Ganga Descends into Shiv's Hair

King Sagar of Ayodhya performed an Ashwamedh yagya, and the sacrificial horse went missing. His sixty thousand sons searched for it and reached the ashram of the sage Kapil, where the horse was tied. Taking the meditating sage for a thief, they insulted him. The sage opened his eyes, and his power burnt them all to ashes.

Those sons could be freed only by the holy waters of heaven's Ganga. Sagar's grandson Anshuman, and then Dilip, tried hard but failed. Finally King Bhagirath gave up his kingdom and did severe tapasya in the Himalayas. Brahma was pleased and agreed to send Ganga to earth.

But there was a problem. Ganga's force was so great that if she fell straight onto the earth, the earth would split apart. Brahma said: only Shiv can hold this force. Bhagirath worshipped Shiv in turn, and Bholenath gladly agreed to receive Ganga.

Ganga was proud of her force. She thought: I will sweep even Shiv away. But as she came down from the sky, Shiv gathered her into his jata. Ganga was so caught in those thick locks that she could find no way out. Her pride was stilled.

At Bhagirath's prayer, Shiv gently released one stream of Ganga from his hair. Bhagirath's chariot went ahead and Ganga followed. She reached Kapil's ashram, and Sagar's sons were freed. Because of Bhagirath, Ganga is called Bhagirathi, and Shiv is called Gangadhar, the bearer of Ganga.