Ved Vaani Importance Of Ganga River And Gangajal As Per Vedas Mahabharata And Ramayana

Ved Vaani Importance of Ganga: River Ganga is one of the cultural heritage of India. Ganga is not only the best and holy river, but the credit for tying India in one thread also goes to Ganga. In the Vedas and Puranas, Ganga has been repeatedly called the pilgrimage. Ganga has been mentioned in the first Veda, Rigveda. After this, Ganga has also been mentioned as a holy river in the three Vedas Yajur, Sama and Arthveda. Not only in India but there will be no such river in the whole world, which has got so much importance and credit. This is the reason why Ganga is not only considered as the source of water, but it is worshiped like a goddess. In Hinduism, many works like religious rituals are not considered complete and pure without Gangajal.

Importance of river Ganges and water of Ganges in Vedas and Puranas

• Shri Krishna has said in Gita- ‘Source Samasmi Jahnavi’
  Meaning: I am Jhanvi (Ganga) among rivers.
• It is said in the Mahabharata- ”Punati Kirtita Sin Paam Drashta Bhadra Prayachhati.
  Avgadha cha pita cha punatya saptam kulam.
  Meaning: Sins are destroyed by chanting Ganga. The Ganga blesses the people who visit it and sanctifies up to seven generations of those who take a bath.
• According to Narasimha Purana– “Gange Tav Darshanat Mukti:”.
  Meaning: Ganga will be liberated only by seeing you.

Why is Gangajal considered so holy?

According to religious belief, the glory of Ganga is described in Vedas, Puranas, Ramayana, Mahabharata and many other religious texts. That’s why Ganga is also called Devnadi. Various religious programs in Hinduism such as worship, abhishek, purification are considered incomplete without Gangajal. It is believed that by taking a bath in the river Ganga, sins are destroyed and one gets infinite merit.

How the river Ganga became the center of reverence, know from this legend

There are many stories related to the river Ganga. According to the most popular and mythological story, King Sagar got sixty thousand sons after austere penance. One day King Sagar decided to perform a yagya. The king needed a horse for the Yagya, which was stolen by Indra. King Sagar sent all his sons in search of a horse. At last he found the horse tied near a sage found in Patal Lok. Seeing the horse near the sage, the sons of Sagar thought that the horse had been banished by the sage. The sons of Sagar insulted the sage for that reason. The sage who had been engrossed in penance for thousands of years opened his eyes with anger and burnt all the sixty thousand sons of Sagar to ashes.

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Sagar’s sons died but their souls could not attain salvation because their last rites could not be performed. Sagar’s son Anshuman tried unsuccessfully to free the souls and later Anshuman’s son Dilip also continued the effort.

After this Bhagirath who was the son of King Dilip’s second wife. They succeeded in performing the last rites of their ancestors. He decided to bring Ganga to earth. With this, the ashes of the ancestors can be flowed in the water of the Ganges and the wandering souls can get a place in heaven. King Bhagirath did severe penance to Lord Brahma. Brahma was pleased and got ready to send Ganga to earth. But Ganga said that when I go to the earth from such a height, the earth will not be able to bear my speed. Then at the behest of Brahma ji, Bhagirath did penance to Lord Shiva and pleased him.

Shivji stopped the speed of Ganga in his loose hair and opened a lock, due to which the continuous stream of Ganga flowed on the earth. That stream behind Bhagirath, Ganga Sagar
Went till Sangam, where the sons of Sagar were saved. With the touch of Shiva, Ganga became even more sacred and became the center of reverence for the people of the earth.

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