Gangasagar
Gangasagar- A charming tourism destination around Kolkata
Gangasagar is one of the growing tourist places on the outskirts of Kolkata. In the upcoming year (2023) gangasagar mela will start on 8th january and will continue till 15th january. Basically, gangasagar mela starts approx 3 days before Sankranti and the devotion takes it peak at makar Sankranti.
Gangasagar Mela is known among the spiritual masses as Gangasagar Snan or Gangasagar Yatra. Gangasagar Mela is celebrated on the basis of Sankranti, so this bathing festival is usually celebrated between 14 and 15 January every year, irrespective of the date.
Gangasagar, as the name suggests, is the point when the holy river Ganga meets the bay of Bengal and many devoties worship this famous Sangam as a sacred place. If you go by history you will see this place where Kapila Muni helped King Bhagirath liberate the souls of his ancestors.
The history hidden behind the Ganga Sagar mela:-
130 km away from the city of joy (Kolkata) lies a temple of Kapil muni. Once the great king Sagar conducted Ashwamedha Yagya as wanted to get victory over the whole world, but the king of heaven lord Indra was jealous of him so he stole the sacrificial horse and tied it to Patal Lok in front of Kapil muni ashram.
After then when king Sagar’s son discovered the horse & asscued Kapil muni of being a thief, Kapil muni couldn’t tolerate this and turned his son into ashes.
Bhagirath, the grandson of King Sagar meditated for years and requested River Ganges to flow down over the ashes of his ancestors. Holy Ganges accepted this request and came down cascading from the heavens and washed over the ashes of King Sagar’s boys’ ashes. The souls of the boys got salvation. Today, millions of people reach Sagar Islands and take a holy dip in the confluence of the sea and River Ganges to attain salvation and get freedom from old sins. Devotees offer their prayers on Makar Sankranti and since then, Ganga Sagar Mela has started.
If you are not interested in visiting the Ganga Sagar mela because of the rush and that is why you want to avoid it, it still has many things to offer you. Here is a list of our suggestions/recommendations.
If you are looking for a ONE-DAY TRIP from KOLKATA then these are the places for you:-
- The Sagar Beach
- The Sagar Light House(Gives you a complete vicinity of the beach itself)
- Bakkhali(famous for its beach, Bakkhali is a crescent-shaped beach tower located in one of the most scenic deltaic islands of south Bengal)
- Bharat Seva Ashram(A small but famous ashram rum by the non-profitable trust in Ganga Sagar)
- Sajnekhali(It is the gateway to Sunderban, the land falls under Gosaba area and the watch tower is pretty famous because it gives a complete view of the mangroves and thus the name gateway to Sunderbans)
- Omkarnath Temple(This temple is dedicated to lord omkar, amidst the lush greenery behind that place has a peaceful environment)
- Kapil Muni Temple(the temple is dedicated to Kapil muni, if you want to know more please read the history behind the Ganga Sagar mela above )