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| GANGA |
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| GANGA DAUGHTER OF PARVATARAJA |
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| SAGAR GETTING BLESSED BY SHIVA |
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| THE ASHWAMEDA YAGYA |
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| INDRA STEALING THE HORSE |
This goddess representing the holy river of Ganges is shown as a white woman,
wearing a white crown, sitting on the sea animal crocodile, holding in her right
hand a water lily and in her left hand a lute.
Rig Veda mention the name of Ganga only twice but in the later period of Puranic
age Ganga assumed great importance as a goddess. The legend says that she was
produced from the sweat of Vishnu's feet, which Brahma caught and filled in his
KAMANDAL (vessel-container).
Another legend states that Ganga is the daughter of Parvataraja and is the sister
of Parvati who is the consort of Shiva.
The story of Ganga's coming from heaven to earth is a famous
mythological tale. Sagar, a legendary king of Ayodhya had no children. He performed long and arduous
penances worshipping Shiva as a result of which he was promised the birth of
sixty thousand children.
Sagar did get these sons and when they grew up king Sagar resolved to perform
the ASHVAMEDH YAGYA (a ritual of proclaiming oneself unbeatable). Indra the lord
of heavens was alarmed and feared that Sagar would become very strong and dethrone
him.
Indra descended to the earth and stealthily carried away the horse, which he
placed in PATAL (the subterranean region) just near the famous sage Kapil, who
was sitting there in deep meditation. The sixty thousand sons of Sagar, after
searching that horse on the whole of earth, dug a hole and reached patal.
There
they found the horse standing near a sage who was sitting with eyes closed in
meditation.
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| SAGE KAPILA BURNT THE SONS OF SAGAR TO ASHES |
They thought that he was the thief and began beating the sage Kapil,
who awoke at this and in anger reduced all the princes to ashes.
The wandering sage Narada informed Sagar about the fate of his sixty thousand
sons. King Sagar prayed to sage Kapil for relief, and was advised that if he
could somehow bring the goddess Ganga from heavens on the earth and if the ashes
were washed with her water, their salvation would come. Sagar gave the throne
to the one surviving son of his and went to forest for prayers but perished in
his efforts. So also his son, who too sacrificed his life as a penance after
giving throne to his son (Sagar's great grand-son), named Dalip. |
