Namami Devi Narmade

The sacred river Narmada, whose mere sight can make one virtuous, is the eternal flow of Shiva and purity! The mother of the nation, on whose banks India's culture, mythology, history, religion and yoga have grown. It is the lifeline of Gujarat!

In the west of Gujarat is the Ranjanath Ratnakar. Many major rivers come from the east and merge into it; the Narmada is the longest of them. The Rewa, which originates from the Amarkantak mountain, which is about 1000 meters high, at the eastern end of the Vindhya mountain range, and the Narmada, which originates from the Mekal mountain in the Satpura mountain range, both meet and merge in front of the Mandala and proceed forward. Its journey from Amarkantak to the sea is 1280 kilometers - during this time it is known as 'Narmada' as well as 'Rewa'. The Amarkoshkar has also called it 'Mekal-Kanya' and 'Somodbhava'.

The Narmada, playing, jumping and bouncing in the Vindhya range, descends. It welcomes, accommodates and nourishes many springs flowing in a spiral for about five kilometers in the bushes, and then plunges from a height of 25 meters in front of the Kapildhara waterfall.

After one and a half kilometers, it becomes the Dudhdhara waterfall. It got its name 'Dudhdhara' because of the water that looks like white after flowing. From there, after about five kilometers, it takes the form of Sahasradhara, crashing into many rocks. So beautiful that even the poet Kalidas felt like describing it in 'Meghdoot'. From there, it flows through a rocky region for about thirty kilometers and flows between the walls of thirty-thirty-five meter high marble hills in Bhedaghat near Jabalpur. It remains in the form of Rudra between those marble hills. Also, thirty kilometers away, it becomes a waterfall and falls. The glass-clear water falls on the marble rocks, and countless diamond necklaces seem to dance step by step. The water droplets collide with each other, rush forward, and shatter into tiny, smoke-like clouds, forming a white dome! That is why this waterfall is named Dhuwandhar!

Narmada has pilgrimages on both banks at every place. But after entering Malwa, one comes to Omkareshwar and on the opposite bank, to Amaleshwar in Mandhata Tirtha. Those are Jyotirlingas - excellent pilgrimages! From there, proceed to Kapila Sangam and Kapildhara, the city of Sahasrarjuna and Mandan Mishra, Mahishmati, later known as Maheshwar.

Purifying Narmada

As it passes through the city, it also gives a souvenir of Ahalyabai and moves forward again in a thousand-strong procession. Munj and Rupmati-Baj Bahadur's Mandavagarh are visible from afar, and it enters Gujarat near Hanfeshwar and is surrounded by the waterfall of Surpaneshwar. After making cities like Khandwa-Hoshangabad drink, it now comes to develop Gujarat. Near Surpaneshwar, the junction of three states Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh is found, as well as the borders of Gujarat's Vadodara and Bharuch districts. There is the waterfall of Devnandi and then the confluence with Narmada. As it moves forward from there, the entire river tumbles down a large slope, forming a small waterfall at the mouth of the gorge. But then the flow becomes so divided that even a deer can jump in a narrow strip. That is why that place is called 'Haranphal...' Near it is Kevadiya Colony, which is situated near Kevadiya village for the work of Narmada - Yojana and from there passes through Bhairav Ghati to Garudeshwar. There, the samadhi of Sant Rang Avadhutji's Guru Dattavatar Vasudevanand Swami is washed away, the legendary Chandratirth - Chandod-Karnali, which washes away many pilgrimages, singing the songs of devotee Dayaram, reaches the place of Rang Avadhutji, Nareshwar, and reaches Kabirvad! Legend says that Kabirji cut the tooth of Vadawai and expanded the Va. But not the fact but the truth of the secret can be discerned.

It is in the remains of a huge banyan tree. What will it be like when it is not fragmented? Ask Narmada, “The brown river, dim from afar, looks like a fog! Standing fearlessly in the middle of the river!” Narmada has inspired many poets and saints. Shankaracharya composed the Ashtakam ‘Namami Devi Narmade’, while Bharuch’s poet B.K. Thakor also gave Gujarat’s first and best sonnet ‘Bhankara’ inspired by Narmada. After Shuklatirth, Bharuch. That is Bhrigu Kachchh! The land of Bhrigu! Like the Narmada-nourished myth of Lord Lakulesh’s Kayavarohan Tirtha, the story of Bhrigu Kachchh is also a heritage of our culture.

Coming up to this point, the bouncing and leaping Saritkanya of Amarkantak, the Sarityouna of Dhunvadhar and Sahasradhara have now matured. The stretch is vast, the depth is deep, the water is full, the speed of the current is slow and steady. The sea is now only twenty-five kilometers away. After Bharuch, leaving behind Aliya Bet, which covers 22 thousand acres of land, and other small and large betlets, it passes Bhadbhuteshwar behind and Vimleshwar ahead, and takes its last farewell, merging into the Gulf of Khambhat.

The culmination of a journey spanning almost half of India! A thrilling journey through mountains and forests, waterfalls, rapids and ravines, confluences and pilgrimages, forests, farms, villages, towns, and along with that, a living line of journeys across time, from the past before the arrival of the Aryans, to the Narmada project of today, a place that holds many memories and monuments of mythology and history!

What does Narmada mean? Past and present. Spirituality and industries. Struggles and Sadhana. Devotion and power. Activity and effort. Courage and peace! It is a geographical yet divine form that brings about the realization of all. That is why only one sound is heard on its banks... Narmada Har! Narmada Har!

Circumambulation of Narmada

That sound, that chant of 'Narmade Har' will be heard all along the banks of the Narmada. Because the heads of the worldly people, ascetics and devotees who circumambulate the Narmada River, chant the same chant.

The mind is very proud to circumambulate the Narmada. Circumambulation is not done by just walking and doing physical exercises. But there are rules for that too. This circumambulation is also difficult. The path is difficult. There are many difficulties in climbing hills and hills, sometimes passing through dense forests and bushes and thorny paths. Lack of necessities of life, 04, and rain, sometimes the part of wild people, sometimes the fear of violent animals, etc., but many people perform such circumambulations very carefully.

The rules for this Parikrama include that money cannot be kept along. Also, the Parikrama cannot be left incomplete under any circumstances. Cash cannot be exchanged. Here, the poor and the needy are in the same place. Some donors are in the fields on both banks of the Narmada. Therefore, those who do the Parikrama do not face any difficulty.

There is a history of the spread and rejection of Navarre. It has inspired saints, the new generation, and the brave. It has also challenged adventurers.

The youth, who had been captivated by the mysterious seven-fold nature of the Narmada, the complexity and vastness, speed and depth, rapidity and eddy, the slough and the paramo, were ready to take on the challenge. The spirit of adventure was aroused. Under the leadership of Dhruv Kumar Pandava of Surat, a group of thirteen young men from Gujarat set out to explore the lap of the Narmada. This adventure of a continuous world tour to the mouth of the Narmada, using only a rubber boat, was the first in history.

And that too from a rubber boat!

This was a strong response from the youth to the mockery of Gujarat's adventurous spirit. It was an adventurous resolution to embark on an impenetrable journey, full of forests and bushes, valleys and creeks, rocks and dangers, on the beautiful and rugged Narmada, a river of many forms. Dangerous but courageous....

Read his book 'Jhilyo Mein Charan'. That exciting journey has been described in it. It is a revelation of the many forms of Narmada; not observation but experience. We have seen Narmada from the banks. He has seen the banks from Narmada. After that, Dhruvkumar Pandya and Mrs. Nandini Dhruvkumar Pandya also trained in the field of mountaineering and achieved significant achievements. They were managing a mountaineering organization in Abu.

The sound given by Narmada is the achievement of the challenge taken up by the brave men. Let us congratulate them for their courage - with salutations to their inspiration: 'Namami Devi Narmade'!