| Sarayu | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Himalayas |
| Mouth | Tributary of Ganga |
| Length | 350 Kilometers |
| Source elevation | 4150 meters |
| Basin area | Eastern Kumaon - Western Nepal |
The Sarayu (also Sarju; Dev. सरयु saráyu- f., later Dev. सरयू sarayū-) is a river that flows through what are now the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. This river is of ancient significance finding mentions in Vedas and Ramayana. It is often considered to be synonymous with the modern Ghaghara river or as a tributary of it.[1]
The Rivers Karnali and Mahakali join in the Bahraich District and are known as Sarayu River. The tributary Mahakali also known as the River Sharda in Western Uttar Pradesh area and the same river is known as River Kali in Uttarakhand. The River Sharda is the Indian International Border with Nepal in the Pilibhit and Lakhimpur Kheri Districts.
On Ram Navami, the festival that celebrates the birthday of Lord Rama, thousands of people take a dip in the sacred river Sarayu at Ayodhya [2].
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Etymology
The name is the feminine derivative of the Sanskrit root सर् sar "to flow"; as a masculine stem, saráyu- means "air, wind", i.e. "that which is streaming").
Significance
Traditional
The river is mentioned three times in the Rigveda. The banks of the Sarayu are the location of the slaying of two Aryas at the hands of Indra in RV 4.30.18. It is listed together with western tributaries to the Indus: Rasa, Anitabha, Kubha, Krumu, and the Sindhu itself as obstacles crossed by the Maruts in RV 5.53.9. In this verse, Purisini appears as its epithet. At this stage of the earlier Rigveda, it apparently was a river west of the Indus system that corresponds to Iranian Harayu (Avestan acc. Harōiium, Old Persian Haraiva, modern Harē), the Herat river. It is invoked together with Sindhu and Sarasvati (two of the most prominent Rigvedic rivers) in the late hymn RV 10.64.
Later on, according to Ramayana 1.5.6, the Sarayu flowed beside the ancient city of Ayodhya, which is in the modern day Uttar Pradesh. It was a tributary of the Gogra. This Sarayu played a vital role for the city and life of Ayodhya, and according to the great Sanskrit epic Ramayana, is where Rama, the seventh Avatara of Vishnu immersed himself to return to his eternal, real Mahavishnu form, when he retired from the throne of Kosala. His brothers Bharata and Shatrughna also join him, as do many devoted followers. The Sarayu is also the river upon whose banks King Rama was born. It is in Sarayu that Rama dips and attains Nirvana.
According to a sub-story within the Ramayana, the banks of the River Sarayu is also the place where King Dashratha accidentally killed Shravan Kumar.
It is also called a river flowing beneath the earth.
Modern
While the Sarayu river plays an important role in RigVeda and Atharva Veda along with Ramayana. Ayodhya, capital of King Rama is mentioned on the banks of Sarayu river. Sarayu river is mentioned in great details in Ramayana. In modern times there still exist Ayodhya on the banks of river Sarayu in Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is a tributary of the Ganges which meets two other rivers at the confluence (sangam) in U.P. See modern Sarayu picture
In fiction
Sarayu is also the name of the river that flows by the fictional town of Malgudi created by the Indian writer R. K. Narayan.
Sarayu is the name given to the personification of the Holy Spirit in "The Shack" created by American Novelist William P. Young.
See also
Notes
- ^ Keith and Macdonell. 1912. Vedic Index of Names and Subjects.
- ^ At Ayodhya, Ram Navami celebrated amid religious harmony Indian Express, Apr 15, 2008.
References
- The Ramayana, by Ramesh Menon (2001)
External links
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