05-10-2007, 11:20 PM
Re: fountain of water flowing out of Shiva's head
BhagIratha, one of the forefathers of SrI Rama, had performed great austerities (tapasyA) to bring down gangA river from the heavens to the earth. When his effort finally succeded and gangA agreed to come down to earth, she told that the earth could't withstand the force of her arrival and only Shiva could help. Shiva agreed to help and when gangA descended from the heavens, shiva trapped her in his matted hair (jatA). This slowed down gangA's descent enough to make it possible for earth to bear the force.
River gangA became important after vedic civilization shifted away from the sarasvatI-sindhu region to gangA-yamunA region.
The story of bhagIratha hints that gangA's descent from the himAlaya may not have been completely natural. Bhagiratha's "tapasyA" was perhaps his human effort to open up the way for gangA to flow down to the Indian plains. Some people have lauded bhagIratha as a great civil engineer of his time <!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif' /><!--endemo-->
His hard labour is acknowledged in Indian culture and any extremely difficult effort is called a <b>"bhagIratha-prayatna"</b> and river gangA is called <b>bhAgIrathI</b>.
Lowest ranges of himAlaya are called <b>"shivAlika" or hair of shiva"</b>. In shivAlika region gangA meanders around before emerging into the plains of north India.
Before her descent on earth gangA was supposedly living in the heaven on kailAsa mountains, the abode of shiva, in the upper reaches of himAlaya. gangotrI glacier, the source of gangA, currently lies hundreds of miles south of kailAsa/mAnasarovar region. But according to legend gangA emerged from shiva's head in the kailAsa mountain and then got slowed down in shiva's-hair or the shivalika-range before emerging onto the north Indian plains.
BhagIratha, one of the forefathers of SrI Rama, had performed great austerities (tapasyA) to bring down gangA river from the heavens to the earth. When his effort finally succeded and gangA agreed to come down to earth, she told that the earth could't withstand the force of her arrival and only Shiva could help. Shiva agreed to help and when gangA descended from the heavens, shiva trapped her in his matted hair (jatA). This slowed down gangA's descent enough to make it possible for earth to bear the force.
River gangA became important after vedic civilization shifted away from the sarasvatI-sindhu region to gangA-yamunA region.
The story of bhagIratha hints that gangA's descent from the himAlaya may not have been completely natural. Bhagiratha's "tapasyA" was perhaps his human effort to open up the way for gangA to flow down to the Indian plains. Some people have lauded bhagIratha as a great civil engineer of his time <!--emo&
--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif' /><!--endemo-->His hard labour is acknowledged in Indian culture and any extremely difficult effort is called a <b>"bhagIratha-prayatna"</b> and river gangA is called <b>bhAgIrathI</b>.
Lowest ranges of himAlaya are called <b>"shivAlika" or hair of shiva"</b>. In shivAlika region gangA meanders around before emerging into the plains of north India.
Before her descent on earth gangA was supposedly living in the heaven on kailAsa mountains, the abode of shiva, in the upper reaches of himAlaya. gangotrI glacier, the source of gangA, currently lies hundreds of miles south of kailAsa/mAnasarovar region. But according to legend gangA emerged from shiva's head in the kailAsa mountain and then got slowed down in shiva's-hair or the shivalika-range before emerging onto the north Indian plains.