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2021-06-03T23:38:29Z

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{{Infobox holiday
|holiday_name= Ganga Dussehra
|type= Hindu festival
|image= File:Ganga Dashara Festival, 2005 at Har ki Pauri, Haridwar.jpg
|caption=Ganga Dussehra at [[Har Ki Pauri]], [[Haridwar]] in 2005
|nickname=
|official_name=गंगा दशहरा
|frequency = Annual
|observedby=[[Hindu]]s
|significance = Descent of Ganga from the heaven
|date= [[Dashami]] (10th day) [[Jyeshtha (month)|Jyeshtha]] month ([[Hindu calendar]])
|month = May / June
|date2016= 14 June
|date2017= 4 June
|date2018= 23 May
|observances=Worship of Goddess Ganga and Bathing in Ganges river
}}
'''Ganga Dussehra''', also known as '''Gangavataran''', is a [[Hinduism|Hindu]] festival celebrating the [[Ganges in Hinduism#Legend|''avatarana'' (descent) of the Ganges]]. It is believed by Hindus that the holy river [[Ganges]] descended from heaven to earth on this day.<ref name=today>{{cite news|last1=Agnihotri|first1=Sanjana|title=All you need to know about Ganga Dussehra|url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/ganga-dussehra-june-significance-history/1/691870.html|accessdate=4 July 2016|work=India Today|date=14 June 2016}}</ref> Ganga Dussehra takes place on [[Dashami]] (10th day) of the [[waxing moon]] ([[Shukla Paksha]]) of the [[Hindu calendar]] month [[Jyeshtha (month)|Jyeshtha]]. The festival celebration lasts ten days, including the nine days preceding this holy day.

==Celebration==
[[File:Ganga Dashara, at Haridwar.jpg|thumb|left|Ganga Dussehra at [[Haridwar]] in 2005]]
[[File:Ganga2019.jpg|thumb|Idol of Goddess Ganga worshipped in Kolkata during Ganga Dusherra]]
Ganga Dussehra is observed by Hindus mainly in the states of [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[Uttarakhand]], [[Bihar]], and [[West Bengal]], where the river flows. [[Haridwar]], [[Varanasi]], [[Garhmukteshwar]], [[Rishikesh]], [[Prayagraj]], and [[Patna]] are the main locations of the celebrations,<ref>{{cite news|title=Country celebrates Ganga Dussehra today, devotees to take holy dip|url=http://post.jagran.com/country-celebrates-ganga-dussehra-today-devotees-to-take-holy-dip-1338434794|accessdate=5 July 2016|work=JagranPost|date=31 May 2012}}</ref> where devotees gather at the banks of the Ganges and perform [[aarti]]s (a religious ritual in which a light lamp is moved clockwise circularly in front of a deity as a part of prayer) to the river. Taking a dip in the river on this day is believed to bring the devotee to a state of [[Ritual purification#Hinduism|purification]] and also heal any physical ailments he may have.<ref name=today/> In [[Sanskrit]], ''dasha'' means ten and ''hara'' means destroy; thus bathing in the river during these ten days is believed to rid the person of ten [[sin#Hinduism|sin]]s or, alternatively, ten [[Reincarnation#Hinduism|lifetime]]s of sins.{{sfn|Eck|1998|p=144}}

On the same day, the river [[Yamuna]] is also worshipped and [[kite]]-flying events are organized. Devotees take a holy dip in the Yamuna at places like [[Mathura]], [[Vrindavan]], and [[Bateshwar, Uttar Pradesh|Bateshwar]], and give offerings of watermelon and cucumber.<ref>{{cite news|title=Thousands take dip in Yamuna on occasion of Ganga Dussehra despite alarming pollution levels|url=http://www.firstpost.com/india/thousands-take-holy-dip-in-yamuna-on-occasion-of-ganga-dussehra-in-mathura-vrindavan-3517357.html|accessdate=19 June 2017|work=Firstpost|date=4 June 2017}}</ref> They distribute drinks such as [[lassi]], [[sharbat]] and [[shikanjvi|shikanji]].<ref name=today/>

In 2017, an estimated 15 [[lakh]] people celebrated the festival in Haridwar.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Jaiswal|first1=Sheo S|title=8 drown during Ganga Dussehra celebrations in Haridwar|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/8-drown-during-ganga-dussehra-celebrations-in-haridwar/articleshow/59005752.cms|accessdate=19 June 2017|work=The Times of India|date=6 June 2017}}</ref> At the [[Dashashwamedh Ghat]] in Varanasi, several rituals such as deep daan (offering of floating [[Diya (lamp)|diya]]s to the river) and maha aarti are conducted.<ref>{{cite news|title=Religious rituals mark Ganga Dussehra|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/varanasi/Religious-rituals-mark-Ganga-Dussehra/articleshow/47467481.cms|accessdate=4 July 2016|work=The Times of India|date=29 May 2015}}</ref> In Patna, a grand aarti is performed in the evening by priests at Gandhi [[Ghat]] and an 1100m [[garland]] is offered to the river at Adalat Ghat.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Tripathi|first1=Piyush Kumar|title=Proposal for brick kiln control|url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1140608/jsp/bihar/story_18488724.jsp|work=The Telegraph|accessdate=4 July 2016|date=8 June 2014}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Ganga puja]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

{{Hindu festivals}}

[[Category:Hindu holy days]]
[[Category:Religious festivals in India]]

Ganga Dussehra - Revision history

>Lexicon at 23:38, 3 June 2021