1. Saraswati River
By:
Namisha Goel

2. Introduction Flows through the plains of Punjab and Pakistan
Major river of India
Rig Veda, describes Saraswati as a mighty river with many individually recognized tributaries
In the Vedic times it was considered as one of the holiest rivers.

3. What Is The Saraswati River?
Sacred river in India
Holy river
Small river in Haryana in India
River that flows in the Ghagger river
Seventh river in the sindhu saraswati system

4. The Meaning Of The River
In Sanskrit 'saras' means a lake or water body, and 'vati', means a female associated with it.
It also means the heavenly 'river' milky way and it is personified as a goddess.

5. The Mother Of All Rivers
Believed to have drained the north and northwest region of India
Supporting over 16,000 settlements
Greenland in Rajasthan
Sutlej and Yamuna were major sources
The rivers Hakra and the Ghaggar have been identified as the lost Saraswati.
Vedas describe it being the life-stream of the people

6. The Origin Of The River
Saraswati originated from the Har-ki-Dun glacier
It flowed parallel to the river Yamuna and proceeded south as the Vedic Saraswati.
The Har-ki-dun glacier produced the Saraswati's tributaries which were Sutlej and Yamuna
By the late vedic period the saraswati river didn’t have any tributaries

7. Drying of the river
Some of the reasons for the drying of the Saraswati river could be:
By adjoining rivers, Sutlej and the Yamuna
The river bed could have been choked with modern moving sand.
Tectonic movement caused separation
The river eventually dried.
intense erosion is a cause from the drying of the river

8. The Existence Of The River
We did not know the existence of the river until 1874.
The dry river bed belonging to the original Saraswati river is in doubt.
No certain reasons for its disappearance.
River did exist about 6000 years back!!
Since no one could find it, Saraswati passed into the realm of folklore.
Now most people in India think of it as a mythical river.
Some believe that it is an invisible river
Some also believe that it still flows underground.
Today a part of the river exists as Ghaggar
The rest has disappeared in Rajasthan, Gujarat and Sindh.
The river does not have a physical existence today

9. History and Mythology
It nurtured the people living on its banks like a loving mother
Ancient Vedic literature was itself written on the banks of this river.
Mahabharata describes Balarama's pilgrimage along the bed of this river.
The dry saraswati bed caused the armies of Islam to take a longer route.

10. Quiz Time We did not know the existence of the river until what year?
What is one meaning of Saras-wati?
Where did the Saraswati river originate from?
Name one way the Saraswati river might have dried
Which two rivers have been identified as the lost Saraswati?