The mystery of the Rupnarayan river

The name ‘Narayan’ literally means the Eternal Man. The name is derived from the Sanskrit words, nara, meaning “man” and ayana, meaning “resting place.” Narayan is the name of a Vedic deity who is also believed to be the supreme Hindu God, Vishnu.

Thus ‘Rupnarayan’ might be taken to imply ‘the beauty of Man in his eternity’.

The river Rupnarayan, emerging as it does in the Chota Nagpur foothills, twists and turns like a snake towards the South East till it unites with the mighty Hooghly.

The Chota Nagpur continental plateau in Eastern India is all of 65,000 square kilometres and spreads through the  states of Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha and Chattisgarh.

The Rupnarayan’s place of origin in Chota Nagpur holds another mystery. This is the remains of an ancient civilisation replete with its collection of artifacts consisting of copper and bronze vessels, ornaments and magical figures of men and animals.  A civilisation that is believed to be  contemporary to Mesopotamia, Egypt and the Indus valley.

As their waters mix, the Hooghly and the Rupnarayan would surely be murmuring to each other of the Rise and the follies of Man through the ages.

We spent a couple of days at Rupasi Rupnarayan Kuthir  resort on the banks of the Rupnarayan near Kolaghat….

#shaktighosal