Majnu ka Tila on the banks of river yamuna

A fakir lived on the banks of river Yamuna during the reign of Sultan Sikander Lodhi. He used to carry people across the river in his boat free of charge. He used to spend most of his time in prayers and meditation and yearned for the glimpse of the God. He was so much lost in his own thoughts often fasted. As a result of which he became thin and people started calling him Majnu after the Persian lover whose name became symbolic of intense love in mysticism in the Sufi literature.


One day, the fakir met Guru Nanak who blessed him and after that he achieved supreme enlightenment. He became the disciple of the Guru. His hermitage on the banks of the river Yamuna thereafter came to be known as Majnu-Ka-Tila. Many yogis, sufis and fakirs came to hold spiritual discourses with Guru Nanak at this place. Most prominent among them was the Sajadanahin of famous Saint Nizamuddin Auliya. He was deeply influenced by the teaching of Guru Nanak.


When Guru Har Gobind, the Sixth Guru, was invited by Emperor Jahangir he stayed at Majnu-Ka-Tila. Guru Har Gobind starter preaching the guru's name and many people thronged to him to listen to his spiritual discourses. The Emperor became suspicious and imprisoned him in the Fort of Gwalior. After his release from the prison, Guru Har Gobind again stayed at Majnu-Ka-Tila on his way back to Punjab. 


Thus, the shrine gained great importance and a gurudwara was constructed. There is a well in the gurudwara compound. Sardar Baghel Singh who came to Delhi in 1783 AD encamped at Majnu-Ka-Tila. He raised a small structure at this sacred place in the memory of the Sikh Gurus. The marble gurudwara was constructed by Maharaja Ranjit Singh, parts of which can be seen even today. He also endowed it with a Jagir, the income from which was used for the maintenance of the gurudwara. 


The present building was constructed in 1950.


(courtesy :http://www.indiaprofile.com/monuments-temples/majnukatila.htm)

yamuna at okhla village behind batla house:pics sent by montu

some stories of Paonta Sahib in Himachal

Paonta Sahib is situated on the bank of the river Yamuna. A Gurudwara is dedicated to the tenth sikh guru,  Guru Gobind Sigh, who spent five years here.


The name of the city is derived from Paonta meaning "foot", either because Guru Gobind Singh set foot on this place or, according to an alternate story, he lost an ornament which he wore on his foot called "Paonta" while bathing in the Yamuna river.




Legend surrounds the ruins of the old capital of the Raja Sirmouri Tal, not very far from Paonta Sahib. The palace was destroyed by the curse of a court dancer when the Raja went back on his word of giving half of his kingdom to the dancer in case she crossed a narrow gorge on a rope. 


This she did but the wily Raja then offered her the entire kingdom if she could dance her way back. She started back but as she was half way across, he cut the rope hurling the helpless girl into the stream. 


Floods followed which swept away the city, the Raja and the royal house, as a result of dancer's curse. 


Vishawkarma temple and few other Hindu temples are also located in Paonta Sahib. 

another story of why yamuna has darker water than ganga

Yamuna is visualized as a mournful, melancholy, dark goddess riding a turtle quite, totally unlike her bubbly and cheerful sister Ganga whose waters are white and who rides a dolphin. She is the embodiment of Radha, pining for her lost beloved.

It is said that when Indraprastha was built Yamuna did not flow by its side. She forced her way towards the city after an unfortunate encounter with Balarama.

Krishna’s brother Balarama, who was paying a visit to the area long after Krishna had moved to Dwarka, felt like bathing in the river. But he was too drunk and too tired to walk to the river. He ordered Yamuna to come to her. She refused. Enraged, Balarama, raised his plough and dragged the river-goddess towards him.

According to a folk version Balarama dragged Yamuna by the hair and had his way with her. Her struggles gave rise to the many bends of the river around Delhi. The story according to some anthropologists is suggestive of canal irrigation by the Surasena tribe. Balarama with his plough was their god of agriculture while Krishna with his cows was their god of animal husbandry; together they were the gods of the primary economic activities of a civilization that according to archaeologists thrived as early as 600 BC.

After being dragged to Indraprastha, Yamuna begged Krishna to make her his wife. Without him, no one cared for her. Nobody respected her. As Kalindi, she became one of Krishna’s eight principal wives. But he left her to flow in Vraj while he ruled far away in the island city of Dwarka. Still she waits for him. Hoping that Dwarka-pati, the Mathura-Nagar-Pati, will come back to Gokul. She hopes for the magic of the moonlight. The romance of the flute. The secret dance of Radha and the milkmaids. It is said that no man may join this dance. Shiva wanted to join it. Arjuna wanted to join it. Yamuna asked them to bathe in her, shed their masculinity, become women and dance with Krishna accepting them, as she did, as their supreme lord.

(courtesy:http://devdutt.com/by-the-banks-of-the-yamuna)

Story of why yamuna's water is darker than that of ganga.

Story 1

After losing his first consort Sati who killed herself by jumping in the fire-pit of the priest-king Daksha, Shiva lost all interest in worldly life. He held his wife’s corpse and wandered aimlessly in the world until Vishnu cut the corpse into tiny pieces.
To rid himself of the sorrow, the gods requested Shiva to bathe in the river Yamuna. His sorrow scorched the river black.

Annexure

Later Shiva took another consort, Parvati, princess of the mountains. Once a demon called Raktabija terrorized the world. Every drop of his blood gave rise to his clone making it impossible for the gods to kill him. To help the gods, Parvati drank every drop of Raktabija’s blood. The blood darkened Parvati’s skin and she became known as Kali, the dark one. This form so terrified Shiva that he looked away. To regain his interest, the goddess bathed in the Yamuna and emerged as Gauri, the radiant one. Yamuna let the dark colour percolate in her being. Yamuna has thus been associated with accepting the sorrows and pollutions of the world. That is why her mood is always forlorn.

(courtesy :http://devdutt.com)

water of yamuna and its sister ganga

There are manu tales as to why Yamuna’s water are darker in contrast with the clear waters of her sister, the river Ganga.




 
 
 
 
     
(pic courtesy:http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/01/1f/07/fc/ganga-view-rishikesh.jpg)

how the Bandarpoonch peaks got their name

It is said after Hanuman set afire the city of Lanka, he buried his burning tail in the Himalayan snow to put out the flames.

The snow melted to give rise to Yamuna.

That is the why the peak next to Yamotri, the source of the Yamuna in the Himalayas, is known as Bandarpoonch or monkey’s tail. The ash made Yamuna’s waters dark.

yamuna in himachal pradesh

Yamuna enters Himachal Pradesh at Khadar Majri in Sirmaur district. It is the Eastern-most river of Himachal Pradesh. Its tributaries are Tons, Pabbar and Giri or Giri Ganga.

The Giri Ganga rises from near Kupar peak just above Jubbal town in Shimla district, Tons from Yamunotri and Pabbar from Chandra Nahan Lake near the Chansal peak in Rohru tehsil of Shimla district. Its total catchment area in Himachal Pradesh is 2,320 km. It leaves the state near Tajewala and enters into the Haryana state.

The area drained by the Yamuna system includes Giri-Satluj water divide in Himachal Pradesh to the Yamuna Bhilagana water divide in Gharwal.

VRINDAVAN KUMBHA MELA

spiritual event in vrindavan on the banks of river yamuna