River of the Mahabharata
Ganga
गङ्गा
Goddess-mother of Bhishma; river of Hastinapura
Ganga: Goddess-mother of Bhishma; river of Hastinapura, located at coordinates 28.78°N, 78.08°E.
Key Facts
| Type | River |
|---|---|
| Sanskrit name | गङ्गा |
| Coordinates | 28.78°N, 78.08°E |
| Significance | Goddess-mother of Bhishma; river of Hastinapura |
About Ganga
The holiest river of the epic and a goddess in her own right - wife of Shantanu and mother of Bhishma, whom she raised in her waters (Adi Parva). The Kuru capital Hastinapura stood on her banks.
Why it matters: Goddess-mother of Bhishma; river of Hastinapura
Details
- Point
- Representative point near Garhmukteshwar, downstream of Hastinapura
- Ashes
- The heroes' funeral rites after the war were performed on her banks
On the Map
Ganga sits at 28.78°N, 78.08°E.
View on the full mapEvents at Ganga
- Chitraratha Gandharva ConfrontedYear -33On their way to Draupadi's swayamvara, the Pandavas encounter the gandharva Chitraratha on the banks of the Ganga at night. He challenges them for trespassing.
- Kunti's Secret at the Water RitesYear -13As the survivors offer water to the dead in the Ganga, Kunti tells her sons to pour a libation for Karna - their eldest brother. Yudhishthira, shattered, curses all womankind to keep no secret hidden.
- The Descent of the RiverYear -7King Sagara's sixty thousand arrogant sons are burned to ashes by the glance of the sage Kapila, their souls unable to rest. Only the heavenly river Ganga can purify them - so across four generations the kings strive, until Bhagiratha's terrible penance brings her down from heaven, her world-shattering fall caught in Shiva's matted locks, to wash the ashes and free the dead.
Stories Set at Ganga
Karna's Birth & Curse
The Tragic Backstory of the Sun's Son
The Secret of the Sun
A Mother's Plea, A Warrior's Promise
Shantanu and the River Goddess
The Marriage That Began the Kuru Dynasty
A Royal Childhood at Hastinapura
Pandavas, Kauravas, and the Lessons of Drona
The House of Lac and the Demons
The Pandavas' First Exile
The Forest Retreat
Book 15 - How the Blind King Walked Into the Woods to Die
Ancient Beginnings
The Line of the Moon, from Soma to Shantanu
The Descent of the River
Bhagiratha and the Sons of Sagara
The Birth of the War-God
Skanda and the Slaying of Taraka
The Bird's Head and the Crocodile
Drona's Tests of Arjuna
The Boon Bought With a Head
A small favour saved for one day of the war
The King of Fords
Where the Ganga and the Yamuna meet
The Price of a Sage
Chyavana caught in the fishermen's net
The Ocean and the Reed
Why the rivers bring down the great trees and spare the slender one
Ganga, River of the Kurus
The goddess who carries the dynasty
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 River With Seven Names
Wherever she was called, she came
Karna at Rajapura
A bride carried off, a hundred kings unhorsed, and the city a rival gave away
The Son Struck From the Fire Sticks
A hundred years of penance, a parrot on a branch, and a child born of friction
Garuda's Map of the World
The four directions described from a bird's back
The Promise Made in the Kamyaka Woods
The allies arrive, and Draupadi asks Krishna what her friendship is worth
Rudra's Share and the Sinking Earth
Two quarrels over what may be given away, on the Kalinga shore
The Two Pots of Rice
A mother and daughter exchange their bowls and exchange their sons
The Names That Cleanse Sin
Asked what destroys sin, Bhishma answers with a litany of gods, rivers, mountains, sages and kings
The Grandsire Chooses His Hour
Bhishma remembers Santanu's boon and refuses to die in the wrong season
Sakamvari and the Ford of Gold
The goddess who fed the sages on herbs, and the tirtha where Vishnu knelt to Rudra
The Children of Agni
Markandeya names the whole family of fires, from the daughters of Angiras to the rivers who mothered them
Sanjaya Describes the Earth
The blind king asks what the earth is worth, and his charioteer answers with the whole of it
The Seven Winds
Vyasa halts a recitation on the Himavat and names the winds that move the worlds