The Narmada River is considered the mother and giver
of peace. Legend has it that the mere sight of this river is enough to cleanse
one’s soul, as against a dip in the Ganga or seven in the Yamuna. The Ganga is
believed to visit this river once a year, in the guise of a black cow to
cleanse herself of all her collected sins.
All along the river, one will be always
close to teak jungles. Apart from teaks, India’s best hardwood forests are
found in the Narmada river basin and they are much older than the ones in theHimalayas.
There
is the Chausath Yogini (sixty-four yoginis) temple above the lower end of the
gorge. The attendants of Durga are represented here. Although the images have
been damaged, they still retain their pristine beauty.
The
city of Jabalpur is the second largest in Madhya Pradesh after Bhopal. The
metropolis itself stands in a rock basin about 10 km away from the Narmada.
Named after a saint called Jabali who lived here, Jabalpur is famous for its marble
rocks.
Down
the Narmada, it is a myriad landscape—thickly forested mountain slopes, rocky
regions with picturesque rapids, falls and whirlpools and cultivated lands with
rich black cotton soil. The great river runs through rift valleys, which are
part of perhaps the oldest geological formations of India. Believed to have
originated from the body of Shiva, the river is also known as Jata Shankari.
The worship of Shiva is common in these areas, and each stone or pebble found
in the bed of the Narmada is believed to be a Shivalinga. Places along the
banks—Omkareshwar, Maheshwar, and Mahadeo—are all named after Shiva.