport located about 15 km from temple's campus center, Kanpur Anwarganj Railway Station which is 5 km from temple has trains to Lucknow, Allahabad, Delhi and Kolkata.

Shrines

The temple has five shrines dedicated to the

1.   Lord Radha and krishna

2.   Lord Lakshmi and narayan

3.   Lord Ardhanarishwar

4.   Lord Narmadeshwar

5.   Lord Hanuman

Importance

Beautifully constructed, J.K. temple is a boon to the devotees. Built by J.K. Trust this architectural delight is a unique blend of ancient architecture with the modern. The even-level roofs o the mandaps have been provided with adequate ventilation for sufficient light and air. Among the five shrines that the temple has the central one s consecrated to Shri Radhakrishna and the other are adorned with idols of Shri Laxminarayan, Shri. Ardhanarishwar, Shri Narmadeshwar and Shri Hanuman.There is park and beautiful lake near the temple which looks beautifully in Night when lights are on.

History

Built on 20 May 1960 and is celebrating its 50 years on 20 May 2010. It was made by the Sighania family.

Entrance

As the JK Temple is a very preserved modern architectural building, no fees is taken for entry and checking is done through Metal Detactor

 

Bhitargaon Temple, Kanpur

Bhitargaon is a town in Kanpur district, Uttar Pradesh, India, known for its ancient Hindu temple.

Bhitargaon Temple

The Bhitargaon Temple is a terraced brick building fronted with a terracotta panel. Built in the 6th century during the Gupta Empire, it is the oldest remaining Hindu shrine with a roof and a high Sikhara, though its upper chamber did sustain some damage in the 18th century.
The construction material is bricks and terracotta. The brick size is 18"*9"*3" and the other salient features are following:

• The size of platform on which the temple is built is 36 feet*47 feet.
• The santum is 15 feet * 15 feet internally.
• The santum is double story.
• The wall thickness is 8 feet.
• The total height from ground to top is 68.25 feet.
• There is no window.
• The terracotta sculpture depicts both secular and religious theme such as deities like ganesha adi virah mahisasaurmardani and river goddess. Myths and stories representing abduction of sita and the penance of nara and naryan.
• Shikara is a stepped pyramid and got damaged by thunder in 1894.
• The first story of sanctum felled in 1850.
• Vaulted arch is used here for the first time any where in India.

 

Allen Forest Zoo, Kanpur

Allen Forest Zoo (Hindi: कानपुर चिड़ियाघर / कानपुर प्राणी उद्यान, also called the Kanpur Zoo) is a 77-hectare (190-acre) zoo in Kanpur, the industrial hub of Uttar Pradesh in North India. It is the largest open green space in Kanpur. Originally a natural habitat for fauna, it is one of the few zoos in India which were created in a natural forest.
The Allen Forest Zoo is located about two kilometers from the city’s center.  In earlier colonial records it is mentioned as being close to Nawabganj, some distance away from Bithoor. Currently, the zoo is nearby the Azad nagar locality of Kanpur. The zoo is an oasis of green, a natural lake, and ancient trees, and encompasses the largest land area of any zoological garden in Asia. The zoo is open for visitors on all days from 9 to 4.30, barring Monday. Given the vast spread, private four-wheeler vehicles are also allowed inside the zoo on payment of extra charges. Plastic bags are strictly banned inside zoo, even water is provided via coolers and not bottles.

History

The Zoological Park in Kanpur, (Cawnpore, Manchester of Asia, in British colonial period) was the brainchild of one Botanist Sir Allen, a member of the British Indian Civil Service. Sir Allen wanted to open the zoo in a natural forest, but his plans were stuck in bureaucratic red-tape and did not materialize. When the zoo was opened in 1971 by the government of independent India, it was named after him.
Allen forest was developed during the British rule between the years 1913-1918 by Mr. George Burney Allen, a famous British industrialist of Kanpur on the banks of the river Ganga. The construction of the zoo was carried between 1971 to 1973.The 1st animal that came to the zoo was an Otter, which was caught by fisherman from the river Chambal. The enclosures for animals and birds were designed on the latest trends in the field of zoo building technology, well spread along the lake on either side of a semicircular arterial road of about 9 km. length.

 

Mammals at the zoo include White Asian tigers, Asiatic lions, cheetah, leopard, jaguar, hyena, black bear, grizzly bear, sloth bear, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, monkeys, langoor, baboons, Musk deer, deer, and antelope. Chimpanzees (one of them named Chhajju, around 26 years of age) and orangutans (named Mangal, aged ver 30 years) have their own island. Some monkeys and deer are allowed to roam outside the enclosures as natural inhabitants of the zoo.
Amphibians at the zoo include Indian gharial.
The Lion at the zoo died of an unknown disease during the month of November 2010. Talks are on to bring a new Lion from another zoo in exchange of an animal.
Recently ^, a new tigress has been brought in the zoo.

 

Attractions

Botanical garden

The zoo houses a botanical garden with a collection of some of the country’s rare species of plants that is dotted with sylvan lakes. The zoo grounds are also professionally maintained by forest conservationists, and it records large attendance from all age groups and communities in Kanpur. It is a popular destination for picnics, nature walks, and outdoor recreation, as well as teaching school students about natural habitats, environmental issues, and responsible eco-friendly living.

Lake

A rainwater lake is the centre of attraction at Allen Forest, and visitors can see hundreds of deer grazing in open savannah-like land without fear of any predator.

Aviary

 

The Aviary includes birds from all over the world, including Ostrich from Africa and Emu from Australia and New Zealand, parrots, crane, parakeets, various Indian birds as well as European fowl, and Latin American birds..

Night house

Night creatures are housed in a separate building. These include porcupines, toddy cat and others.

Aquarium

The zoo includes an aquarium.

Life Size Dinosaur Sculptures

There are life size sculptures of pre-historic dinosaurs.

 

Conservation

The zoo included a veterinary hospital that treats up to 1,400 animals at a time, including hyenas, jaguars, and elephants that are brought into the zoo, usually after bad encounters with humans.
Vehicles are allowed inside the zoo, but there is extra charge for this. Plastic water bottles and polythene bags are banned inside the park. Although photography is permitted, the zoo discourages visitors from feeding animals except in designated areas.

Sponsors

The zoo authorities encourage local Kanpur and Uttar Pradesh based industrialists to take interest in the development and preservation of the ecological heritage of the Kanpur Zoo and its potential for development as a rare natural habitat based zoo.

Bithoor Religeous Place, Kanpur

 

ithoor or Bithur is a small town in Kanpur District, 23.4 kilometres (14.5 mi) by road north of the centre of Kanpur city, in Uttar Pradesh, India. Bithoor is situated on the left bank of the Ganges, and is the centre of Hindu pilgrimage. According to Hindu Myth Bithur is the birthplace of Ram's sons Luv and Kush.

 

History

Bithoor has been closely associated with the Indian independence movement, especially the Indian Rebellion of 1857. It was at one time home to many of the rebellion's most prominent characters including the Rani of Jhansi, Lakshmi Bai. During the British Raj, Bithur used to be part of Cawnpore district (now Kanpur) in the United Provinces. The last of the Peshwas, Baji Rao II, was banished to Bithur; his adopted son, Nana Sahib, made the town his headquarters. Bithur was captured by General Havelock on July 19, 1857.  The town was laid waste by the British who razed Nana Sahib's palace and the temples in the town in retaliation for the brutal killing of over 500 British men, women and children who had been lured out of their defences at Cawnpore with a promise of truce during the Siege of Cawnpore

Notable landmarks

Valmiki Ashram

Some of the most significant moments of Hindu religion and mythology are said to be created here, as being the place of the forest-rendezvous of Sita after Lord Rama left her, the birthplace of Lav and Kush, the site where the Ramayana was written.

Brahmavart Ghat

This is the holiest of the holy ghats of Bithoor, where the disciples of Lord Brahma pray at the altar of the 'Wooden Slippers' after a ritual bath.

Patthar Ghat

The redstone ghat whose foundation stone was laid by the minister of Avadh, Tikait Rai, is a symbol of incomparable art and architecture. There is a massive Shiv temple where the Shivling is made of 'Kasaauti' stone.

Dhruva Teela

This is the fabled spot where the child Dhruv meditated single-mindedly on one leg. God was so pleased that he not only appeared but granted him a divine boon—to shine for all time to come as a star.
Apart from these, there are some other landmarks as well, such as the Ram Janki temple, Lav-Kush temple, Haridham Ashram, Jahangir Mosque and Nana Saheb Smarak.

 

Bird Sanctuary

Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary is a bird sanctuary on the Kanpur-Lucknow road in Uttar Pradesh, India consisting of a lake and the surrounding environs. The sanctuary provides protection for 250 species of migratory birds mostly from CIS (or formerly USSR) countries, but the numbers have been dwindling since the 1990s, most having relocated to newer areas in Himachal and Rajasthan. The sanctuary also houses a deer garden

 

Avians

The avian population here comprises a mix of residents as well as migratory birds. The birds migrate across Himalayas from Tibet, China, Europe and Siberia during winters. Some of these birds fly over 5000 km and above 8500 meters high to reach here. Some of the major migratory birds during the season are Greylag goose, pintail, cotton teal, red-crested pochard, Gadwall, shoveler, coot and mallard. Some major local migratory and residential birds are spotwill, Sarus crane, painted stork, peacock, white ibis, dabchick, whistling teal, open-bill stork, white-necked stork, pheasant-tailed jacana, bronze winged jacana, purple moorhen, lapwing, tern vulture, pigeon, king crow, Indian roller and bee eater.

 

Deer Park

A small park for deer has been established in the vicinity of the sanctuary. There are spotted and barking deers in the park. It is one of the main attractions in the sanctuary.
The major reptiles found in the sanctuary.

Satti Chaura Ghat, Kanpur

Satti Chaura Ghat or Massacre Ghat (Hindi: सती चौरा घाट / मसकर घाट, कानपुर ) is a famous ghat(riverbank steps) in Kanpur city, the industrial hub of Uttar Pradesh in North India. It is located on the bank of River Ganges in Kanpur near Jajmau.

Importance

River Ghats have been a traditional part of Indian religious life. They have served religious and community gathering purposes. When located on holy rivers like River Ganges, they often have attached temples dedicated to deities of the Hindu pantheon.
Sati Chaura Ghat has been an important maritime boarding point for the river route from Kanpur to Allahabad from pre colonial period. In recent years, after the acquisition of the surrounding areas by Cantonment Board and private industrialists, it has receded in its traditional historical importance as the center of urban life in the old city of Kanpur.

History

During the beginning of the colonial annexation of Awadh, the ghat had earlier been nicknamed as Massacre Ghat, by the East India Company officials after the historical events of the 1857 Indian Mutiny at Cawnpore.
It was at this location that the initial momentous events of Indian Rebellion of 1857, named as Siege of Cawnpore in British colonial records, took place

Location

The ghat is located on the southern bank of River Ganges and marks the northern boundary of Kanpur city.

Establishment

The origins of the ghat date to pre-colonial times.

Attractions

 

  A Hindu temple built in 1966.

  It attracts a lot of visitors from Kanpur city during the monsoon months when the River Ganges threatens to breach the banks.

  There is a sand pit / dangal (अखाड़ा) for kushti of local wrestlers. An annual wrestling competition is held during the months of July/August.

   It is a favorite haunt of a large population of Indian rhesus monkeys

 

And other Temples in Kanpur City

 Anandeshwar Mandir

  Hanuman Mandir

  Jageshwar Mandir, Jajmau

  Baradevi Temple, the oldest temple of Kanpur

  Chandika devi temple, Baksar, Unnao

  Nageshwar temple

  ISCKON Temple, azad nagar

  Tapeshwari temple

Om Tat Sat

                                                        

(Continued...)                                                                                                                              

(My humble  salutations to the great devotees ,  wikisources  and Pilgrimage tourist guide for the collection )

Holy Pilgrimage – Temples in Uttara Pradesh State ( Allahabad ) - 4 at 11:35 PM

Holy Pilgrimage – Temples in  Uttara Pradesh State

Allahabad

(continued)

The purifying Ganges

Hindus consider the waters of the Ganges to be both pure and purifying.  Nothing reclaims order from disorder more than the waters of the Ganges.  Moving water, as in a river, is considered purifying in Hindu culture because it is thought to both absorb impurities and take them away.  The swiftly moving Ganges, especially in its upper reaches, where a bather has to grasp an anchored chain in order to not be carried away, is considered especially purifying.  What the Ganges removes, however, is not necessarily physical dirt, but symbolic dirt; it wipes away the sins of the bather, not just of the present, but of a lifetime.
A popular paean to the Ganges is the Ganga Lahiri composed by a seventeenth century poet Jagannatha who, legend has it, was turned out of his Hindu Brahmin caste for carrying on an affair with a Muslim woman. Having attempted futilely to be rehabilitated within the Hindu fold, the poet finally appeals to Ganga, the hope of the hopeless, and the comforter of last resort. Along with his beloved, Jagannatha sits at the top of the flight of steps leading to the water at the famous Panchganga Ghat in Varanasi. As he recites each verse of the poem, the water of the Ganges rises up one step, until in the end it envelops the lovers and carry them away.  "I come to you as a child to his mother," begins the Ganga Lahiri.
I come as an orphan to you, moist with love.
I come without refuge to you, giver of sacred rest.
I come a fallen man to you, uplifter of all.
I come undone by disease to you, the perfect physician.
I come, my heart dry with thirst, to you, ocean of sweet wine.
Do with me whatever you will.

Consort, Shakti, and Mother

Ganga is a consort to all three major male deities of Hinduism.  As Brahma's partner she always travels with him in the form of water in his kamandalu (water-pot).  She is also Vishnu's consort.  Not only does she emanate from his foot as Vishnupadi in the avatarana story, but is also, with Sarasvati and Lakshmi, one of his co-wives.  In one popular story, envious of being outdone by each other, the co-wives begin to quarrel. While Lakshmi attempts to mediate the quarrel, Ganga and Sarasvati, heap misfortune on each other. They curse each other to become rivers, and to carry within them, by washing, the sins of their human worshippers. Soon their husband, Vishnu, arrives and decides to calm the situation by separating the goddesses. He orders Sarasvati to become the wife of Brahma, Ganga to become the wife of Shiva, and Lakshmi, as the blameless conciliator, to remain as his own wife. Ganga and Sarasvati, however, are so distraught at this dispensation, and wail so loudly, that Vishnu is forced to take back his words. Consequently, in their lives as rivers they are still thought to be with him.
t is Shiva's relationship with Ganga, that is the best-known in Ganges mythology.  Her descent, the avatarana is not a one time event, but a continuously occurring one in which she is forever falling from heaven into his locks and being forever tamed.  Shiva, is depicted in Hindu iconography as Gangadhara, the "Bearer of the Ganga," with Ganga, shown as spout of water, rising from his hair.  The Shiva-Ganga relationship is both perpetual and intimate.  Shiva is sometimes called Uma-Ganga-Patiswara ("Husband and Lord of Uma (Parvati) and Ganga"), and Ganga often arouses the jealousy of Shiva's better-known consort.
Ganga is the shakti or the moving, restless, rolling energy in the form of which the otherwise recluse and unapproachable Shiva appears on earth.  As water, this moving energy can be felt, tasted, and absorbed.  The war-god Skanda addresses the sage Agastya in the Kashi Khand of the Skanda Purana in these words:
One should not be amazed ... that this Ganges is really Power, for is she not the Supreme Shakti of the Eternal Shiva, taken in the form of water?
This Ganges, filled with the sweet wine of compassion, was sent out for the salvation of the world by Shiva, the Lord of the Lords.
Good people should not think this Triple-Pathed River to be like the thousand other earthly rivers, filled with water.
The Ganges is also the mother, the Ganga Mata (mata="mother") of Hindu worship and culture, accepting all and forgiving all.  Unlike other goddesses, she has no destructive or fearsome aspect, destructive though she might be as a river in nature.  She is also a mother to other gods.  She accepts Shiva's incandescent seed from the fire-god Agni, which is too hot for this world, and cools it in her waters.  This union produces Skanda, or Kartikeya, the god of war.  In the Mahabharata, she is the wife of Shantanu, and the mother of heroic warrior-patriarch, Bhishma.  When Bhishma is mortally wounded in battle, Ganga comes out of the water in human form and weeps uncontrollably over his body.  Hence Ganga is not different from Parvati.
The Ganges is the distilled lifeblood of the Hindu tradition, of its divinities, holy books, and enlightenment.  As such, her worship does not require the usual rites of invocation (avahana) at the beginning and dismissal (visarjana) at the end, required in the worship of other gods.  Her divinity is immediate and everlasting.

Ganges in classical Indian iconography

Early in ancient Indian culture, the river Ganges was associated with fecundity, its redeeming waters and its rich silt providing sustenance to all who lived along its banks.  A counterpoise to the dazzling heat of the Indian summer, the Ganges came to be imbued with magical qualities and to be revered in anthropomorphic form. By the 5th century CE, an elaborate mythology surrounded the Ganges, now a goddess in her own right, and a symbol for all rivers of India.  Hindu temples all over India had statues and reliefs of the goddess carved at their entrances, symbolically washing the sins of arriving worshippers and guarding the gods within.  As protector of the sanctum sanctorum, the goddess soon came to depicted with several characteristic accessories: the makara (a crocodile-like undersea monster, often shown with an elephant-like trunk), the kumbha (an overfull vase), various overhead parasol-like coverings, and a gradually increasing retinue of humans.
Central to the goddess's visual identification is the makara, which is also her vahana, or mount. An ancient symbol in India, it pre-dates all appearances of the goddess Ganga in art. The makara has a dual symbolism. On the one hand, it represents the life-affirming waters and plants of its environment; on the other, it represents fear, both fear of the unknown it elicits by lurking in those waters and real fear it instils by appearing in sight. The earliest extant unambiguous pairing of the makara with Ganga is at Udayagiri Caves in Central India (circa 400 CE). Here, in Cave V, flanking the main figure of Vishnu shown in his boar incarnation, two river goddesses, Ganga and Yamuna appear atop their respective mounts, makara and kurma (a turtle or tortoise).
The makara is often accompanied by a gana, a small boy or child, near its mouth, as, for example, shown in the Gupta period relief from Besnagar, Central India, in the left-most frame above. The gana represents both posterity and development (udbhava). The pairing of the fearsome, life-destroying makara with the youthful, life-affirming gana speaks to two aspects of the Ganges herself. Although she has provided sustenance to millions, she has also brought hardship, injury, and death by causing major floods along her banks. The goddess Ganga is also accompanied by a dwarf attendant, who carries a cosmetic bag, and on whom she sometimes leans, as if for support.  (See, for example, frames 1, 2, and 4 above.)
The purna kumbha or full pot of water is the second most discernible element of the Ganga iconography.  Appearing first also in the relief in Udayagiri Caves (5th century), it gradually appeared more frequently as the theme of the goddess matured.^[74] By the seventh century it had become an established feature, as seen, for example, the Dashavatara temple, Deogarh, Uttar Pradesh (seventh century), the Trimurti temple, Badoli, Chittorgarh, Rajasthan, and at the Lakshmaneshwar temple, Kharod, Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh,^[74] (ninth or tenth century), and seen very clearly in frame 3 above and less clearly in the remaining frames. Worshipped even today, the full pot is emblematic of the formless Brahman, as well as of woman, of the womb, and of birth. Furthermore, The river goddesses Ganga and Saraswati were both born from Brahma's pot, containing the celestial waters.
In her earliest depictions at temple entrances, the goddess Ganga appeared standing beneath the overhanging branch of a tree, as seen as well in the Udayagiri caves. However, soon the tree cover had evolved into a chatra or parasol held by an attendant, for example, in the seventh-century Dasavatara temple at Deogarh. (The parasol can be clearly seen in frame 3 above; its stem can be seen in frame 4, but the rest has broken off.) The cover undergoes another transformation in the temple at Kharod, Bilaspur (ninth or tenth century), where the parasol is lotus-shaped,  and yet another at the Trimurti temple at Badoli where the parasol has been replaced entirely by a lotus.
As the iconography evolved, sculptors in the central India especially were producing animated scenes of the goddess, replete with an entourage and suggestive of a queen en route to a river to bathe.  A relief similar to the depiction in frame 4 above, is described in Pal 1997, p. 43 as follows:
A typical relief of about the ninth century that once stood at the entrance of a temple, the river goddess Ganga is shown as a voluptuously endowed lady with a retinue. Following the iconographic prescription, she stands gracefully on her composite makara mount and holds a water pot. The dwarf attendant carries her cosmetic bag, and a ... female holds the stem of a giant lotus leaf that serves as her mistress's parasol. The fourth figure is a male guardian. Often in such reliefs the makara's tail is extended with great flourish into a scrolling design symbolizing both vegetation and water.^[70]

Yamuna

The Yamuna (Sanskrit: यमुना), sometimes called Jamuna (Bengali: যমুনা, Hindi: जमुना, Urdu: جمنا) or Jumna, is the largest tributary river of the Ganges (Ganga) in northern India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a height of 6,387 metres on the south western slopes of Banderpooch peaks in the Lower Himalayas in Uttarakhand, it travels a total length of 1,376 kilometers (855 mi) and has a drainage system of 366,223 square kilometres (141,399 sq mi), 40.2% of the entire Ganges Basin, before merging with the Ganges at Triveni Sangam, Allahabad, the site for the Kumbha Mela every twelve years.
It crosses several states, Uttarakhand, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, passing by Himachal Pradesh and later Delhi, and meets several of its tributaries on the way, including Tons, its largest and longest tributary in Uttarakhand, Chambal, which has its own large basin, followed by Sindh, the Betwa, and Ken. Most importantly it creates the highly fertile alluvial, Yamuna-Ganges Doab region between itself and the Ganges in the Indo-Gangetic plain. Nearly 57 million people depend on the Yamuna waters. With an annual flow of about 10,000 cubic billion metres (cbm) and usage of 4,400 cbm (of which irrigation constitutes 96 per cent), the river accounts for more than 70 per cent of Delhi’s water supplies. Just like the Ganges, the Yamuna too is highly venerated in Hinduism and worshipped as goddess Yamuna, throughout its course. In Hindu mythology, she is the daughter of Sun God, Surya, and sister of Yama, the God of Death, hence also known as Yami and according to popular legends, bathing in its sacred waters frees one from the torments of death.
The water of Yamuna is of "reasonably good quality" through its length from Yamunotri in the Himalayas to Wazirabad in Delhi, about 375 km, where the discharge of waste water through 15 drains between Wazirabad barrage and Okhla barrage renders the river severely polluted after Wazirabad in Delhi. One official describes the river as a "sewage drain" with biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) values ranging from 14 to 28 mg/l and high coliform content.  There are three main sources of pollution in the river, namely households and municipal disposal sites, soil erosion resulting from deforestation occurring to make way for agriculture along with resulting chemical wash-off from fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides and run-off from commercial activity and industrial sites.
The source of Yamuna lies in the Yamunotri Glacier at a height 6,387 metres, on the south western slopes of Banderpooch peaks, which lie in the Mussoorie range of Lower Himalayas, in the Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand, north of Haridwar. Yamunotri temple, a shrine dedicated to the goddess, Yamuna is one of the holiest shrines in Hinduism, and part of the Chota Char Dham Yatra circuit. Also standing close to the temple, on its 13 km trek route, that follows the right bank of the river, lies the Markendeya Tirtha, where the sage Markandeya wrote the Markandeya Purana.^[4][5]
From here it flows southwards, for about 200 km through the Lower Himalayas and the Shivalik Hills Range and morainic deposited are found in its steep Upper Yamuna village, highlighted with geomorphic features such as interlocking spurs, steep rock benches, and stream terraces. Large terraces formed over a long period of time can be seen in the lower course of the river, like ones near Naugoan. An important part of its early catchment area totalling 2,320 square kilometres (900 sq mi) lies in Himachal Pradesh, and an important tributary draining the Upper Catchment Area is the Tons, Yamuna's largest and longest tributary, which rises from the Hari-ki-dun valley and holds water more than the main stream, which it merges after Kalsi near Dehradun. The entire drainage system of the river stretches all the way between Giri-Sutlej catchment in Himachal and Yamuna-Bhilangna catchment in Garhwal, indeed the southern ridge of Shimla is also drained into this system. Kalanag (6,387 metres (20,955 ft)) is the highest point of the entire Yamuna basin.
Other tributaries in the region are the Giri, Rishi Ganga, Kunta, Hanuman Ganga and Bata tributaries, which drain the Upper Catchment Area of the vast Yamuna basin. Thereafter the river descends on to the plains of Doon Valley, at Dak Pathar near Dehradun. Here through a weir dam, the water is diverted into a canal for power generation, little further down where Yamuna is met by the Assan River, lies the Assan barrage, which hosts a Bird Sanctuary as well. After passing the Sikh pilgrimage town of Paonta Sahib, it reaches Tajewala in Yamuna Nagar district, of Haryana, where a dam built in 1873, is the originating place of two important canals, the Western Yamuna Canal and Eastern Yamuna Canal, which irrigate the states of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. The Western Yamuna Canal (WYC) crosses Yamuna Nagar, Karnal and Panipat before reaching the Haiderpur treatment plant, which supplies part of municipal water supply to Delhi, further it also receives waste water from Yamuna Nagar and Panipat cities. Yamuna is replenished again after this by seasonal streams and groundwater accrual, in fact during the dry season, it remains dry in many stretches from Tajewala till Delhi, where it enters near Palla village after traversing 224 kilometres (139 mi).
The Yamuna also creates natural state borders between the Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand states, and further down between the state of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. Along with the Ganges to which run almost parallel after it touches the Indo-Gangetic plain, the largest alluvial fertile plain in the world, it creates the Ganges-Yamuna Doab region spread across 69,000 square kilometres (27,000 sq mi), one-third of the entire plain, and today known for its agricultural outputs, prominent among them is the cultivation of Basmati Rice. The plain itself supports one-third of India's population through its farming.

ment area (km2)	% of catchment area
Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand	74,208	21.5 %
Himachal Pradesh	5,799	1.6
Haryana	21,265	6.5
Rajasthan	102,883	29.8
Madhya Pradesh	14,023	40.6
Delhi	1,485	0.4

Subsequently, it flows through the states of Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, before merging with the Ganges at a sacred spot known as Triveni Sangam in Allahabad after traversing a distance of 1,376 kilometers (855 mi). Here pilgrims travel by boats to platforms erected mid stream to offer prayers. During the Kumbh Mela, held every 12 years, the ghats around the Sangam are venue of large congregation of people, who take dip in the sacred waters of the confluence.^[8] The cities of Baghpat, Delhi, Noida, Mathura, Agra, Firozabad, Etawah, Kalpi, Hamirpur, Allahabad lie on its banks. At Etawah, it meets it another important tributary, Chambal, followed by a host of tributaries further down, including, Sindh, the Betwa, and Ken.^[2][9]

Ancient literature and history

Literally meaning "twins" in Sanskrit, as it runs parallel to the Ganges, its name is mentioned at many places in the Rig Veda, written during the Vedic period ca between 1700–1100 BC, and also in the later Atharvaveda, and the Brahmanas including Aitareya Brahmana and Shatapatha Brahmana. In Rig Veda, the story of the Yamuna describes her "excessive love" for her twin, Yama, who in turn asks her to find a suitable match for herself, which she does in Krishna. The tale is further detailed in the 16th century Sanskrit hymn, Yamunashtakam, an ode by philosopher Vallabhacharya. Here the story of descent to meet her beloved Krishna and to purify the world has been put in verse. The hymn also he praises her for being the source of all spiritual abilities, while the Ganges is considered an epitome of asceticism and higher knowledge and can grant us Moksha or liberation, it is Yamuna, who being a holder of infinite love and compassion, can grant us freedom from even death, the realm of her elder brother. She rushes down the Kalinda Mountain, and verily describes her as the daughter of Kalinda, giving her another name, Kalindi, the backdrop of Krishna Leela. The text also talk about her water being of the colour of Lord Krishna, which is dark (Shyam).
It is mention as Iomanes (Ioames) in the surveys of Seleucus I Nicator, an officer of Alexander the Great and one of the Diadochi, who visited India in 305 BC, later Megasthenes, a Greek traveller and geographer, visited India, sometimes before 288 BC, the date of Chandragupta's death, also mention the river in his text Indica, where he described the region around it as the land of Surasena.  In Mahabharata, Indraprastha, the capital of Pandavas was also situated on the banks of Yamuna, it is considered to the modern day city of Delhi.
There is evidence indicating Yamuna was a tributary of the Ghaggar river, also known as the Vedic Sarasvati River in the ancient past and the rivers were collectively known as Sapta Sindhu or seven streams. It changed its course to east following a tectonic event in north India and became a tributary of the Ganges instead. As the it is believed that the Sarasvati river dried and it also meant the end of many Indus Valley civilization settlements, and creation of the Thar desert, the Ghaggar-Hakra river now flows only during the monsoon season.  The importance of the Ganges–Yamuna river basin, and the Doab region as traditional the seat of power, can be derived from the fact, in much of early history of India, most of great empires, which ruled over majority of India, until the Chalukyas King, Vinayaditya, were based in the highly fertile Ganges–Yamuna basin, including the Magadha (ca 600 BC), Maurya Empire (321–185 BC), Sunga Empire (185–73 BCE), Kushan Empire (1st–3rd centuries CE), Gupta Empire (280–550 CE), and many had their capitals here, in cities like Pataliputra or Mathura. These rivers were revered throughout these kingdoms that flourished on their banks, in fact ever since the period of Chandragupta II (r. 375–415 CE), statues both the Ganges and Yamuna became common throughout the Gupta Empire. Further to the South, images of the Ganges and Yamuna are found amidst shrines of the Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas (753–982), as well as on their royal seals, and prior to them, the Chola Empire too added the river into their architectural motifs. The Three River Goddess shrine, next of famous Kailash rock-cut Temple at Ellora, built by Rashtrakuta King, Govinda III, shows the Ganges flanked by the Yamuna and Saraswati.

Religious significance

The goddess of the river, also known as Yami, is the sister of Yama, god of death, and the daughter of Surya, the Sun god, and his wife Saranyu.  Yamuna, referred respectfully as Yamunaji, holds a very important position in Pushti Marga, a sect of Hinduism based on the ShuddhAdvaita, where Shri Krsna is the main deity, propagated by VallabhAcharya / MahaPrabhuji, and having a large following in India.
The river Yamuna is also connected to the religious beliefs surrounding Krishna and various stories connected with Him are found in Hindu religious texts, especially the Puranas, like that of Kaliya Daman, the subduing of Kaliya, a poisonous Nāga snake, which had inhabited the river and terrorized the people of Braja.  Yamuna, according to the legends is closely related to Lord Krishna and Mahabharata. Krishna was taken across the Yamnuna on the night of his birth. Kansa, Krishna's maternal uncle planned to kill all his nephew's, as his eight nephew was predicted to be his Kāla. When Vasudeva, carrying Krishna in a basket, reaches the river Yamuna, on the extremely turbulent, rainy night of Krishna's birth, Yamuna is said to have parted to make way for Vasudeva. Krishna and the Gopi's also used to play on the banks of Yamunaji as children.

Important tributaries

• Tons River, Yamuna's largest and longest tributary, rises in the 20,720 ft (6,315 m) high Bandarpoonch mountain, and has a large basin in Himachal Pradesh. It meets Yamuna below Kalsi near Dehradun, Uttarakhand.
• Hindon River, originates in the Saharanpur District, from Upper Shivalik in Lower Himalayan Range, is entirely rainfed and has a catchment area of 7, 083 km², traverses 400 km through Muzaffarnagar District, Meerut District, Baghpat District, Ghaziabad, Noida, Greater Noida, before joining Yamuna just outside Delhi.
• Ken River, flows through Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, it originates near village Ahirgawan in Jabalpur district and travels a distance of 427 km, before merging with the Yamuna at Chilla village, near Fatehpur in Uttar Pradesh, and has an overall drainage basin of 28,058 km².
• Chambal River, known as Charmanvati in ancient times, flows through Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, with a drainage basin of 143,219 km² and traverses a total distance of 960 km, from its source in Vindhya Range, near Mhow and support hydro-power generation at Gandhi Sagar dam, Rana Pratap Sagar dam and Jawahar Sagar dam, before merging into the Yamuna south east f Sohan Goan, in Etawah district, shortly theerafter followed by another tributary, the Sindh River.

Sarasvati River

The Sarasvati River (Sanskrit: सरस्वती नदी sárasvatī nadī) is one of the chief Rigvedic rivers mentioned in ancient Sanskrit texts. The Nadistuti hymn in the Rigveda (10.75) mentions the Sarasvati between the Yamuna in the east and the Sutlej in the west, and later Vedic texts like Tandya and Jaiminiya Brahmanas as well as the Mahabharata mention that the Sarasvati dried up in a desert. The goddess Sarasvati was originally a personification of this river, but later developed an independent identity and gained meaning.
The identification of the Vedic Sarasvati River with the Ghaggar-Hakra River was accepted by Christian Lassen,^[1] Max Müller,  Marc Aurel Stein, C.F. Oldham^[3] and Jane Macintosh,  while some Vedic scholars (e.g. Kochhar 1999) believe the Helmand River of southern Afghanistan corresponds to the Sarasvati River.

Course of Saraswati

Palaeo-drainage network formed by several palaeochannels has been worked out by different researchers in western Rajasthan and neighbouring states, which is mainly buried under sand cover of the Thar Desert and parallel to the Aravalli Hills 6–8. In the last couple of years with the advancement in satellite and remote sensing technology, palaeochannels have been mapped systematically. Different workers have different opinions about the number of courses of Saraswati River. Ghosh et al.6,9 reported five, Yashpal et al.10 reported one, Bakliwal and Grover11 reported seven. On the basis of aerial photographs and Landsat imagery, faults/lineaments and palaeo-drainage system in NW India have been delineated6,7,9,12–15. Several authors16–18 have opined that upliftment of the Aravallis led to the westward migration of Saraswati River system due to fault-controlled movements. The faults have been and continue to be active, registering various sideways and up–down movements in the geological past. As a consequence, there was uplift and sinking or horizontal (lateral) displacement of the ground. Under such tectonophysiographic upheavals, the rivers and streams were frequently forced to change their courses, sometimes gradually, sometimes abruptly, as seen on satellite images.
As per Hindu beliefs, Saraswati river flows underground and meets Yamuna and Ganga at their confluence in Prayag (Allahabad).

Etymology

Sarasvatī is the devi feminine of an adjective sarasvant- (which occurs in the Rigveda as the name of the keeper of the celestial waters), derived from Proto-Indo-Iranian *sáras-vant-ī (and earlier, PIE *séles-u̯n̥t-ih₂), meaning ‘marshy, full of pools’.
Sanskrit sáras means ‘pool, pond’; the feminine sarasī́ means ‘stagnant pool, swamp’. Like its cognates Welsh hêl, heledd ‘river meadow’ and Greek ἕλος (hélos) ‘swamp’, the Rigvedic term refers mostly to stagnant waters, and Mayrhofer considers unlikely a connection with the root *sar- ‘run, flow’.
Sarasvatī is an exact cognate with Avestan Harax^vatī, perhaps  originally referring to Arədvī Sūrā Anāhitā (modern Ardwisur Anahid), the Zoroastrian mythological world river, which would point to a common Indo-Iranian myth of a cosmic or mystical Sáras-vant-ī river. In the younger Avesta, Harax^vatī is Arachosia, a region described to be rich in rivers, and its Old Persian cognate Harauvati, which gave its name to the present-day Hārūt River in Afghanistan, may have referred to the entire Helmand drainage basin (the center of Arachosia).

In the Rigveda

The Sarasvati River is mentioned in all but the fourth book of the Rigveda.

RV 6.61, RV 7.95 and RV 7.96.

Praise

• The Sarasvati is praised lavishly in the Rigveda as the best of all the rivers: e.g. in RV 2.41.16 she is called ámbitame nádītame dévitame sárasvati, "best mother, best river, best goddess". Other verses of praise include RV 6.61.8-13, RV 7.96 and RV 10.17. In some hymns, the Indus river seems to be more important than the Sarasavati, especially in the Nadistuti sukta. In RV 8.26.18, the white flowing Sindhu 'with golden wheels' is the most conveying or attractive of the rivers.

• RV 7.95.2. and other verses (e.g. RV 8.21.18) speak of the Sarasvati pouring "milk and ghee." Rivers are often likened to cows in the Rigveda, for example in RV 3.33.1,

Like two bright mother cows who lick their youngling,

Vipas and Sutudri speed down their waters.

• The phrase sárasvatī saptáthī síndhumātā of RV 7.36.6 has been rendered as " Sarasvati the Seventh, Mother of Floods" in a popular translation.^[10] While this takes a tatpurusha interpretation of síndhumātā, the word is actually a bahuvrihi.^[11]

Course

• The late Rigvedic Nadistuti sukta enumerates all important rivers from the Ganges in the east up to the Indus in the west in a clear geographical order. Here (RV 10.75.5), the sequence "Ganges, Yamuna, Sarasvati, Shutudri" places the Sarasvati between the Yamuna and the Sutlej, which is consistent with the Ghaggar identification.
• Verses in RV 6.61 indicate that the Sarasvati river originated in the hills or mountains (giri), where she "burst with her strong waves the ridges of the hills (giri)". It is a matter of interpretation whether this refers only to the Himalayan foothills like the present-day Sarasvati (Sarsuti) river.
• RV 3.23.4 mentions the Sarasvati River together with the Drsadvati River and the Āpayā River. RV 6.52.6 describes the Sarasvati as swollen (pinvamānā) by the rivers (sindhubhih).
• While RV 6.61.12 associates the Sarasvati River with the five tribes; and RV 7.95-6 with the Paravatas and the Purus; in RV 8.21.18, a number of petty kings are said to dwell along the course of Sarasvati,

Citra is King, and only kinglings [rājaka] are the rest who dwell beside Sarasvati.

• In RV 7.95.1-2, the Sarasvati is described as flowing to the samudra, a word now usually translated as ocean.

This stream Sarasvati with fostering current comes forth, our sure defence, our fort of iron.

As on a chariot, the flood flows on, surpassing in majesty and might all other waters.

Pure in her course from mountains to the ocean, alone of streams Sarasvati hath listened.

Thinking of wealth and the great world of creatures, she poured for Nahusa her milk and fatness.

As a goddess

In the Rigveda, the name Sarasvati already does not always relate to a river and its personification exclusively; in some places, the goddess Saraswati is abstracted from the river.
The Sarasvati is mentioned in 13 hymns of the late books (1 and 10) of the Rigveda.^[12] Only two of these references are unambiguously to the river: 10.64.9, calling for the aid of three "great rivers", Sindhu, Sarasvati and Sarayu; and 10.75.5, the geographical list of the Nadistuti sukta. The others invoke Sarasvati as a goddess without direct connection to a specific river. In 10.30.12, her origin as a river goddess may explain her invocation as a protective deity in a hymn to the celestial waters. In 10.135.5, as Indra drinks Soma he is described as refreshed by Sarasvati. The invocations in 10.17 address Sarasvati as a goddess of the forefathers as well as of the present generation. In 1.13, 1.89, 10.85, 10.66 and 10.141, she is listed with other gods and goddesses, not with rivers. In 10.65, she is invoked together with "holy thoughts" (dhī) and "munificence" (puraṃdhi), consistent with her role as a goddess of both knowledge and fertility.

Other Vedic texts

In post-Rigvedic literature, the disappearance of the Sarasvati is mentioned. Also the origin of the Sarasvati is identified as Plaksa Prasravana.

Yajur Veda

In a supplementary chapter of the Vajasaneyi-Samhita of the Yajurveda (34.11), Sarasvati is mentioned in a context apparently meaning the Sindhu: "Five rivers flowing on their way speed onward to Sarasvati, but then become Sarasvati a fivefold river in the land."  According to the medieval commentator Uvata, the five tributaries of the Sarasvati were the Punjab rivers Drishadvati, Satudri (Sutlej), Chandrabhaga (Chenab), Vipasa (Beas) and the Iravati (Ravi).

Brahmanas

The first reference to the disapparance of the lower course of the Sarasvati is from the Brahmanas, texts that are composed in Vedic Sanskrit, but dating to a later date than the Veda Samhitas. The Jaiminiya Brahmana (2.297) speaks of the 'diving under (upamajjana) of the Sarasvati', and the Tandya Brahmana (or Pancavimsa Br.) calls this the 'disappearance' (vinasana). The same text (25.10.11-16) records that the Sarasvati is 'so to say meandering' (kubjimati) as it could not sustain heaven which it had propped up.   The Plaksa Prasravana (place of appearance/source of the river) may refer to a spring in the Siwalik mountains. The distance between the source and the Vinasana (place of disappearance of the river) is said to be 44 asvina (between several hundred and 1600 miles) (Tandya Br. 25.10.16; cf. Av. 6.131.3; Pancavimsa Br.

Late Vedic

In the Latyayana Srautasutra (10.15-19) the Sarasvati seems to be a perennial river up to the Vinasana, which is west of its confluence with the Drshadvati (Chautang). The Drshadvati is described as a seasonal stream (10.17). The Asvalayana Srautasutra and Sankhayana Srautasutra contain verses that are similar to the Latyayana Srautasutra.

Post-Vedic texts

The Mahabharata

According to the Mahabharata, the Sarasvati dried up in a desert (at a place named Vinasana or Adarsana);  after having disappeared in the desert, reappears in some places;  and joins the sea "impetuously".  MB.3.81.115 locates Kurukshetra to the south of the Sarasvati and north of the Drishadvati. Dried up seasonal Ghaggar River in Rajasthan and haryana reflects the same geographical view as described in Mahabharata.

Puranas

• Several Puranas describe the Sarasvati River, and also record that the river separated into a number of lakes (saras).  In Skanda Purana, five distributaries of the Sarasvati are mentioned.
• In the Skanda Purana, the Sarasvati originates from the water pot of Brahma and flows from Plaksa on the Himalayas. It then turns west at Kedara and also flows underground.
• According to Vamana Purana 32.1-4, the Sarasvati rose from the Plaksa tree (Pipal tree).

Smritis

• In the Manu Smriti, the sage Manu, escaping from a flood, founded the Vedic culture between the Sarasvati and Drishadvati rivers. The Sarasvati River was thus the western boundary of Brahmavarta: "the land between the Sarasvati and Drishadvati is created by God; this land is Brahmavarta."
• Similarly, the Vasistha Dharma Sutra I.8-9 and 12-13 locates Aryavarta to the east of the disappearance of the Sarasvati in the desert, to the west of Kalakavana, to the north of the mountains of Pariyatra and Vindhya and to the south of the Himalaya. Patanjali's Mahābhāṣya defines Aryavarta like the Vasistha Dharma Sutra.
• The Baudhayana Dharmasutra gives similar definitions, declaring that Aryavarta is the land that lies west of Kalakavana, east of Adarsana (where the Sarasvati disappears in the desert), south of the Himalayas and north of the Vindhyas.

Identification

The Sarasvati River of late Vedic and post-Vedic times is generally identified with the Ghaggar River. But the implication of a river of substantially greater volume makes the same identification of the early Vedic references problematic: either the Ghaggar was a more powerful river in earlier times, or the early Vedic Sarasvati was located elsewhere. According to Hindu scriptures, a journey was made during the Mahabharata by Balrama along the banks of the Saraswati from Dwarka to Mathura. There were ancient kingdoms too (the era of the Mahajanapads), that lay in parts of north rajasthan; that were named on the saraswati river. This gives some logic to the theory of Ghaggar-Hakkar being the ancient Saraswati. During the Pleistocene period the Himalayan mountains were under glacial cover and climate was fluctuating between glacial and interglacial phases. Around 40,000 yrs BC, the present Thar Desert enjoyed wet climate and greenery. Mythological River Saraswati/Vedic Saraswati (also known as Saraswati Nadi, Saraswati Nala, Sarsuti and Chautang in certain places, variously spelt as Sarasvati) is believed to have flowed during 6000–3000 BC from the melting glaciers of Garhwal Himalaya to Arabian Sea through the Thar Desert1,2. Several researchers agree about the existence of palaeochannels2. According to the Ground Water Cell of Haryana, a large number of water wells fall on these palaeochannels and their lithology is coarse sand/gravel of riverine nature. Now palaeochannels exhibit discontinuous drainage.

 

Om Tat Sat

                                                        

(Continued...)                                                                                                                              

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