Kaveri

By Smita Bharadwaj

At Kodagu, in the serene mountains of Brahmagiri, There is a magical source of water called talakaveri, Home of the sacred Kaveramma of the Coorgi, Originates the much cherished river Kaveri. Rishi Kavera’s daughter and Sage Agastya’s loving wife, Kaveri seeped out of the kamandal to sustain life. She gave abundance, never hardship or strife ‘A river that never fails’ is an age-old belief. With sister tributaries Hemavati,Bhavani and Kabini She has cradled Mysore, Thanjavur and Tiruchirapalli, Kaveri can tell stories of Chola and Hoysala dynasty, From waterfalls to deltas, she is the unparalleled deity. Ancient dams on the wide river boosted agriculture Kaveri was the queen of the great Tamil Sangam literature, Her blessings supported art, music, dance and sculpture, Like a mother feeding a baby, she never fails to nurture. Kaveri has a penchant for dividing and uniting She creates three islands on her journey daunting, The arms of the benefactress are always providing, Her boundless benevolence is incapable of discriminating. The river islands are the worship centers of Vaishnavite, Srirangpatnam or Adi rang is the Ranganath temple site, Shivasamudra waterfalls at Madhya rang is a delight, After Antya rang at Srirangam, Ponni and the sea re-unite. Kamandal- a small pot containing water Ponni- kaveri is fondly called Ponni in Tamil Nadu

By Smita Bharadwaj