Descent of the Ganges: Masterpiece of the Pallava Architecture

Since ancient times rivers have been held scared by the Hindus. Ganga is the most sacred river of India. Sacred because according to Hindu mythology, Ganga sprang from the foot of Vishnu, flowed over the sky in the form of the milky way (Mandakini) and then fell to earth from the matted locks of Shiva. 

Himalayas is the source of Ganga. It is at Hardwar in the sate of Uttarakhand that this holy river debouches on the plain, known as the Gangetic plain. Ganga joins the Bay of Bengal at Ganga Sagar in West Bengal where it forms a large delta. 

Ganga is mentioned only once in a late hymn of Rigveda, the earliest of the Vedas. It seems that during the Rigvedic period, the Aryans had not expanded beyond Yamuna. 

The relief of "The Descent of the Ganges", also known as Arjuna's Penance, in the rock-cut temples of Mamallapuram (Tami Nadu), now known as Mahabalipuram, is the most striking of the sculptures for which the Pallavas are known all over the world. 

Covering a rock face of over90 feet long and 40 feet high, Ganga is watched on either side by gods, demigods, ascetics and elephants as she descends from the head of Shiva. The sinuous snake spirits (nagas) of Shiva are shown swimming in the waters of the Ganga. The sense of humour of the artists of this relief is representative by the carving of a cat standing on one leg and performing penance in order to lure the mice to doom.