Gangasagar
Gangasagar
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Gangasagar

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Gangasagar

Gangasagar/Gongasagar is a village and a gram panchayat in the Sagar CD block in the Kakdwip subdivision of the South 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal.

According to regional legend, Kardama made a pact with Vishnu, in which he agreed to undergo the rigours of marital life, on the condition that the deity would incarnate as his son. As agreed, Kapila was born to him as an incarnation of Vishnu, and became a great saint. Kapila's ashram is believed to have been located in this village. One day, King Sagara's sacrificial horse, which was necessary for the performance of his ashvamedha yajna ceremony, disappeared; it had been stolen by Indra.

The king sent his 60,000 sons to find the horse, and they found it next to Kapila's ashram, where Indra had hidden it. Mistaking Kapila for the thief, the sons accused the sage of the theft, who in his wrath at the false accusation burned the sons to ash and sent their souls to hell. Later, having compassion for the king's sons, Kapila acceded to the prayers of Sagara's descendants, agreeing to the restoration of the sons, if the goddess Ganga would descend upon the earth to perform the tarpana ritual of mixing the ashes with holy water (niravapanjali) for the sons of Sagara.

Through the performance of penance, King Bhagiratha induced Shiva to order Ganga down from heaven and the 60,000 sons were freed (moksha) and ascended to heaven, but the river Ganges stayed on earth. The date of the descent of Ganga is regarded to be the 15th day of January of the Gregorian Calendar, which coincides with the observance of Makara Sankranti. On this occasion, the sun god, Surya, is believed to enter the Makara Constellation (Uttarayana of the Hindu calendar).

Kakdwip subdivision has full rural population. The entire district is situated in the Ganges Delta. The southern part of the delta has numerous channels and islands such as the Henry Island, Sagar Island, Frederick Island and Fraserganj Island. The subdivision is a part of the Sundarbans settlements. A comparatively recent country-wide development is the guarding of the coastal areas by special coastal forces. The area attracts large number of tourists – Gangasagar and Fraserganj-Bakkhali are worth mentioning. Gobardhanpur holds a promise for the future.

Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the subdivision. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map.

Gangasagar is located at 21°39′10″N 88°04′31″E / 21.6528°N 88.0753°E / 21.6528; 88.0753. It has an average elevation of 4 metres (13 ft).

Gangasagar, West Bengal has different weather patterns throughout the year, including warm and humid summers, chilly winters, and heavy rains during monsoon:

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