Often called with many names such as Jahnavi, Bhagirathi, Alaknanda, Padma, Mandakini, and Vishnupadi; one who’s Vahan (Mount) is a Magara (Crocodile), is the Goddess of the River, Ganga. She is popularly known for her purity, divinity, and holiness. In Hindu religion, river Ganga is considered a sacred river and is believed to be incarnated as Goddess Ganga. She is worshipped by Hindus, who believe that bathing in the river releases all sins and it facilitates Moksha (emancipation from the cycle of life and death). The water of Ganga is considered very pure. Pilgrims plunge the ashes of their kith and kin in the Ganga, which is considered to bring salvation to the spirits.

Origin of Ganga – The Goddess

As per Hindu Dharma, Ganga is the daughter of Brahma. It is believed that she is born from Brahma’s Kamandalu (Brahma’s vessel), when he was washing the feet of Vamana (The dwarf Brahmin personification of Lord Vishnu). According to the Vishnu Purana, Ganga was created from the sweat of Lord Vishnu’s feet.

Origin of Ganga -The River

River Ganga, also known as the Ganges, has its boundaries in Asia and flows through India and Bangladesh. It rises from the Gangotri glacier at Gaumukh in the Indian Himalayas and merges into the Bay of Bengal. The river is 2,525 km long and is regarded as one of the holiest rivers in Hinduism.

The Story behind the Origination

There are numerous stories behind the origination of The Ganges. Among the various interesting stories of Ganga, the most popular story is from Vishwamitra’s Ramayana Bal Kand, where he recites about Bhagirath and the fall of Ganga to the Earth.

King Sagar – the ruler of Ayodhya and an ancestor of Lord Rama had no sons. After a long sacrament, he was promised and got 60 thousand sons. He then decided to perform the Ashwamedha (great horse sacrifice), yagna to become more powerful and thankful to the supremacy of the god. Knowing this, Indra- the lord of heaven got green with envy and decided to pillage the horse. He then tied the horse in the Ashram of Sage Kapil, who was silently meditating over the years.

King Sagar ordered all his sons to find the Horse. The 60000 sons found the horse next to the holy sage in his ashram. Thinking that the sage had stolen it, he was blamed for the break-in and was insulted by all the sons. The assault woke him up from the meditation in anger. The furious sage with the yogic fire of his eyes burnt all the princes into ashes.

King Sagar on hearing this, pleaded for forgiveness to the sage. The sage then demanded to bring the scared river Ganga, down from the heaven to bring salvation to all of his sons. Sagar’s descendants Bhagiratha pleaded to Brahma to send Ganga down to the Earth to purify the souls of the sixty thousand sons. Following, Brahma agreed and sent Ganga to the Earth. But, Ganga, feeling offended sought to sweep away the Earth with her plunge. Brahma told Shiva to break the plunge of Ganga. So, Lord Shiva received her in his interlocks and tangled her in his hair. Ganga became helpless as the lock was so strong. Thus, Ganga then fell on his head. The river flowed through his matted hair and fell to the Earth and eventually to the underworld, cleansing the souls.
Hence the Ganga is divided into three parts. The one that remained in the heaven is called Mandakini, The part that came down to earth is known as Ganga and the part lowering the rear region is called Bhagirathi, named after the king Bhagirath.

Representation of Ganga / Ganga in an art

The Goddess Ganga is often depicted in Hindu Scripture with her distinct look. Goddess Ganga is seen riding a Magara (crocodile), or sitting on it which symbolizes the life-giving nature of water. She is represented as fair- complexioned women, wearing a white saree and a white crown which symbolize her purity and celestial charisma.

She holds a water lily in her right hand and a lute in her left hand. When shown with four hands she carries a water-pot, a lily. A rosary and has one hand in a protective mode.

Ganga frequently appears in sculpture near temple doors and on decorative relief panels along with her sister river goddess Yamuna.

Ganga – the means of purification

The Ganga is of immense significance to Hindus. Ganga represents a form of divine knowledge which, with its potency of purity and illumination has the powers to elevate all – dead and living towards the heaven.
Dying by the Ganges

The land over which the Ganges flows is considered as sacred ground. Those who die within an area around Ganga called Gangakshtrya (the land of Ganga) are believed to go to the heavenly world and all their sins are washed down. The burial of a dead body at the banks of Ganges, or even casting the ashes of the departed into its water, is thought propitious and leads to the salvation of the deceased.

Ganga Jal – River water

Gangajal (the water of Ganga), is regarded by the Hindus as the most pure and sacred water on this Earth. “Gangajal” is held so sanctified that it is believed, by just holding this water in hand no Hindu dares to lie or be dishonest. According to, The Puranas (the ancient Hindu scriptures) taking a dip in the holy Ganges bestows heavenly blessings. Ganga Jal is also used in various religious ceremonies of Hindus.

Prominence importance has been given to the holy river Ganges in the field of religion and religious activities in Hindu religion. No other river has been as much mentioned in the Purana as the holy Ganges. The Ganges is one of the holiest of all the shrines on this earth as per the Puranas. It is believed that not only man, but even the tiniest of insects get liberated and achieve salvation through the Ganga.

In the Tantric cosmology, the whole universe is perceived as being created, penetrated and sustained by two fundamental forces, which are permanently in a perfect, indestructible union. These forces or universal aspects are called Shiva and Shakti.

The tradition has associated to these principles a form, respectively that of a masculine deity and that of a feminine one. Accordingly, Shiva represents the constitutive elements of the universe, while Shakti is the dynamic potency, which makes these elements come to life and act.

From a metaphysical point of view, the divine couple Shiva-Shakti corresponds to two essential aspects of the One: the masculine principle, which represents the abiding aspect of God, and the feminine principle, which represents Its Energy, the Force which acts in the manifested world, life itself considered at a cosmic level.

From this point of view, Shakti represents the immanent aspect of the Divine, that is the act of active participation in the act of creation. Maybe exactly this Tantric view of the Feminine in creation contributed to the orientation of the human being towards the active principles of the universe, rather than towards those of pure transcendence.

Therefore, Shiva defines the traits specific to pure transcendence and is normally associated, from this point of view, to a manifestation of Shakti who is somewhat terrible (such as Kali and Durga), personification of Her own untamed and limitless manifestation.tantra Shiva

Owing to the fact that in a way, Shakti is more accessible to the human understanding (because this regards aspects of life that are closely related to the human condition inside the creation), the cult of the Goddess (DEVI) has spread more forcibly.

This cult was combined with notions of the Shamkhya philosophy and has offered the premises necessary to the later Maya doctrine, formulated by the sage Shankaracharya.

This possibility of combining, of interpenetration of two or more notions belonging to two or more spiritual systems is due to the fact that the Hindu philosophical systems are not isolated, closed systems, but complex and manageable doctrines, which may adjust and may be understood from different perspectives.

The Samkhya philosophy promulgates a primordial cosmic duality. From the Tantric perspective, this “scheme” of creation is transformed, in the sense that the two cosmic principles are considered united, not separated. This is the fundamental difference introduced by Tantra, based on a conception that favours the unity between the two principles, opposed in appearance, but indissoluble united in each act of the creation.

Nevertheless, Tantrism confers to Shiva and Shakti the qualities of the feminine and masculine principles from the Samkhya philosophy.

The idea of an act of fertilisation at the divine, purely spiritual level comes to life and is admitted in the tantric cosmogonic conception, unlike the Samkhya philosophy. The eternal and indestructible union between Shiva and Shakti gives birth to the whole Macrocosm, in its stable, static aspect as well as in its dynamic one.

The different representations in the rich tantric iconography obviously underline the antithetic characteristics of the two principles, determining a more clear understanding.

Thus, on one hand is presented the cosmic dance of Shakti on the lying body of Shiva. On the other hand, the two deities are pictured in what is called VIPARITA-MAITHUNA, meaning tantric sexual union. This sexual union is different from what is usually understood by this in the western traditions, in the sense that man is immobile, while the woman, embracing him, assumes an active role during the sexual act.

In conclusion, the Tantrism envisages the cosmic evolution as a polarisation within the Supreme Being, which is God, the Unmanifested Absolute, in its two fundamental aspects: static and kinetic.

Tantra symbolises this aspect by comparing the couple Shiva and Shakti with a seed of grain (CHANAKA). Such a seed is made up of two halves so closely linked that they seem one, and one single cover covers them. Symbolically, the two halves represent Shiva and Shakti, the cover represents Maya (the cosmic illusion). When the cover is on, the two halves are separated, but the cover goes off when the seed is about to germinate, unifying thus the two halves in one.

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The feminine divinity is a powerful entity. From mother nurturers to the destroyers, from knowledge to wealth, they encompass every aspect of the physical and spiritual realm. A part of such powerful entity is the Mahavidyas.

A Das Mahavidya is one of 10 wisdom goddesses in Hinduism. The term comes from the Sanskrit, Dasa, meaning “ten,” maha, meaning “great” and Vidya, meaning “knowledge.” Each Mahavidya is a form of the Divine Mother. In Hindu religious scripts, the Dasa Mahavidyas were created after a disagreement between Lord Shiva and Sati (a form of Shakti).

Sati, the consort of Shiva was the daughter of Daksha Prajapati, a descendant of Brahma. Sati had married Shiva against the wishes of her father. The vain Daksha performed a great yagna (with the sole aim of insulting Shiva), to which he invited all of the gods and goddesses except his son-in-law, Lord Shiva.

Heard about the yajna from Narad Muni, she asked for Shiva’s permission saying that a daughter did not need an invitation from her father. Shiva said that Daksha was trying to insult him, and so even if Sati attended the yajna, the fruit of the sacrifice would not be auspicious. Therefore he attempted to dissuade Sati from attending the yajna.

Sati was furious because Shiva was treating her like an ignorant lady and not as the mother of Universe. So to show Shiva who she really was, she assumed a different form – the one of the Divine Mother. The oceans raged, the mountains shook, and the atmosphere was filled with the wonder of her form.

It is said that Shiva began to shake and tried to flee. But every direction that he tried to flee, the Divine mother stopped him. The Divine Mother had multiplied herself into ten different forms, guarding each of the ten directions, and try as Shiva might, he could not escape from her, as she had blocked every escape route.

These ten forms of Divine Mother are known as the Dasa Mahavidyas. Each form has her own name, story, quality, and mantras.

Kali is said to represent unfettered absolute reality; Tara an expanded state but yet bound by the physical; Bagalamukhi the fierce concentration; Kamala and Bhairavi with the satisfaction of physical well being and worldly wealth; while the other Mahavidyas symbolize the worldly needs and desires that eventually draws into Kali. Also, Kali, Chinnamasta, Bagalamukhi, and Dhumavati are characterized by their power and force – active and dormant. Tara has certain characteristics of Kali and certain others of Sundari. And she is also related to Bhairavi, Bagalamukhi and Matangi in aspects of sound-force (sabda) express or implied. Whereas Sundari, Bhuvaneshwari, Bhairavi, Matangi, and Kamalatmika have qualities of light, delight, and beauty. The Tantras speak of Kali as dark, Tara as the white; and Sundari as red.

Each form of the Divine Mother Kali is a Mahavidya. The Das Mahavidyas are:

Kālī (Sanskrit: काली) ,Bagalāmukhī (Sanskrit: बगलामुखी), Chinnamastā (Sanskrit: छिन्नमस्ता) ,Bhuvaneśvarī (Sanskrit: भुवनेश्वरी), Mātaṃgī (Sanskrit: मातंगी), Ṣodaśī (Sanskrit: षोडशी), Dhūmāvatī (Sanskrit: धूमावती), Tripurasundarī (Sanskrit: रिपुरसुन्दरी), Tārā (Sanskrit: तारा), Bhairavī (Sanskrit: भैरवी)

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