Saptakoshi River - Cultural Significance

Cultural Significance

The Koshi was also called Kausika in Rigveda, Nepal and Bihar in northern India. It is a major tributary of the Ganges. One major tributary of the Koshi is the Arun, much of whose course is in Tibet. This river is mentioned in the epic 'Mahabharata' as Kausiki. Seven Koshis join together to form the 'Saptakoshi River,' or 'Sapt Koshi,' which is popularly known as the Koshi.

Formerly known as 'Kausiki,' named after the sage Viśvāmitra, who is said to have attained the status of Vedic or 'Rishi' on the banks of the river. Viśvāmitra was a descendant of the sage Kusika. Viśvāmitra is credited with writing many well-known Vedic Hymns on the Banks of the Kosi where he had his hermitage — The Mandala 3, the Rigveda, and the Gāyatrī Mantra. The Gāyatrī Mantra is a highly revered mantra based on a Vedic Sanskrit verse from a hymn of the Rigveda (3.62.10).

The mantra is named for its vedic gāyatrī metre: as the verse can be interpreted to invoke the deva Savitr, it is often called Sāvitrī, its recitation is traditionally preceded by oṃ and the formula bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ, known as the mahāvyāhṛti ("great utterance"). The Gayatri Mantra is repeated and cited very widely in vedic literature, and is praised in several well-known classical Hindu texts such as Manusmṛti, Harivamsa and the Bhagavad Gita.

The Koshi (Kosi in Sanskrit) is associated with many ancient spiritual stories. Kosi is mentioned in the Bal Kand section of Valmiki Ramayana as the Kausiki who is the form assumed by Satyavati after her death. Satyavati was the elder sister of Viswamitra, descendants of Kushak dynasty. In the Markendeya Purana, the Kosi is described as the primal force. Due to the violent nature of the Kosi during monsoon season, legend says that Parvati, the wife of Shiva, after defeating the demon Durg, became known as the warrior goddess Durga who transformed into Kaushiki. In Ramayana, the river Ganges is depicted as her elder sister.

According to Mahabharata epic, the God of death took the form of a woman and resides on the banks of the river to limit population growth. Kosi resonates with the folklore of Mithila. The most important depictions of Kosi folklore are Kosi as a virgin absolutely care free and full of energy and as a frustrated wife of old hermit Richeek wandering in the Himalayas. Kosi is also invoked as the mother - 'Kosi Ma'. These images capture the contradiction that is inherent in the Kosi River as a source of life and death, prosperity and destruction; a mother and an enchanting virgin.

It is also the lifeline of the 'Mithila' region, today spread over more than half of India's state of 'Bihar', and parts of adjoining Nepal. It is the subject of legend and folklore of the region; the legend of Mithila extends over many centuries. Mithila is also the name of a style of 'Hindu art' created in the area.