Sarasvati River 1

Sarasvati RiverThe Sarasvati River (Sanskrit: srasvat nad) is one of the chief Rigvedic rivers mentioned in ancientHindu texts. The Nadistuti hymn in the Rigveda (10.75) mentions the Sarasvati between the Yamuna in the east andthe Sutlej in the west, and later Vedic texts like Tandya and Jaiminiya Brahmanas as well as the Mahabharatamention that the Sarasvati dried up in a desert. The goddess Sarasvati was originally a personification of this river,but later developed an independent identity and gained meaning.The identification of the Vedic Sarasvati River with the Ghaggar-Hakra River was accepted by Christian Lassen,[1]

Max Mller,[2] Marc Aurel Stein, C.F. Oldham[3] and Jane Macintosh,[4] while some Vedic scholars (e.g. Kochhar1999) believe the Helmand River of southern Afghanistan corresponds to the Sarasvati River.[5]

Course of Sarasvati river

Course of Saraswati Palaeo-drainagenetwork formed by severalpalaeochannels has been worked outby different researchers in westernRajasthan and neighbouring states,which is mainly buried under sandcover of the Thar Desert and parallel tothe Aravalli Hills68. In the lastcouple of years with the advancementin satellite and remote sensingtechnology, palaeochannels have beenmapped systematically. Differentworkers have different opinions aboutthe number of courses of SaraswatiRiver. Ghosh et al.6,9 reported five,Yashpal et al.10 reported one,Bakliwal and Grover11 reported seven.On the basis of aerial photographs andLandsat imagery, faults/lineaments andpalaeo-drainage system in NW Indiahave been delineated6,7,9,1215. Several authors1618 have opined that upliftment of the Aravallis led to thewestward migration of Saraswati River system due to fault-controlled movements. The faults have been and continueto be active, registering various sideways and updown movements in the geological past. As a consequence, therewas uplift and sinking or horizontal (lateral) displacement of the ground. Under such tectonophysiographicupheavals, the rivers and streams were frequently

Sarasvati River 2

Map of northern India in the late Vedic period

forced to change their courses,sometimes gradually, sometimesabruptly, as seen on satellite images.

Etymology

Sarasvat is the devi feminine of anadjective sarasvant- (which occurs inthe Rigveda[6] as the name of thekeeper of the celestial waters), derivedfrom Proto-Indo-Iranian *sras-vant-(and earlier, PIE *sles-unt-ih),meaning marshy, full of pools.

Sanskrit sras means pool, pond; the feminine saras means stagnant pool, swamp.[7] Like its cognates Welsh hl,heledd river meadow and Greek (hlos) swamp, the Rigvedic term refers mostly to stagnant waters, andMayrhofer considers unlikely a connection with the root *sar- run, flow.[8]

Sarasvat is an exact cognate with Avestan Haraxvat, perhaps[9] originally referring to Ardv Sr Anhit(modern Ardwisur Anahid), the Zoroastrian mythological world river, which would point to a common Indo-Iranianmyth of a cosmic or mystical Sras-vant- river. In the younger Avesta, Haraxvat is Arachosia, a region described tobe rich in rivers, and its Old Persian cognate Harauvati, which gave its name to the present-day Hrt River inAfghanistan, may have referred to the entire Helmand drainage basin (the center of Arachosia).

In the RigvedaThe Sarasvati River is mentioned in all books of the Rigveda but not in the fourth one.

RV 6.61, RV 7.95 and RV 7.96.

Praise The Sarasvati is praised lavishly in the Rigveda as the best of all the rivers: e.g. in RV 2.41.16 she is called

mbitame ndtame dvitame srasvati, "best mother, best river, best goddess". Other verses of praise include RV6.61.8-13, RV 7.96 and RV 10.17. In some hymns, the Indus river seems to be more important than theSarasavati, especially in the Nadistuti sukta. In RV 8.26.18, the white flowing Sindhu 'with golden wheels' is themost conveying or attractive of the rivers.

RV 7.95.2. and other verses (e.g. RV 8.21.18) speak of the Sarasvati pouring "milk and ghee." Rivers are oftenlikened to cows in the Rigveda, for example in RV 3.33.1,

Like two bright mother cows who lick their youngling,

Vipas and Sutudri speed down their waters.

The phrase srasvat saptth sndhumt of RV 7.36.6 has been rendered as " Sarasvati the Seventh, Mother ofFloods" in a popular translation.[10] While this takes a tatpurusha interpretation of sndhumt, the word isactually a bahuvrihi.[11]

Sarasvati River 3

Course The late Rigvedic Nadistuti sukta enumerates all important rivers from the Ganges in the east up to the Indus in

the west in a clear geographical order. Here (RV 10.75.5), the sequence "Ganges, Yamuna, Sarasvati, Shutudri"places the Sarasvati between the Yamuna and the Sutlej, which is consistent with the Ghaggar identification.

Verses in RV 6.61 indicate that the Sarasvati river originated in the hills or mountains (giri), where she "burstwith her strong waves the ridges of the hills (giri)". It is a matter of interpretation whether this refers only to theHimalayan foothills like the present-day Sarasvati (Sarsuti) river.

RV 3.23.4 mentions the Sarasvati River together with the Drsadvati River and the pay River. RV 6.52.6describes the Sarasvati as swollen (pinvamn) by the rivers (sindhubhih).

While RV 6.61.12 associates the Sarasvati River with the five tribes; and RV 7.95-6 with the Paravatas and thePurus; in RV 8.21.18, a number of petty kings are said to dwell along the course of Sarasvati,

Citra is King, and only kinglings [rjaka] are the rest who dwell beside Sarasvati. In RV 7.95.1-2, the Sarasvati is described as flowing to the samudra, a word now usually translated as ocean.

This stream Sarasvati with fostering current comes forth, our sure defence, our fort of iron.

As on a chariot, the flood flows on, surpassing in majesty and might all other waters.

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.

As a goddess

Painting of Goddess Saraswati by Raja RaviVarma

In the Rigveda, the name Sarasvati already does not always relate to ariver and its personification exclusively; in some places, the goddessSaraswati is abstracted from the river.

The Sarasvati is mentioned in 13 hymns of the late books (1 and 10) ofthe Rigveda.[12] Only two of these references are unambiguously to theriver: 10.64.9, calling for the aid of three "great rivers", Sindhu,Sarasvati and Sarayu; and 10.75.5, the geographical list of theNadistuti sukta. The others invoke Sarasvati as a goddess withoutdirect connection to a specific river. In 10.30.12, her origin as a rivergoddess may explain her invocation as a protective deity in a hymn tothe celestial waters. In 10.135.5, as Indra drinks Soma he is describedas refreshed by Sarasvati. The invocations in 10.17 address Sarasvatias a goddess of the forefathers as well as of the present generation. In1.13, 1.89, 10.85, 10.66 and 10.141, she is listed with other gods andgoddesses, not with rivers. In 10.65, she is invoked together with "holythoughts" (dh) and "munificence" (puradhi), consistent with her roleas a goddess of both knowledge and fertility.

Sarasvati River 4

Other Vedic textsIn post-Rigvedic literature, the disappearance of the Sarasvati is mentioned. Also the origin of the Sarasvati isidentified as Plaksa Prasravana.[13][14]

Yajur VedaIn a supplementary chapter of the Vajasaneyi-Samhita of the Yajurveda (34.11), Sarasvati is mentioned in a contextapparently meaning the Sindhu: "Five rivers flowing on their way speed onward to Sarasvati, but then becomeSarasvati a fivefold river in the land."[15] According to the medieval commentator Uvata, the five tributaries of theSarasvati were the Punjab rivers Drishadvati, Satudri (Sutlej), Chandrabhaga (Chenab), Vipasa (Beas) and the Iravati(Ravi).

BrahmanasThe first reference to the disapparance of the lower course of the Sarasvati is from the Brahmanas, texts that arecomposed in Vedic Sanskrit, but dating to a later date than the Veda Samhitas. The Jaiminiya Brahmana (2.297)speaks of the 'diving under (upamajjana) of the Sarasvati', and the Tandya Brahmana (or Pancavimsa Br.) calls thisthe 'disappearance' (vinasana). The same text (25.10.11-16) records that the Sarasvati is 'so to say meandering'(kubjimati) as it could not sustain heaven which it had propped up.[16] The Plaksa Prasravana (place ofappearance/source of the river) may refer to a spring in the Siwalik mountains. The distance between the source andthe Vinasana (place of disappearance of the river) is said to be 44 asvina (between several hundred and 1600 miles)(Tandya Br. 25.10.16; cf. Av. 6.131.3; Pancavimsa Br.[17]

Late VedicIn the Latyayana Srautasutra (10.15-19) the Sarasvati seems to be a perennial river up to the Vinasana, which is westof its confluence with the Drshadvati (Chautang). The Drshadvati is described as a seasonal stream (10.17). TheAsvalayana Srautasutra and Sankhayana Srautasutra contain verses that are similar to the Latyayana Srautasutra.

Post-Vedic texts

The MahabharataAccording to the Mahabharata, the Sarasvati dried up in a desert (at a place named Vinasana or Adarsana);[18] afterhaving disappeared in the desert, reappears in some places;[19] and joins the sea "impetuously".[20] MB.3.81.115locates Kurukshetra to the south of the Sarasvati and north of the Drishadvati. Dried up seasonal Ghaggar River inRajasthan and haryana reflects the same geographical view as described in Mahabharata.

Puranas Several Puranas describe the Sarasvati River, and also record that the river separated into a number of lakes

(saras).[21] In Skanda Purana, five distributaries of the Sarasvati are mentioned.[22]

In the Skanda Purana, the Sarasvati originates from the water pot of Brahma and flows from Plaksa on theHimalayas. It then turns west at Kedara and also flows underground.

According to Vamana Purana 32.1-4, the Sarasvati rose from the Plaksa tree (Pipal tree).[21]

Sarasvati River 5

Smritis In the Manu Smriti, the sage Manu, escaping from a flood, founded the Vedic culture between the Sarasvati and

Drishadvati rivers. The Sarasvati River was thus the western boundary of Brahmavarta: "the land between theSarasvati and Drishadvati is created by God; this land is Brahmavarta."[23]

Similarly, the Vasistha Dharma Sutra I.8-9 and 12-13 locates Aryavarta to the east of the disappearance of theSarasvati in the desert, to the west of Kalakavana, to the north of the mountains of Pariyatra and Vindhya and tothe south of the Himalaya. Patanjali's Mahbhya defines Aryavarta like the Vasistha Dharma Sutra.

The Baudhayana Dharmasutra gives similar definitions, declaring that Aryavarta is the land that lies west ofKalakavana, east of Adarsana (where the Sarasvati disappears in the desert), south of the Himalayas and north ofthe Vindhyas.

IdentificationThe Sarasvati River of late Vedic and post-Vedic times is generally identified with the Ghaggar River. But theimplication of a river of substantially greater volume makes the same identification of the early Vedic referencesproblematic: either the Ghaggar was a more powerful river in earlier times, or the early Vedic Sarasvati was locatedelsewhere. According to Hindu scriptures, a journey was made during the Mahabharata by Balrama along the banksof the Saraswati from Dwarka to Mathura. There were ancient kingdoms too (the era of the Mahajanapads), that layin parts of north rajasthan; that were named on the saraswati river. This gives some logic to the theory ofGhaggar-Hakkar being the ancient Saraswati. During the Pleistocene period the Himalayan mountains were underglacial cover and climate was fluctuating between glacial and interglacial phases. Around 40,000 yrs BP, the presentThar Desert enjoyed wet climate and greenery. Mythological River Saraswati/Vedic Saraswati (also known asSaraswati Nadi, Saraswati Nala, Sarsuti and Chautang in certain places, variously spelt as Sarasvati) is believed tohave flowed during 60003000 BC from the melting glaciers of Garhwal Himalaya to Arabian Sea through the TharDesert1,2. Several researchers agree about the existence of palaeochannels2. According to the Ground Water Cell ofHaryana, a large number of water wells fall on these palaeochannels and their lithology is coarse sand/gravel ofriverine nature. Now palaeochannels exhibit discontinuous drainage. Geomorphological and tectonic study ofdrainage of northern Haryana was discussed by Thussu3 and Virdi et al.4. A good compilation of researchescovering various aspects of Saraswati is available in Valdiya5 and also posted by him at http:/ / www.omilosmeleton. gr/ pdf/ en/ indology/ The_Saras -wati_was_a_Major_River.pdf.

Sarasvati River 6

Ghaggar-Hakra River

Ghaggar river flowing through Panchkula in Haryana in India.Ghaggar-Hakra River has been identified as the historic Sarasvati

river by many researchers.

Evidence from survey fieldwork and recent satelliteimagery have been adduced to suggest that theGhaggar-Hakra system in the undetermined past hadthe Sutlej and the Yamuna as tributaries, with the Rannof Kutch as the likely remains of its delta. In thisscenario, geological changes diverted the Sutlejtowards the Indus and the Yamuna towards the Ganges,following which the river did not have enough water toreach the sea any more and dried up in the Thar desert.

The wide river bed (paleo-channel) of the Ghaggarriver suggest that the river once flowed full of waterduring the great meltdown of the Himalayan Ice Ageglaciers, some 10,000 years ago, and that it thencontinued through the entire region, in the presently drychannel of the Hakra River, possibly emptying into theRann of Kutch. It supposedly dried up due to the capture of its tributaries by the Indus system and the Yamuna river,and later on, additionally, the loss of water in much of its catchment area due to deforestation and overgrazing. It hasbeen proposed that the Sarasvati of the early Rigveda corresponds to the Ghaggar-Hakra before these changes tookplace (the "Old Ghaggar"), and the late Vedic end Epic Sarasvati disappearing in the desert to the Ghaggar-Hakrafollowing the diversion of Sutlej and Yamuna.[24] This is supposed by some to have happened at the latest in 1900BCE [25][26]

Painted Grey Ware sites (ca. 1000 BCE) have been found in the bed and not on the banks of the Ghaggar-Hakrariver, suggesting that the river had dried up before this period.[27]

Helmand river

U.S. Soldiers cross the Arghandab River.References to the Sarasvati river in the Rgveda is

often identified with the present-day GhaggarRiver, although the Arghandab River as a

possible locus of early Rigvedic references hasbeen discussed.

Suggestions for the identity of the early Rigvedic Sarasvati Riverinclude the Helmand River in Afghanistan, separated from thewatershed of the Indus by the Sanglakh Range. The Helmandhistorically besides Avestan Haetumant bore the name Haraxvaiti,which is the Avestan form cognate to Sanskrit Sarasvati. The Avestaextols the Helmand in similar terms to those used in the Rigveda withrespect to the Sarasvati: "the bountiful, glorious Haetumant swelling itswhite waves rolling down its copious flood".[28]

Kocchar (1999) argues that the Helmand is identical to the earlyRigvedic Sarasvati of suktas 2.41, 7.36 etc., and that the Nadistutisukta (10.75) was composed centuries later, after an eastwardmigration of the bearers of the Rigvedic culture to the westernGangetic plain some 600km to the east. The Sarasvati by this time hadbecome a mythical "disappeared" river, and the name was transferredto the Ghaggar which disappeared in the desert.

The identification of the Helmand with the early Rig Vedic Sarasvati is not without difficulties. However, the geographic situation of the Sarasvati and the Helmand rivers are similar. Both flow into a terminal lakes: the Helmand into a swamp in the Iranian plateau (the extended wetland and lake system of Hamun-i-Helmand). This matches the Rigvedic description of the Sarasvati flowing to the samudra, which at that time meant 'confluence',

Sarasvati River 7

'lake', 'heavenly lake, ocean'; the current meaning of 'terrestrial ocean' was not even felt in the Pali Canon.[29] Inpost-Rig Vedic texts (Brahmanas) the Sarasvati ("she who has (many) lakes"), is said to disappear ("dive under") inthe desert.

Present-day Sarasvatis Sarsuti is the present-day name of a river originating in a submontane region (Ambala district) and joining the

Ghaggar near Shatrana in PEPSU. Near Sadulgarh (Hanumangarh) the Naiwala channel, a dried out channel ofthe Sutlej, joins the Ghaggar. Near Suratgarh the Ghaggar is then joined by the dried up Drishadvati river.

Sarasvati is the name of a river originating in the Aravalli mountain range in Rajasthan, passing through Sidhpurand Patan before submerging in the Rann of Kutch.

The Saraswati River in Bengal, formerly a tributary of the Hooghly River, has dried up since the 17th century.

Notes[1][1] Indische Alterthumskunde[2][2] Sacred Books of the East, 32, 60[3] Oldham 1893 pp.5152[4] http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=evOZEWralVMC& pg=PA158& dq=saraswati+ river+ dried+ up& lr=& as_brr=3&

cd=13#v=onepage& q=& f=false The ancient Indus Valley:new perspectives By Jane McIntosh[5] Kochhar, Rajesh, 'On the identity and chronology of the gvedic river Sarasvat' in Archaeology and Language III; Artefacts, languages and

texts, Routledge (1999), ISBN 0-415-10054-2.[6][6] e.g. 7.96.4, 10.66.5[7] e.g. RV 7.103.2b[8] Mayrhofer, EWAia, s.v.; the root is otherwise often connected with rivers (also in river names, such as Sarayu or Susartu); the suggestion has

been revived in the connection of an "out of India" argument, N. Kazanas, "Rig-Veda is pre-Harappan" (http:/ / www. omilosmeleton. gr/english/ documents/ RVpH. pdf), p. 9.

[9] by Lommel (1927); Lommel, Herman (1927), Die Yats des Awesta, Gttingen-Leipzig: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht/JC Hinrichs[10][10] Griffith[11] Hans Hock (1999) translates sndhumt as a bahuvrihi, "whose mother is the Sindhu", which would indicate that the Sarasvati is here a

tributary of the Indus. A translation as a tatpurusha ("mother of rivers", with sindhu still with its generic meaning) would be less common inRV speech.

[12][12] 1.3, 13, 89, 164; 10.17, 30, 64, 65, 66, 75, 110, 131, 141[13][13] Pancavimsa Brahmana, Jaiminiya Upanisad Brahmana, Katyayana Srauta Sutra, Latyayana Srauta; Macdonell and Keith 1912[14][14] Asvalayana Srauta Sutra, Sankhayana Srauta Sutra; Macdonell and Keith 1912, II:55[15][15] Griffith, p.492[16] http:/ / www. people. fas. harvard. edu/ ~witzel/ CheminDuCiel. pdf; for discussion; for maps (1984) of the area, p. 42 sqq.[17][17] D.S. Chauhan in Radhakrishna, B.P. and Merh, S.S. (editors): Vedic Saraswati 1999. According to this reference, 44 asvins may be over

2600 km[18][18] Mhb. 3.82.111; 3.130.3; 6.7.47; 6.37.1-4., 9.34.81; 9.37.1-2[19][19] Mbh. 3.80.118[20][20] Mbh. 3.88.2[21][21] D.S. Chauhan in Radhakrishna, B.P. and Merh, S.S. (editors): Vedic Saraswati, 1999, p.35-44[22][22] compare also with Yajurveda 34.11, D.S. Chauhan in Radhakrishna, B.P. and Merh, S.S. (editors): Vedic Saraswati, 1999, p.35-44[23][23] Manusmriti 2.17-18[24] http:/ / www. fao. org/ docrep/ 007/ ad526e/ ad526e09. htm[25][25] Mughal, M. R. Ancient Cholistan. Archaeology and Architecture. Rawalpindi-Lahore-Karachi: Ferozsons 1997, 2004[26] J. K. Tripathi et al., Is River Ghaggar, Saraswati? Geochemical Constraints, Current Science, Vol. 87, No. 8, 25 October 2004[27][27] Gaur, R. C. (1983). Excavations at Atranjikhera, Early Civilization of the Upper Ganga Basin. Delhi.[28] Yasht 10.67[29][29] Klaus, K. Die altindische Kosmologie, nach den Brhmaas dargestellt. Bonn 1986; Samudra, XXIII Deutscher Orientalistentag Wrzburg,

ZDMG Suppl. Volume VII, Stuttgart 1989, 367-371

Sarasvati River 8

References Bryant, Edwin (2001). The Quest for the Origins of Vedic Culture. Oxford University Press.

ISBN0-19-513777-9. Gupta, S.P. (ed.). 1995. The lost Saraswati and the Indus Civilization. Kusumanjali Prakashan, Jodhpur. Hock, Hans (1999) Through a Glass Darkly: Modern "Racial" Interpretations vs. Textual and General Prehistoric

Evidence on Arya and Dasa/Dasyu in Vedic Indo-Aryan Society." in Aryan and Non-Aryan in South Asia, ed.Bronkhorst & Deshpande, Ann Arbor.

Keith and Macdonell. 1912. Vedic Index of Names and Subjects. Kochhar, Rajesh, 'On the identity and chronology of the gvedic river Sarasvat' in Archaeology and Language

III; Artefacts, languages and texts, Routledge (1999), ISBN 0-415-10054-2. Lal, B.B. 2002. The Saraswati Flows on: the Continuity of Indian Culture. New Delhi: Aryan Books International Oldham, R.D. 1893. The Sarsawati and the Lost River of the Indian Desert. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society.

1893. 49-76. Puri, VKM, and Verma, BC, Glaciological and Geological Source of Vedic Sarasvati in the Himalayas, New

Delhi, Itihas Darpan, Vol. IV, No.2, 1998 (http:/ / www. hindunet. org/ saraswati/ glaciology/ glaciology1. htm) Radhakrishna, B.P. and Merh, S.S. (editors): Vedic Saraswati: Evolutionary History of a Lost River of

Northwestern India (1999) Geological Society of India (Memoir 42), Bangalore. Review (on page 3) (http:/ /www. ias. ac. in/ currsci/ feb102000/ BOOKREVIEWS. PDF) Review (http:/ / www. hindunet. org/ saraswati/VedicSaraswati1. html)

Shaffer, Jim G. (1995). Cultural tradition and Palaeoethnicity in South Asian Archaeology. In: Indo-Aryans ofAncient South Asia. Ed. George Erdosy.. ISBN3-11-014447-6.

S. G. Talageri, The RigVeda - A Historical Analysis chapter 4 (http:/ / www. tri-murti. com/ ancientindia/rigHistory/ ch4. htm)

External links Is River Ghaggar, Saraswati? by Tripathi,Bock,Rajamani, Eisenhauer (http:/ / www. ias. ac. in/ currsci/

oct252004/ 1141. pdf) Saraswati the ancient river lost in the desert by A. V. Sankaran (http:/ / www. ias. ac. in/ currsci/ oct25/

articles20. htm)

Article Sources and Contributors 9

Article Sources and ContributorsSarasvati River Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=488781045 Contributors: 3rdAlcove, Abecedare, Aitias, Ajay.78503, Aksi great, AlphaGamma1991, Alren, Ankithreya,AnonMoos, Anthony Appleyard, Arthena, Ashrafar13, Bakasuprman, Basawala, Batten8, Belinrahs, Benzband, Bhurshut, Bkn, Bookofjude, Calvin 1998, Catherinej4, Chandan Guha, Clemmy,Conversion script, Cuchullain, Curryfranke, DaGizza, Dangerous-Boy, Darklilac, Dbachmann, Droll, Dunnob, Editorofthewiki, Edwy, Ekabhishek, Explicit, Flibjib8, Fullstop, Fungsuk, GaiusCornelius, Genie, GoingBatty, Goldom, Grafen, Gurch, Hagedis, Hemendra, Hillel, Hindutashravi, Hiranyabahu, Hornplease, II MusLiM HyBRiD II, ISKapoor, Ikonoblast, Island Monkey, Ismschism, JamesBWatson, Jijithnr, Jmoyer, Julo, JustAGal, Koavf, Kwamikagami, Leastupon, Lupo, Macaddict10, Machaon, Merushikhar, Meursault2004, Mithunrkumar, Mkbdce, Mkbdtu,Mowglee, Murtasa, Museofasia, NothingImpossible, P.K.Niyogi, Paknur, Paul Barlow, Pearle, PeterSymonds, PhilKnight, PhnomPencil, Pietersz, Ragib, RainbowOfLight, Raji.srinivas, Rama'sArrow, Rayfield, Redtigerxyz, RegardsfromMe, Riana, Richard Keatinge, Rishi 143, Rosarino, Rudrasharman, Rudrasharmen, SanjayMohan, Saraswathigirl, Sardanaphalus, Scheibenzahl, Sgaur,Shyamsunder, Sindhutvavadin, Skizzik, SlaveToTheWage, SpacemanSpiff, Stan Shebs, Stevertigo, Sumit Dutta, Tabletop, ThanMore, That Guy, From That Show!, Tiffanicita, TimBentley,Tripping Nambiar, Tuncrypt, UdayanBanerjee, Verbum Veritas, Vikramaditiya, Vinay Jha, Vinni pool, Viscious81, WIN, Westsider, Wiki-uk, Woohookitty, Yaris678, Zerokitsune, 154anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and ContributorsFile:Sarasvati.png Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Sarasvati.png License: GNU Free Documentation License Contributors: Loveless, Roland zh, Wutsje, , 2anonymous editsImage:Map of Vedic India.png Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Map_of_Vedic_India.png License: GNU Free Documentation License Contributors: Abhishekjoshi,AnonMoos, Dbachmann, Fast track, LX, Roland zh, Rosarino, 2 anonymous editsImage:Saraswati.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Saraswati.jpg License: Public Domain Contributors: Clusternote, Hekerui, Praveenp, Ranveig, Redtigerxyz, Rolandzh, Shakko, Stanmar, UtcurschImage:Ghaggar river in Panchkula.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Ghaggar_river_in_Panchkula.jpg License: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Contributors:Maheshkumaryadav (http://www.TastyTouch.co.in)File:Soldiers crossing the Arghandab River.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Soldiers_crossing_the_Arghandab_River.jpg License: Creative Commons Attribution2.0 Contributors: The U.S. Army

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Sarasvati RiverEtymologyIn the RigvedaPraiseCourseAs a goddess

Other Vedic texts Yajur VedaBrahmanas Late Vedic

Post-Vedic textsThe MahabharataPuranasSmritis

IdentificationGhaggar-Hakra RiverHelmand river

Present-day SarasvatisNotesReferencesExternal links

License