Ancient Indian Knowledge Given by River Ganga: A Study

Abstract

“The Ganga flows in man’s heart

Yet man is unable to take bath in it.”

“Ma Ganga” or “Mother Ganges”, the purity lies in these two words. River Ganga is not a sacred place but it is a sacred entity. Aside from providing drinking water and irrigating fields, the Ganges River is extremely important to Hindu population for religious reasons as well. Ma Ganga is a symbol of faith, hope, culture and sanity. She is the center of ancient Indian scriptures: Vedas, Puranas, Mahabharata, Ramayana and many more. This is the world’s third largest river, formed by the convergence of the Bhagirathi River and the Alaknanda River.

The Ganges allowed civilizations to develop and flourish along the waterway for centuries. It has the civilization of Vedic period. The arrival of Aryans coincided with the introduction of Vedic, script. The Vedas originated from this time, and the Ganges civilization is often called the Vedic period. A wealth of literature of this period gives a glimpse of the social organization of the time, the first dominant activity was cattle breeding, and the cattle was main commodity. It is the complete river which emerges from the Himalayas and falls on Bay of Bengal. This is the national river of India. It has both scientific and spiritual significance.