HARIDWAR

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Haridwar (/hʌrɪˈdwɑːr/; About this soundlocal pronunciation (help·info), also spelled Hardwar, is an ancient city and municipality in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India. According to popular legend, it was here that Goddess Ganga when Lord Shiva released the mighty river from the locks of his hair. The River Ganga, after flowing for 253 kilometres (157 mi) from its source at Gaumukh at the edge of the Gangotri Glacier, enters the Gangetic Plain for the first time at Haridwar, which gave the city its ancient name, Gangadwára.
Haridwar or Hardwar is regarded as one of the seven holiest places (Sapta Puri) to Hindus. According to the Samudra manthan,[3] Haridwar along with Ujjain, Nashik and Prayagraj (Allahabad) is one of four sites where drops of Amrit, the elixir of immortality, accidentally spilled over from the pitcher while being carried by the celestial bird Garuda. This is manifested in the Kumbha Mela, which is celebrated every 12 years in Haridwar. During the Haridwar Kumbh Mela, millions of pilgrims, devotees, and tourists congregate in Haridwar to perform ritualistic bathing on the banks of the river Ganges to wash away their sins to attain Moksha. Brahma Kund, the spot where the Amrit fell, is located at Har ki Pauri (literally, "footsteps of the Lord") and is considered to be the most sacred ghat of Haridwar.[4] It is also the primary center of the Kanwar pilgrimage, in which millions of participants gather sacred water from the Ganga and carry it across hundreds of miles to dispense as offerings in Śiva shrines.[5]
Haridwar is the headquarters and the largest city of the district. Today, the city is developing beyond its religious importance, with the fast developing industrial estate of State Industrial Development Corporation of Uttarakhand(SIDCUL), and the close by township of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited as well as its affiliated ancillaries.
Haridwar presents a kaleidoscope of Indian culture and development. In the sacred writings it has been differently specified as Kapilsthan, Gangadwar and Mayapuri. It is additionally a passage indicate the Char Dham (the four principle focuses of journey in Uttarakhand viz, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri), subsequently, Shaivaites (adherents of Lord Shiva) and Vaishnavites (devotees of Lord Vishnu) call this place Hardwar and Haridwar individually, relating to Har being Shiv and Hari being Vishnu.

Etymology[edit]

Meandering main Ganga river, known here as Neel Dhara (left) and the Ganga canal (right), passing through Haridwar
The name of the town has two spellings: Hardwar and Haridwar. Each of these names has its own connotation.
Hari means "Lord Vishnu". So, Haridwar stands for " The Gateway to Lord Vishnu". In order to reach Badrinath, one of the four Char Dhams, with a temple of Lord Vishnu, Haridwar is a typical place to start a pilgrim's journey. Therefore, the name Haridwar.
On the other hand, in Sanskrit, Hara means "Lord Shiva" and Dwara means "gate" or "gateway".[3] Hence, Hardwarstands for "Gateway to Lord Shiva". Hardwar has been a typical place to start a pilgrim's journey in order to reach Mount Kailash, the eternal abode of Lord Shiva, Kedarnath, the northernmost Jyotirlinga and one of the sites of the smaller Char Dham pilgrimage circuit and Gaumukh, the source of River Ganga. Har ki Pauri or footsteps of Lord Shiva is considered the most sacred site in Hardwar.
Haridwar is also known as the home of Devi Sati and the palace of her father Daksha. In ancient times, the town was also referred to as Gangadwára (गंगाद्वार), the place where the Ganges descends to the plains.[6]
In the annotations to her poem 'Hurdwar. A Place of Hindoo Pilgrimage', Letitia Elizabeth Landon provides information on this name derivation, and also the story of the supposed origin of the 'River Ganges'.

Seven holy places[edit]

Main article: Sapta Puri
"Ayodhyā Mathurā Māyā Kāśī Kāñcī Avantikā
Purī Dvārāvatī caiva saptaitā mokṣadāyikāḥ" – Garuḍa Purāṇa I XVI .14
Ayodhya, Mathura, Haridwar, Kasi, Kanchi, Avantika and Dwaraka are the seven holy places.[7]
Note the use of puranic name 'Maya' for Haridwar. As also the inter-change usage of Puri and Dwaraka.
The Garuḍa Purāṇa enumerates seven cities as giver of Moksha. Haridwar is said to be one of the seven most holy Hindu places (=Kṣetra) in India, with Varanasiusually considered the holiest. A Kṣetra is a sacred ground, a field of active power, a place where Moksha, final release can be obtained.

History[edit]

Main article: Haridwar in scriptures
Prince Bhagiratha in penance for the salvation of 60,000 of his ancestors.
In the scriptures, Haridwar has been variously mentioned as Kapilasthana, Gangadwara[8] and Mayapuri. It is also an entry point to the Char Dham (the four main centres of pilgrimage in Uttarakhand viz, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri), hence, Shaivaites (followers of Lord Shiva) and Vaishnavites (followers of Lord Vishnu) call this place Hardwar and Haridwar respectively, corresponding to Hara being Shiv and Hari being Vishnu.[8][9][10]
Gangadhara, Shivabearing the Descent of the Ganges River as Parvatiand Bhagiratha, and the bull Nandi look on. circa 1740
"O Yudhishthira, the spot where Ganga rusheth past, cleaving the foremost of mountains which is frequented by Gandharvas and Yakshas and Rakshasas and Apsaras, and inhabited by hunters, and Kinnaras, is called Gangadwara (Haridwar). O King, Sanatkumararegardeth that spot visited by Brahmarshis, as also the TirthaKanakhala (that is near to it), as sacred."
The Mahabharata, Vana Parva: Tirthayatra Parva: Section XC.[11]
In the Vanaparva of the Mahabharat, where sage Dhaumya tells Yudhishthira about the tirthas of India, Gangadwar, i.e., Haridwar and Kankhal, have been referred to,[12] the text also mentions that AgastyaRishi did penance here, with the help of his wife, Lopamudra (the princess of Vidharba).[13]
Sage Kapila is said to have an ashram here giving it, its ancient name, Kapila or Kapilasthana.[14]
The legendary King, Bhagiratha, the great-grandson of the Suryavanshi King Sagar (an ancestor of Rama),[15] is said to have brought the river Ganges down from heaven, through years of penance in Satya Yuga, for the salvation of 60,000 of his ancestors from the curse of the saint Kapila, a tradition continued by thousands of devout Hindus, who brings the ashes of their departed family members, in hope of their salvation.[16] Lord Vishnu is said to have left his footprint on the stone that is set in the upper wall of Har Ki Pauri, where the Holy Ganges touches it at all times.
Haridwar came under the rule of the Maurya Empire (322–185 BCE), and later under the Kushan Empire (c. 1st–3rd centuries). Archaeological findings have proved that terra cotta culture dating between 1700 BCE and 1200 BCE existed in this region.[10] First modern era written evidence of Haridwar is found in the accounts of a Chinese traveller, Huan Tsang, who visited India in 629 AD.[17]during the reign of King Harshavardhan (590–647) records Haridwar as 'Mo-yu-lo', the remains of which still exist at Mayapur, a little to the south of the modern town. Among the ruins are a fort and three temples, decorated with broken stone sculptures,[9][18][19] he also mentions the presence of a temple, north of Mo-yu-lo called 'Gangadwara', Gateway of the Ganges.[9]

Head of the Ganges Canal, Haridwar, ca 1894–1898.
Haridwar from opposite bank of the Ganges, 1866
The city also fell to the Central Asian conqueror Timur Lang (1336–1405) on 13 January 1399.[20]
During his visit to Haridwar, first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak (1469–1539) bathed at 'Kushawart Ghat', wherein the famous, 'watering the crops' episode took place,[21][22] his visit is today commemorated by a gurudwara (Gurudwara Nanakwara), according to two Sikh Janamsakhis, this visit took place on the Baisakhi day in 1504 AD, he later also visited Kankhal en route to Kotdwara in Garhwal.[23] Pandas of the Haridwar have been known to keep genealogy records of most of the Hindu population. Known as vahis, these records are updated on each visit to the city, and are a repository of vast family trees of family in North India.[23]
Ain-e-Akbari, written by Abul Fazal in the 16th century during the reign of Mughal Emperor Akbar, refers to it as Maya (Mayapur), known as Hardwar on the Ganges", as seven sacred cities of Hindus. It further mentions it is eighteen kos(each approx. 2 km) in length, and large numbers of pilgrims assemble on the 10th of Chaitra.[24] It also mentions that during his travels and also while at home, Mughal Emperor, Akbar drank water from the Ganges river, which he called 'the water of immortality'. Special people were stationed at Sorun and later Haridwar to dispatch water, in sealed jars, to wherever he was stationed[25]
During the Mughal period, there was mint for Akbar's copper coinage at Haridwar. It is said that Raja Man Singh of Amber, laid that foundation of the present day city of Haridwar and also renovated the ghats at Har Ki Pauri. After his death, his ashes are also said to have been immersed at Brahma Kund. Thomas Coryat, an English traveller, who visited the city in the reign of Emperor Jahangir(1596–1627) mentions it as 'Haridwara', the capital of Shiva.[9]
Being one of the oldest living cities, Haridwar finds its mention in the ancient Hindu scriptures as it weaves through the life and time stretching from the period of the Buddha, to the more recent British advent. Haridwar has a rich and ancient religious and cultural heritage. It still has many old havelis and mansions bearing exquisite murals and intricate stonework.
One of the two major dams on the river Ganges, the Bhimgoda, is situated here. Built in the 1840s, it diverts the waters of the Ganges to the Upper Ganges Canal, which irrigated the surrounding lands. Though this caused severe deterioration to the Ganges water flow, and is a major cause for the decay of the Ganges as an inland waterway, which till the 18th century was used heavily by the ships of the East India Company, and a town as high up as Tehri, was considered a port city The headworks of the Ganges Canal system are located in Haridwar. The Upper Ganges Canal was opened in 1854 after the work began in April 1842,[26] prompted by the famine of 1837–38. The unique feature of the canal is the half-kilometre-long aqueduct over Solani river at Roorkee, which raises the canal 25 metres above the original river.
Haridwar as a part of the United Province, 1903
'Haridwar Union Municipality' was constituted in 1868, which included the then villages of Mayapur and Kankhal. Haridwar was first connected with railways, via Laksar, through branch line in 1886, when the Awadh and RohilakhandRailway line was extended through Roorkee to Saharanpur, this was later extended to Dehradun in 1900.[27]
In 1901, it had a population of 25,597 and was a part of the Roorkee tehsil, in Saharanpur district of the United Province,[9] and remained so till the creation of Uttar Pradesh in 1947.[28]
Haridwar has been an abode of the weary in body, mind and spirit. It has also been a centre of attraction for learning various arts, science, and culture. The city has a long-standing position as a great source of Ayurvedic medicines and herbal remedies and is home to the unique Gurukul (school of traditional education), including the Gurukul Kangri Vishwavidyalaya, which has a vast campus, and has been providing traditional education of its own kind, since 1902. Development of Haridwar took an upturn in the 1960s, with the setting up of a temple of modern civilisation, BHEL, a 'Maharatna PSU' in 1975, which brought along not just a its own township of BHEL, Ranipur, close to the existing Ranipur village, but also a set of ancillaries in the region. The University of Roorkee, now IIT Roorkee, is one of the oldest and most prestigious institutes of learning in the fields of science and engineering.

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