Wikipedia Trail: From Ganges to Garuda

A topic that really grabbed my attention this semester was the Ganges River! That is where I started my Wikipedia trail at the article: Ganges. The Ganges actually serves as a boundary between India and Bangladesh. It is actually so large it is the third largest river in the world! I was actually pretty shocked to learn that.

I was even more shocked to learn that that this sacred Hindu river was so badly polluted in real life. It was apparently was so polluted that the people living around it had to form an action plan to clean it up! The Pollution of Ganges stated that the river was a water supply to 40% of India's population! Can you imagine drinking water that was filled with human waste and chemicals because you simply had no other choice? The project put together to clean the river is Namami Ganga and it wasn't put into action until 2014!

Wiki: pollution of Ganges

A dam was built in Haridwar to try and help since it is the first location in India that the Ganges enters. While the dam just added to the pollution in the water by diminishing its flow, it was in a very famous location. Haridwar is one of the seven holiest places to Hindus! This is because it's believed that drops of immortality were accidentally spilled into it while being carried to Garuda

The Garuda is a very large bird-like creature in Hindu mythology. It is thought to be a deity of Lord Vishnu! The Garuda is even thought the be the Nagas worst enemy. Remember in storytelling the Nagas live in the river Ganges which is where we started!