Haridwar ˌhʌrɪˈdwɑːr; Hindi: ɦəɾɪd̪waːɾ ; formerly Mayapuri is a city and municipal corporation in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India. With a population of 228,832 according to 2011 census, it is the second-largest city in the state and the largest in the district. Haridwar is located at the south western part of the state. By law, no meat, fish, & eggs are sold within the city. The reason for such prohibition is to maintain the religious purity and holiness of the pilgrimage city.
The city is situated on the right bank of the Ganges river, at the foothills of the Shivalik ranges. Haridwar lies in a doab region where people speak Khari Boli, which is a dialect of Hindi. The other districts of doab region lie in Western Uttar Pradesh. Haridwar is regarded as a holy place for Hindus, hosting important religious events and serving as a gateway to several prominent places of worship. The word 'Haridwar' means the gateway to the Lord Hari. The most significant of the events here is the Kumbha Mela, which is celebrated every 12 years in Haridwar. During the Haridwar Kumbh Mela, millions of Hindu pilgrims, devotees, and tourists congregate in Haridwar to perform ritualistic bathing on the banks of the Ganges to wash away their sins to attain moksha.
According to Puranic legend, Haridwar, along with Ujjain, Nashik, and Prayag, is one of four sites where drops of amrita, the elixir of immortality, accidentally spilled over from a kumbha pitcher while being carried by the celestial bird deity Garuda just after the Samudra Manthana, or the churning of the ocean of milk. Brahma Kund, the spot where the amrita fell, is believed to be located at Har ki Pauri literally, footsteps of the Lord and is considered to be the most sacred ghat of Haridwar.
Haridwar is also the primary centre of the Kanwar pilgrimage, in which millions of participants gather sacred water from the Ganges and carry it across hundreds of miles to dispense as offerings in Shiva shrines.
Haridwar is additionally a passage for the Chota Char Dham the four principal pilgrim destinations in Uttarakhand: Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath.
Today, the city is developing beyond its religious importance with the fast-developing industrial estate of the State Industrial Development Corporation of Uttarakhand SIDCUL, and the close by township of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited BHEL, as well as its affiliated ancillaries.
Etymology
Meandering main Ganga river, known here as Neel Dhara left and the Ganga canal right, passing through Haridwar.
The modern name of the town has two spellings: Haridwar and Hardwar. Each of these names has its own connotation.
In Sanskrit, the liturgical language of Hinduism, Hari means Vishnu, while dvāra means gateway. So, Haridwar translates to The Gateway to Vishnu. It earns this name because it is typically the place where pilgrims start their journey to visit a prominent temple of Vishnu: Badrinath Temple.
Similarly, Hara could also mean Shiva. Hence, Hardwar could stand for Gateway to Shiva. Hardwar is also a typical place for pilgrims to start their journey in order to reach Mount Kailash, Kedarnath, the northernmost Jyotirlinga and one of the sites of the smaller Char Dham pilgrimage circuit – all important places for worship for Hindus.
According to legend, it was in Haridwar that goddess Ganga descended when Shiva released the mighty river from the locks of his hair. The River Ganga, after flowing for 253 kilometres 157 mi from its source at Gaumukh at the edge of the Gangotri Glacier, enters the Gangetic Plain for the first time at Haridwar, which gave the city its ancient name, Gangadwára.
English Wikisource has original text related to this article:
Hurdwar, a picture by S. Prout with a poetical illustration by L. E. L.
In the annotations to her poetical illustration Hurdwar, a Place of Hindoo Pilgrimage, Letitia Elizabeth Landon provides information on this name derivation, and also the story of the supposed origin of the River Ganges. The accompanying plate is engraved from a painting by Samuel Prout. In sacred writings, it has been differently specified as Kapilasthan, Gangadwar and Mayapuri.
History
Main article: Haridwar in scriptures
Prince Bhagiratha in penance for the salvation of 60,000 of his ancestors
In the scriptures, Haridwar has been variously mentioned as Kapilasthana, Gangadvāra and Mayapuri. It is also an entry point to the Char Dham the four main centres of pilgrimage in Uttarakhand viz, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri.
Gangadhara, Shiva bearing the Descent of the Ganges River as Parvati and Bhagiratha, and the bull Nandi look on. c. 1740
"O Yudhishthira, the spot where Ganga rusheth past, cleaving the foremost of mountains which is frequented by Gandharvas and Yakshas and Rakshasas and Apsaras, and inhabited by hunters, and Kinnaras, is called Gangadwara Haridwar. O King, Sanatkumara regardeth that spot visited by Brahmarshis, as also the Tirtha Kanakhala that is near to it, as sacred."
The Mahabharata, Vana Parva: Tirthayatra Parva: Section XC.
In the Vana Parva of the Mahabharata, where sage Dhaumya tells Yudhishthira about the tirthas of India, Gangadvāra, i.e., Haridwar and Kankhal, have been referred to, the text also mentions that Sage Agastya did penance an act showing sorrow or regret for sin here, with the help of his wife, Lopamudra the princess of Vidharba.
Sage Kapila is said to have an ashram here, giving it its ancient name, Kapila or Kapilasthana.
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