Panch Prayag - The Scared confluences of Five Holy Rivers of Hindus

Prayag means confluence, Panch Prayag is sacred confluence of five holy rivers in Garhwal Himalayas of Uttarakhand. These five sacred rivers are Nandaprayag, Vishnuprayag, Rudraprayag Karnaprayag and Devprayag. These confluences are associated with the Hindu mythology and considered as scared. Local Garhwal people and other pilgrims come together at five Prayag during Ram Navami, Basant Panchami, Uttarayan and Makara Sankranthi to take holy bath. Every year thousands of devotees visit these sites and wash away their sins.

Panch Prayag, Uttarakhand

The Five Prayag Are:

Dev Prayag

At Devprayag, the mainstream of holy river Ganges “Bhagirathi” and Alaknanda meet. The importance of this confluence is considered equal to Triveni Sangam of Allahabad where the Ganges, Yamuna and Saraswati rivers joins. The confluence is named after a poor Brahmin ‘Dev’ who was blessed by Lord Rama after performing severe religious rituals. Each bank of rivers has two Kunds: the Vasistha Kund and the Brahma Kund on the bank of Bhagirathi and Alakananda respectively.

Karna Prayag

This is the confluence of Alaknanda River and the Pindar River. According to Hindu mythology, Karna from the epic Mahabharata did severe penance and gained protective armour ‘Kavach’ and Kundala (earring) from father Sun god. Hence, the name of this confluence is derived from Karna. In the vicinity lies a temple to commemorate Karna and houses idol of goddess Uma Devi. Besides, the image of Karna temple also has the images of goddess Parvati, Lord Shiva and Lord Ganesha.

Rudra Prayag

It’s the joining point of Alaknanda and the Mandakini River. Rudra is another name of Lord Shiva. Legend narrates Lord Shiva performed Tandav while playing Rudra Veena here, a dance form considered as the source of creation, preservation and dissolution. He turned Lord Vishnu to water by enticing him with melodious sound of Veena. Temples of Rudranath and goddess Chamunda are situated here.

Vishnu Prayag

The Alaknanda River joins Saraswathi River near Mana then the river flows through Badrinath, one of the scared Dhams of Hindus. Thereafter, at a distance of 25 Kms away river goes on to meet Dhauli Ganges River who originates from Niti Pass to form Vishnuprayag. The confluence is called Vishnuprayag because Legend says sage Narada offered worship to Lord Vishnu here. It houses an octagonal shaped temple which is devoted to Lord Vishnu.

Nanda Prayag

Nandprayag in the cascading list of confluences is formed when the Nandakini River joins the main Alaknanda River. The Prayag is named after a noble King Nanda who performed Yagnya to seek the blessings of God. However, another saga says confluence derived the name from Foster father “Nanda”, a Yadav king of Lord Krishna.