River of the Mahabharata
Banks of the Ganga
गङ्गा तट
Where King Pratipa and King Shantanu met the goddess Ganga, and where she drowned her seven sons.
Banks of the Ganga: Where King Pratipa and King Shantanu met the goddess Ganga, and where she drowned her seven sons, located at coordinates 29.20°N, 78.10°E.
Key Facts
| Type | River |
|---|---|
| Sanskrit name | गङ्गा तट |
| Coordinates | 29.20°N, 78.10°E |
| Region | north |
| Significance | Where King Pratipa and King Shantanu met the goddess Ganga, and where she drowned her seven sons. |
About Banks of the Ganga
The sacred banks of the river Ganga, near Hastinapura.
Why it matters: Where King Pratipa and King Shantanu met the goddess Ganga, and where she drowned her seven sons.
On the Map
Banks of the Ganga sits at 29.20°N, 78.10°E.
View on the full mapEvents at Banks of the Ganga
- Shantanu Marries GangaYear -120King Shantanu meets the goddess Ganga and marries her under the strict condition that he never question or stop any of her actions.
- Drowning of the VasusYear -119Ganga drowns her first seven sons to free them from the curse. Shantanu stops her at the eighth (Devavrata), causing her to leave.
- Return of DevavrataYear -100Years later, Ganga returns the fully trained Devavrata to Shantanu, who joyfully instates him as heir.
- Chitraratha at the Ganga - The Gandharva at the Night FordYear -31On the night road to Panchala the Pandavas are challenged at a Ganga ford by the gandharva Angaraparna. Arjuna burns his celestial chariot with the weapon of fire, spares him at his wife's plea, and the defeated celestial becomes a friend - giving gifts, telling the tales of their ancestors, and sending them to find their first priest, Dhaumya.
Stories Set at Banks of the Ganga
Shantanu and the River Goddess
The Marriage That Began the Kuru Dynasty
Chitraratha at the Ganga
The Gandharva at the Night Ford
The Charioteer's Son
Adhiratha, the father Karna chose
Ganga Beyond the River
The mother who shaped Bhishma
The Seven Days of Parikshit
A good king's lapse and a good death
Hastinapura, City of the Elephant
The capital that held the whole epic
The Fire in the Sea
Revenge the dead never asked for
The Brother Who Should Have Been King
A lawful crown the rain refused to bless
The Song of Parashara
Vyasa's father on birth, work and the fruit of acts
The Worm That Ran From the Cart
Vyasa asks what such a life has to lose
The Perfected One at the Door
A brahmana asks what the soul is walking through
Ganga, River of the Kurus
The goddess who carries the dynasty
The Burning Ghats of Kurukshetra
The rites that closed the war
The Ascetics at the Gate
The morning five orphans were handed to Hastinapura
The Widow at the Fire
A curse spoken before the flames took her, and the heir it forced
The Two Bowls of Rice
How a mother's swap made a brahmana of one line and a warrior of the other
The Hand That Rose From the Grass
Bhishma's own memory of Shantanu's shraddha at the gate of Ganga
The Departure of Bhishma
The sun turns north, and the grandsire lets go
Satayupa and the Forest Kings
Narada Names the Rulers Who Chose the Woods
The Night the Dead Returned
Vyasa Calls the Fallen Out of the Ganga
The Fire That Was Not Unholy
Yudhishthira Accuses Agni of Ingratitude
The Bird That Sent the Boys Home
Indra in golden feathers argues young renouncers back to their fathers
The Princes the Earth Hid
What was left of the Kshatriyas after the axe
Fortune Changes Sides
Why Sri deserted the asuras, told on a bank of the Ganga
The Ones Who Would Not Turn Back
The city walks out with its kings, and a sage answers the weeping
The Warning in the Dream
A father begs his son to live, and the son chooses to be remembered
The Bow at the Frontier
Parashurama Tests Rama of Ayodhya and Loses His Energy
The Cat Who Played the Hermit
Duryodhana's last message to Yudhishthira is a fable about a holy man who ate his worshippers
The Duel of the Brahmashira Weapons
Ashwatthama and Arjuna loose the world-ending astra at Vyasa's hermitage
The King Who Was Left Alone
Vyasa tells Yudhishthira of Hayagriva, who fought robbers after his army was gone and won heaven at his post
The Practices That Overcome Difficulty
Bhishma on when a truthful man may lie, and the long list of habits that carry a person through
The Curses of the Rishis
Krishna names the marks that Brahmanas left on gods, seas and mountains
The Thousand Doors to Heaven
A guest who cannot answer counts the ways men have got in, then names one serpent worth asking
How Vishnu Got the Discus
Upamanyu tells Krishna where Sudarsana came from, and Krishna climbs Himavat to ask Mahadeva for a son
The Wrong Man Before Yama
A crow-faced messenger seizes the neighbour instead of Sarmin, and Yama sends him home with a rule of life