ABSTRACT
The ancient Indian (Hindu) mythologies refer to water as the container of life, strength and eternity, but most commonly it is perceived as the purifier and site for sacred places. The three most common factors enhancing the popularity of sacred places along rivers (tirthas) and water pools (kundas) are: their unique natural landscape and beauty, the unusual physical features of the body of water and the watery place’s association with some great sage or site-based mythology. The psychic attachment to a place and the maintenance of its associated cultural traditions and water-related rituals reflect the belief in divine manifestations there and the site’s intrinsic values; this is maintained by a huge mass of festivities and rituals even today. The Ganga (the Ganges River) is the sacred fluid, an essential element for all the Hindu rites and rituals. The Ganga is known as “the mother who bestows prosperity (sukh-da), and secures salvation (moksha-da)”; she represents joy in this life and hope for the life to come. This essay described the Ganga, the river’s waterfront sacred places and related sacred waters.
