Ganga Dashahara marked in Janakpurdham

By Our Correspondent,Janakpurdham, June 17: On the occasion of Ganga Dashahara, pilgrims have gathered at Dashrath Pokhari in Janakpurdham Sub-Metropolitan City to take a holy dip. Hindu devotees, both Indian and local, have arrived at Dashrath Pokhari since early Sunday morning. 

Ganga Dashahara which 

falls on Jestha Sukla Dashami is celebrated as the day Goddess Ganga descended to Earth. Every year, many Hindu devotees from Nepal and India visit Dashrath Pokhari on the day of Ganga Dashahara. 

After bathing in Dashrath Pokhari, it is customary to worship the nearby temple of King Dashrath. It is believed that bathing in Daharath Pokhari washes away sins, and makes people virtuous.

Jagdish Shah, a devotee from Aurahi Municipality in Mahottari, who came to Dashrath Pokhari to take a holy bath on the day of Dashahara said, "As every year, I have come here to bathe and offer prayers. 

Many devotees from my village have also come here believing bathing here washes away sins and grants virtue."

It is believed that bathing in the Ganga River or purifying oneself with Ganga Jal (sacred water from the River Ganges in India) on this day washes away ten types of sins. Additionally, offering tributes to ancestors after bathing in the Ganga River is believed to grant them liberation and a place in heaven.

Ganga Dashahara is celebrated in memory of the day when King Bhagirath, in ancient times, brought the Ganga River to Earth for the liberation of his sixty thousand sons. The Puranas mention that through rigorous penance and numerous efforts, Bhagirath brought the Ganga to Earth on the holy day of Ganga Dashahara.