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As you slowly float along the river, noting no manner of propulsion for the boat in sight, the woman who has introduced herself as the river Ganges takes a slow, smooth breath in clear preparation for a ponderous tale.
“I suppose I should start at my source, shouldn’t I?”
Ganga doesn’t wait for a response as she chuckles lightly.
“I came to this plane from heaven where I once flowed freely. I was younger then and full of life and power. I was a sillier woman, more vain, less reasonable. I spent all my days in heaven exploring and running wild and free. I was a holy river, but I was untamed and without true purpose.
In those days, there were no holy rivers on Earth, and man had a much more difficult time purifying himself in order to reach heaven. For centuries, men would die and be reincarnated in endless cycles or, worse, end their cycles in torment because of their past lives’ sins or the circumstances of their death.
It was not until a man named Bhagiratha that this was all set to change. Bhagiratha was the descendant of a powerful king. In his lifetime, that king had accumulated so much power that the very gods grew concerned and kidnapped a horse that was set loose for a sacrifice he attempted to make – even we gods can grow jealous, you know. When the king's many sons ventured to seek out the horse so that their father could complete his sacrifice, they disturbed the penitence of a powerful brahmin who cursed them all to die then and there. Without proper burials or blessings, and with the curse of that brahmin, the sons’ afterlives were filled with torment. Their father prayed for years, as did one of his surviving sons, for the cleansing of their souls. Bhagiratha was the man whose prayers finally bent Brahma’s ears.
It was due to Bhagiratha’s prayers and great penances to Brahma that I was forced to come down to Earth. I was a different woman then. The plight of Bhagiratha’s thousands of damned ancestors did not concern me, nor did I wish to aid them in finding peace. It was only Brahma’s command that forced me to depart from the heavens to complete this task.
In fact, I felt it was an atrocious insult from my lord. Vain as I was in that time, I decided that the best way to spite my lord would be to truly purify the world I felt he was banishing me to. I fully intended to dispel my wrath throughout the human realm and wreak havoc on the creatures who I believed to be unworthy of my purifying touch.”
She pauses for a moment, reminiscing on a woman she no longer sees as herself and laughing at what a foolish and wild thing she was when she was allowed to run free without responsibility or worry.
“Brahma, of course, was aware of what sort of person I was and knew that I would not submit to such a command meekly. It was his solution that brought me my first lover.”
Ganga tranquilly trails off before resuming her tale.
“Brahma commanded Shiva to tame my descent so that I could not destroy the humans I was sent to cleanse. So I fell into Shiva’s hair as I came to earth, and I fall there still, throughout time. We are one interaction to create these divine riverbeds.
Shiva taught me to be calm and gentle. He taught me the value of peace and gentility. I owe the river I am to Shiva because when he caught me in his locks, he forced me to slow my fall and split my waters into hundreds of parts as he soothed me and persuaded me not to repay this insult with destruction.”
As she turns and gazes into your eyes, trying to discern your feelings on the fact that this soft-spoken woman once wanted to drown the world in her waters, you see her eyes close. She takes a deep breath and listens to the surrounding nature for a moment.
“I’m very glad that Shiva convinced me to keep this world intact. I find it incredibly beautiful here. Even heaven lacks some of the pure and unadulterated life and unpredictability of humanity’s realm. Man can be impetuous and exhausting, but his quirks are more than entertaining.
In fact, it was from men that I learned some of my most poignant lessons.”
Author's Note:
I wanted this story from Ganga’s perspective to show how she views herself now that she no longer wishes to see the world destroyed. Also, I like that the lore surrounding Ganga and the men she has loved includes Shiva as an important man as a result of the infinite interaction between the two. I preferred to write it closer to the idea of Shiva teaching Ganga to be more peaceful and give the humans a chance to live and thrive rather than his taming her and forcing her into submission so that she can’t destroy humanity. I want this to be a choice that Ganga made, one that enabled her to learn and grow as a goddess.
In terms of learning and growing, I also feel that after Ganga has accepted Shiva’s counsel and encouragement she would take the time and attention to learn something from the humans she has spared. That is why I chose to end the story the way that I did. I think that the whole storybook should read as one long walk through some of the important parts of Ganga’s life. Writing it in this way allows the story to flow into another important part of her existence when she learns from and interacts with the humans on earth now that she is here.
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