The Hindu Vedas mention a river named Sarasvatī. In Sanskrit saras means a pool or water body, and vatī (from vnt-ī, the female form of the -vant suffix) means "she having lots of pools". Sarasvati was the biggest and most important of the seven holy rivers of the Rig Veda. In the Rig Veda the Sarasvati River is mentioned 59 times (e.g. Rig Veda 2.41.16; 6.61.8-13; 1.3.12.), and there are several references to the "seven rivers" (e. g. RV 2.12; RV 4.28; RV 8.24). In the Rig Veda (7.95.2, tr. Griffith): This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... The Vedas (also referred to as Vedam) are part of the Hindu Shruti; these religious scriptures form part of the core of the Brahminical and Vedic traditions within Hinduism and are the inspirational, metaphysical and mythological foundation for later Vedanta, Yoga, Tantra and even Bhakti forms of Hinduism. ... For the Second World War frigate class, see River class frigate The Murray River in Australia A river is a large natural waterway. ... The Sanskrit language ( संस्कृता वाक्) is one of the earliest attested members of the Indo-European language family and is not only a classical language, but also an official language of India. ... The Rig Veda ऋग्वेद (Sanskrit ṛc praise + veda knowledge) is the earliest of the four Hindu religious scriptures known as the Vedas. ... Ralph Thomas Hotchkin Griffith (1826-1906), scholar of indology, translated the vedic scriptures into English. ...

Pure in her course from mountains to the ocean, alone of streams Sarasvati hath listened.

Thinking of wealth and the great world of creatures, she poured for Nahusa her milk and fatness.

Rig Veda 7.36.6 calls it "the Seventh, Mother of Floods" sárasvatī saptáthī síndhumātā. RV 2.41.16 ámbitame nádītame dévitame sárasvati "best mother, best river, best goddess" expresses the importance and reverence of the Vedic religion for the Sarasvati river.

The river has been identified with various present-day or historical rivers, particularly the Ghaggar-Hakra river in India and Pakistan; this course continues into the Raini Nala riverbed. Other suggestions include the Helmand River in Afghanistan, which historically bore the name Harahvaiti, which is the Avestan form for "Sarasvati". However, this Afghan river flows into a small lake in the Iranian plateau, which does not match the Rig Vedic description of a "sea going" river. There is also a river in Iran which has been given this name. Sometimes it also means the heavenly 'river' - i.e. the milky way - and it is also personified as a goddess. The goddess Sarasvati was originally a personification of this river, and later developed an identity and meaning independently from the river. There is also a present-day Saraswati River in India which appears to be one of the branches of the ancient river. The Ghaggar is a seasonal river in India, flowing when water is available from monsoon rains. ... The Hakra is the dried-out channel of a river in Pakistan that until about 2000 BC - 1500 BC was the continuation of the Ghaggar River in India. ... The Helmand River is the longest river in Afghanistan. ... Yasna 28. ... the milkey way is the smallest in the local group. ... This article is about Saraswati, the Hindu goddess. ... The present-day Saraswati (or Sarasvati) is a small river in Haryana in India that flows into the Ghaggar River. ...

Satellite photography has shown that there was indeed a large river in the northwest of India, that dried up between ca. 2500 to 2000 B.C. The river bed was three to ten kilometers wide. The Sarasvati once drained the Sutlej and Yamuna Rivers. The Sutlej and Yamuna Rivers have changed their courses over the time. (see for example Studies from the Post-Graduate Research Institute of Deccan College, Pune, and the Central Arid Zone Research Institute (CAZRI), Jodhpur. Confirmed by use of MSS (multi-spectoral scanner) and Landsat satellite photography. Note MLBD NEWSLETTER (Delhi, India: Motilal Banarsidass), Nov. 1989.) Yamuna is a major river of northern India, with a total length of around 1370 km. ...

Paleobotanical information documents the aridity that developed after the drying up of the river. (Gadgil and Thapar 1990 and references therein). The disappearance of the river may have been caused by earthquakes. It may have been one of the causes for the decline of the Indus Valley Civilization. The largest concentration of Indus Valley sites appears to be east of the Indus, at and near the dried-up Ghaggar-Hakra riverbed. Global earthquake epicenters, 1963–1998 An earthquake is a trembling or a shaking movement of the Earths surface. ... The Indus Valley Civilization existed along the Indus River in present-day Pakistan. ... The Indus is a river; the Indus River. ...

The identification of the 'original' Saraswati river has become embroiled in debates about the age of the Vedas and of the relation between Aryan culture and the Indus Valley civilization (IVC). In the enumeration of the rivers in Rigveda 10.75.05, the order is Ganga, Yamuna, Sarasvati, Shutudri (= Sutlej). Hence it is quite clear that one of the rivers given the name 'Sarasvati' flowed through Haryana and Rajasthan. The question is whether this is the primal 'Sarasvati'. The Rigveda says that this Sarasvati rises in the mountains and ends up in the sea (e.g. RV 7.95.2 quoted above); it describes a man sailing up the Sarasvati from the sea to the mountains. The Brahmanas, which are considered later texts than the Rig Veda, mention that the Sarasvati flowed through a desert; the Puranas like Bhagavata Purana mention her too and the Mahabharata says that the Sarasvati dried up in a desert, possibly the Thar Desert. Aryan is an English word derived from the Vedic Sanskrit and Avestan term arya, meaning noble or lord. In the 19th century, the term was often used to refer to what we now call the Proto-Indo-Europeans, and, by extension, to Indo-European speaking peoples as a whole. ... The Indus Valley Civilization existed along the Indus River in present-day Pakistan. ... The Rig Veda ऋग्वेद (Sanskrit ṛc praise + veda knowledge) is the earliest of the four Hindu religious scriptures known as the Vedas. ... The River Ganges (Ganga in Indian languages) is a major river in northern India. ... Yamuna is a major river of northern India, with a total length of around 1370 km. ... Haryana (हरयाणा) is a state in northwest India. ... Rajasthan (राजस्थान) is the geographically largest state in northwestern India. ... The Rig Veda ऋग्वेद (Sanskrit ṛc praise + veda knowledge) is the earliest of the four Hindu religious scriptures known as the Vedas. ... The Brahmanas (Brahmin Books) are part of the Hindu Shruti; these religious scriptures focus on sacrifice -- particularly that of horses and soma. ... The Puranas are part of Hindu Smriti; these religious scriptures discuss devotion and mythology. ... The Bhagavata Purana (sometimes rendered as Bhagavatha Purana), also known as the Srimad Bhagavatam, written c. ... The Mahabharata (Devanagari: महाभारत, phonetically Mahābhārata - see note), sometimes just called Bharata, is one of the two major ancient Sanskrit epics of India, the other being the Ramayana. ... The Thar Desert (also known as the Great Indian Desert) is a desert mainly located in the state of Rajasthan in northwest India. ...

Recent finding suggest the Ghaggar-Hakra river did once flow in great strength, and was of major importance to the Indus Valley Civilization, but that it dried up due to the redirection of its tributaries, and loss of rainfall in much of its catchment area due to deforestation and overgrazing in what is now Pakistan, at the latest in 1900 BC, but perhaps much earlier. Clearly this is of great importance in establishing the date of the Rigveda. If the Ghaggar-Hakra river is the original Sarasvati of the Vedas, it implies that the Vedic Aryans were resident in the Punjab as early as the late 3rd millennium BC. If it was the Afghan Helmand river, it may support an Aryan migration at a later time, around the mid 2nd millennium BC. (According to National Geographic maps, the Sarasvati river flowed through the Indus valley. National Geographic Vol.197, No.6, Page114) The Indus Valley Civilization existed along the Indus River in present-day Pakistan. ... The Rig Veda ऋग्वेद (Sanskrit ṛc praise + veda knowledge) is the earliest of the four Hindu religious scriptures known as the Vedas. ... (4th millennium BC – 3rd millennium BC – 2nd millennium BC – other millennia) Events Syria: Foundation of the city of Mari (29th century BC ) Iraq: Creation of the Kingdom of Elam Germination of the Bristlecone pine tree Methuselah about 2700 BC, the oldest known tree still living now Dynasty of Lagash in... (3rd millennium BC – 2nd millennium BC – 1st millennium BC – other millennia) Events Second dynasty of Babylon First Bantu migrations from west Africa The Cushites drive the original inhabitants from Ethiopia, and establish trade relations with Egypt. ...

Along the course of the Ghaggar-Hakra river are many archaeological sites of the Indus Valley Civilization; but not further south than the middle of Bahawalpur district. It could be that the permanent Sarasvati ended there, and its water only reached the sea in very wet rainy seasons. It may also have been affected by much of its water being taken for irrigation. The Indus Valley Civilization existed along the Indus River in present-day Pakistan. ... Bahawalpur is a city of Pakistan (1998 pop. ...

In the Manu Samhita (II.17-18), the sage Manu, escaping from a flood, founded the Vedic culture between the Sarasvati and Drishadvati rivers. In the Shatapatha Brahmana there is a description of the God Agni burning out rivers, which may be a reference to the drying up of rivers. Indra was the river deity of the Sarasvati river, the disappearance of the Sarasvati river may have been one of the causes for the diminishing popularity of Indra in Vedic culture. Indra may have been "replaced" by the similar deity Shiva, who is the river deity of the Ganges. The Manu Smriti or Laws of Manu, is one of the eighteen Smritis of the Dharma Sastra (or laws of righteous conduct), written c. ... Manu has several meanings: A title in Hindu mythology; see Manu (Hinduism) The Manu River in Peru The Manu National Park national biosphere reserve, also in Peru Manu, capital of the Manu province in the Madre de Dios region of Peru. ... The word Agni can have these meanings:- A fire-god in three religions: described below. ... Indra (इन्द्र), god of weather and war, and Lord of Heaven or Swargaloka, was the supreme deva of Hinduism during the early Vedic period. ...

External links

• Saraswati – the ancient river lost in the desert by A. V. Sankaran
• Articles on the Saraswati
• Sarasvati-Sindhu civilization and Sarasvati River
• Recent Research on the Sarasvati River
• How old is the Rig Veda?
• The Saraswati: Where lies the mystery by Saswati Paik