Narmada Parikrama from Source to Sea

 

Narmada Parikrama ( From Source to Sea )  India

Whenever India is talked about in the world, it is not complete without a description of natural beauty.

Let us give you some information about the revision of Maa Narmada today.

      Narmada is one of the seven sacred rivers according to Hindu beliefs. It is the fifth-largest river in the Indian subcontinent. The Narmada River originates from the Maikal mountain ranges (Amarkantak hills) in the state of Madhya Pradesh ( India ). It flows in a western direction (east to west) through a length of 1312 KM with two different Indian states, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat India, merging into the Arabian Sea through the Gulf of Cambay near Bharuch city in Gujarat.  From the geographical point of view, the Narmada river is considered to be divided between North India and South India.

        Narmada is a sacred river that originates in the Maikal Hills of central India from a place called Amarkantak. Narmada Parikrama means the circumambulation of the river. It is a spiritual/religious tradition of Hindus that has existed for centuries, in which pilgrims begin to walk from any point along the river and walk along the river after collecting Narmadaji's water in a vial.

Narmada is also known as Reva. It is the third-largest river in India which flows completely within India. In many ways, it is also known as the lifeline of Madhya Pradesh is due to its vast contribution to Madhya Pradesh.

 What is Narmada Parikrama?

'Parikrama' is a Sanskrit word meaning circumference. Narmada Parikrama is basically the periphery of the Narmada River. The Narmada Parikrama holds great importance among the followers of Hinduism. It is considered to be a meritorious act that can help devotees attain purity and spirituality. It is believed that revolving this holy river washes away all sins.

 Narmada is one of the five sacred rivers of India; The other four rivers are Yamuna, Godavari and Kaveri. It is believed that by taking a dip in a river, all the sins of man are destroyed. According to a legend, the river Ganges, polluted by the millions of people bathing in it, the Ganga river darns the form of a black gagay and dips in the Narmada river and cleans itself.

It flows through Madhya Pradesh 1077 km and Maharashtra 74 km. 34 kilometres then along the border of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. It covers a distance of 39 km between Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat border and 161 km in Gujarat.

Narmada is a Sanskrit word meaning giver of pleasure. The Reva section of the Vayu Purana and the Reva section of the Sakanda Purana are dedicated to the story of the birth of Narmada. That is why it is also called Reva.

Amarkantak (Narmada Kund, where it is believed that the river originated.)

How is Narmada Parikrama done?

While doing the Narmada circumambulation, the devotees take a full circle of the Narmada River from their point of origin and then come around the confluence. The entire journey through the source-confluence-source of Narmada is known as Narmada Parikrama. Traditionally, the holy shrine of Narmada Parikrama is performed in a clockwise direction. During the yatra, pilgrims visit various holy temples situated on the banks of the Narmada River and offer their prayers to the Mother Goddess.

 There is no hard and fast rule that one has to start his circumambulation of the Narmada River from his native place. One may decide to do it in the opposite direction from Confluence-Source-Confluence. In fact, you can start at any random point, travel along the river and return to the same point again on opposite sides to complete your Narmada circumambulation. One of the rules of the walk is that a person cannot cross the river and go to another shore or beach. At Omkareshwar, the pilgrim pours back the water he collected in a vial when he started walking or completed the circumambulation.

 The entire orbiter is estimated to be approximately 3500 km long. The length of the river is 1312 km, multiplied by two to 2624 km and there is a lot of variety due to dams and other reasons, which cause pilgrims to roam and take longer routes. All this is covered, the total distance covered covers somewhere between 3200 km and 3600 km depending on which route a person goes.

Narmada Parikrama Yatra

 Narmada Parikrama is an ancient tradition. In those days, pilgrims and sadhus (saints) walked barefoot on the banks of the Narmada without any money or food. One has to go out of his comfort zone to undertake the holy journey. The common belief is that the harder the journey, the higher the merit.

There are still some devotees who like to do it in the old style, but most pilgrims today use vehicles to get from one place to another. Now-a-day there are basically 4 different ways in which a person can revolve around Narmada -

1. Old style, from walking all the way.

2. Using public transport such as bus and jeep service.

3. Package Tours given by Travel Agent / Tour Organizer.

4. Traveling by own vehicle.

 

Mai Ki Bagia, a small natural reservoir just before the origin of the Narmada River

   People along the shores consider the pilgrims to be a representation of God or the holy river and take care of them by providing food and a place to stay at night.

On the Ghats of Maheshwar on the Narmada River,

River state

Before walking there was a curiosity whether the river is clean? Because if one looks at the state of rivers in India in general, there is very little hope. Whenever we cross bridges over rivers or visit popular ghats, all can see that plastic dumps, filthy and drainage lines are opening in rivers! There is a certain indifference that we begin to develop and the same river which is considered sacred is also considered a dump yard. And what have we found?

Pilgrims drink the water of the river directly during the parikrama. Take a bath in the river etc. and wash your clothes. No soap, no shampoo, no detergent can be used. And one can probably do this every day with three exceptions.

Nemawar, Khedi Ghat and Bhramand Ghat. Originally, pilgrims can come by bus and vehicles to all major places.

Kalachuri on the banks of river Narmada, ancient temple of Amarkantak

The Narmada is still clean in many parts. Secondary research suggests that the condition of the river has severely deteriorated, especially in Gujarat and downstream. But at the same time, there are some areas where the river was four to five feet deep and one could see pebbles at the base! Yes it is clear,

The Bheda Ghat (marble rocks) is a vast expanse of land with fields on one side, the Narmada is wide, probably around 400 meters and slightly curved in mountainous terrain. Amidst the fields and the crystal clear Narmada waters, there is beautiful fine sand, on which anyone can lie, sunbathe and dissolve completely.

Beautiful morning on the Narmada River in Karnali

 

Shukal TirthaNarmada River.

Shulpani jahdi

    In Narmada parikrama, the shul pani bush is of utmost importance; the tribal tribe is the resident of Bhilo, where Ashwatthama also resides at the same place. It is believed that in the past, the tribal Bhils used to loot Mama Gana Parikrama residents of Amla Lee Bijasan Peacock. Katta Deer Pal Borkhedi Coolie Ghongsa Sem Late Bhadal Khapparmal Pahad Jhalakan River etc.

 But for any of these experiences, walking is the only way. Wherever the road has reached, humans have raised noise and garbage. Can anything be done about this?

Well, it is a difficult task, but compared to other rivers of India, the Narmada is hopeless. The biggest threat is from industries that are hovering around the edges. I heard many accounts from both sides - some saying that industries along the edges are not allowed to flow polluted water into the river and another saying that these laws are not being followed!

On the circumambulation route, there are several initiatives that are trying to keep the river clean by running a cleanliness drive, through many posters discouraging people from using plastic or throwing garbage in the river. One of the biggest factors here is the ritual of offering flowers in small containers made of leaves, either plastic or paper, and the light of incense sticks during sunlight and sunset. A beautiful tradition but the change in the number of people doing it and the materials being used makes it a cause for concern. Disposable cups for serving tea and food

 

And there is also a pressing concern about the increased use of plates. All these disposals are disposed of in banks and sometimes collected and burnt.

Narmadakhund in Amarkantakhil, a) Amarkantak (in Sanskrit: Neck of Shiva) or Tirtharaj (King of Pilgrimages), b) Omkareshwar, Maheshwar, and Mahadev Temple, Nemawar Siddheshwar Temple in the middle of the river - all named after the river. Shiva, c) Chausath Yogini (sixty-four Yoginis) Temple, d) Twenty-four Avatar Temple, e) Bhojpur Shiva Temple and Bhrigu Rishi Temple in Bharuch. Narmada River There are also important religious sites and ghats from the origin of the river worshiped by the Narmadeya Brahmins as the Goddess.

Mechanization and dam

There are several dams along the banks of the Narmada. Sardar Sarovar, Punasa (Narmada Sagar) Dam, Omkareshwar Dam, Tawa Dam and Bargi Dam are some of the larger dams and since we were walking on the pilgrimage route, we have not yet gone to see the dams, but the road was basically a diversion. And sometimes a person walks on the highway, about 40-50 km from the river

 Trust edges

Narmada Parikramvasis perform daily aarti in the temple. The caste system is also very deep and there are clear differences and protocols for differential belief behaviour in the villages, including for the parikramasis. Fishermen are at the lowest rungs of society with small houses on the edge of the village, first with small holdings of peasants or jobbers and above all by large landowners. Working and working in cities for a large part of my life, I was under the impression that we are moving away from these deep caste differences, but this notion has gone far beyond the reality on the ground. We have a long way to go!

Narmada Parikrama Marg

As stated earlier, Narmada circumambulation can be started from any point along the banks of the river Narmada. Ujjain is a popular starting point. Most of the pilgrims start from Ujjain and proceed towards Omkareshwar with the flow of Narmada River. Starting from Ujjain, a popular Narmada Parikrama Marg is -

Ujjain - Omkareshwar - Khargone - Shahada - Ankleshwar - Mithi Talai - Bharuch - Baroda - Jhabua - Mandu - Bhopal - Jabalpur - Umaria - Amarkantak - Dindori - Lakhnadoun - Pipariya.

 

Narmada Parikrama Yatra - Important religious place en route

1. Mahakaleshwar Temple, Ujjain.

2. Kaal Bhairav ​​Temple, Ujjain.

3. Omkareshwar Temple, Omkareshwar.

4. Triveni Sangam Ghat (Narmada-Kaveri-Saraswati), Omkareshwar.

5. Navagraha Temple, Khargone.

6. Dakshin Kashi (Prakash), Shahada.

7. Sri Ankleshwar Shrine, Ankleshwar.

8. Arabian Sea, the confluence of the Narmada River with the sweet frying.

9. Nareshwar Dham, Bharuch.

10. Lakshmi Narayan Temple, Bhopal.

11. Shankaracharya Temple, Jabalpur.

12. Tripura Sundari Temple, Jabalpur.

13. Gawri Ghat and Beda Ghat, Jabalpur.

14. Narmadakund, Amarkantak.

15. Mai Ki Bagiya, Amarkantak (one of the 51 Shakti Peethas).

16. Jyotishwar Mahadev Temple, Lakhnadoun.

 Narmada Parikrama Rules

 There are some unwritten norms or rules that the parikramavasi (orbiting person) is expected to follow during his Narmada parikrama journey. They are

1. The pilgrim should observe Brahmacharya (Brahmacharya) during the parikrama. One should conduct oneself in a dignified manner and treat everyone courteously.

2. It is important to leave out lies and wrongdoings.

3. Goddess Narmada is the presiding deity during the parikrama. A parikrama should worship him twice a day before and after a day's journey.

4. It is ideal to carry a bottle of Narmada water from the starting point of the circumambulation.

5. Due to geographical conditions, if the parikrama path deviates from the river, then the devotee should pray for a bottle of Narmada water.

6. Non-vegetarian food should not be taken during circumambulation.

7. Consumption of alcohol is not allowed.

8. The devotee is expected to shave his head and beard before the circumambulation begins.

 

9. A devotee can only rest on the floor. Chairs, planks or any other furnace should not be used to relax.

10. A devotee should walk on the banks of the Narmada, but is not allowed to cross the river.

The conclusion

     Walking along the banks of the Narmada River is such a powerful experience that words often fall short. It is like the Tao. The moment someone tries to communicate the essence, it is lost. It is a deeply moving experience and will take a lot of time or perhaps a lifetime of truly communicating what revolutions can mean to a person. Given the relationship between human life and the Narmada, it is of paramount importance to continue the conversation. More people walk along the shore, connecting with the river and nature,