The Holly River Gangga
Faith is something unmeasurable and sometimes rationally unbelievable. Gangga is among the strongest proofs, at least for those believe in Hindu religion. By our bare eyes, the river streaming across a number of countries including India, Nepal, and Bangladesh is unbelievably dirty. Sometimes we can even see human corpse or human bones floating along the stream. Nevertheless in the lower stream people are bathing, washing, even drinking the water.
For Hindu, Gangga is a holly river. Their life is not complete of they have never take a bath at the river yet. Hindu families even keep a small bottle of the water taken from the river at home. If one of the family member gets sick, drinking the water is believed as a way to heal.
The dirt in the water is not only caused by erosion along the stream but also from the ash of cremated corpses. Floating corpses normally come from families who do not have enough money to cremate the death down to ash. Regardless the dirt, holiness of the water of Gangga remains. Scientists conducting laboratory analysis to the water of Gangga concluded that bacterias or cholera and dysentery are quickly killed in the water, and therefore the floating corpses do not harm those bathing in or even drinking the water.
History has given the river its highest holiness status. In the history of Hindu, the religion of Indian majority, King Bhagiratha sent Goddess Gangga through a piece of hair of God Ciwa which translated into a water stream to swipe away sins of humankind on earth. Believers come from very far away come to Gangga to spread ash of their passed away family members to ease their way to heaven. Ancient literature says the water of Gangga contains the blessing of the foot of God Vishnu. Therefore Goddess Gangga is also known as Vishnu Padi, which means coming from the lotus roots of the Highest God of Sri Vishnu.
Varanasi is considered the holiest city to most Hindu along with Haridwar and Allahabad. Located on the stream of Gangga, the city has hundreds of temples. Interesting enough that sometimes Moslems from India or Bangladesh come to the river to take their wudhu, purification ritual before praying.
More than spiritual value, Gangga also has a significant historical value especially for India. Jawaharlal Nehru, Indian first Prime Minister written in his book titled Discovery of India that Gangga has been the silent witness of Indian culture and civilization as well as the rise and fall of Indian empires.
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