Page 23 - Sugam Sarita

authority and conviction. Rivers served as a method of maintaining

the heavenly existence as well as a means of enhancing it (Parlok). Even
today, during the month of Maagh (January–February), millions of
people, including both Indians and foreigners, congregate at Prayagraj
(Allahabad) for the “Kumbha,” the world’s largest religious assembly,

to atone for their sins and receive divine blessings. Throughout all the
Vedic literature, this coexistence and bonding have been conveyed in
a very emotional, realistic, compelling, and aesthetic way.

Rivers provide several advantages for humans, and there has long

been knowledge of the relationship between river systems and human
civilizations. Their basins are impacted by large-scale anthropogenic
and natural disturbances, which frequently have detrimental effects
on people. The rivers’ potential to be a source of livelihood and to

spur economic activity surrounding them was the main driver behind
these improvements. The size of rivers as a source of the economy
rose throughout this time as human civilizations across the country
started to advance.

River valleys provided the ideal environment for the development of
human civilizations. Even in current times, mostly major cities are
located near rivers. Because a river satisfies many daily necessities of
modern human life, places near rivers are more effective at luring

people to settle there. As a result, it aids in the growth of a city where
there are countless prospects for economic growth. Cities like Agra
(R. Yamuna), Varanasi (R. Ganga), Guwahati (R. Brahmaputra),
Prayagraj (confluence of R. Ganga and R. Yamuna), Delhi (R.

Yamuna), and Kolkata (R. Hooghly) were built and developed mostly
because of their proximity to rivers.

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