Water is precious and yet, until we experience a drought, we do not realise its value. We find water scarcity leading to inter-State disputes and even disputes between countries. But our ancestors knew the value of not just water, but all of Nature's resources, said Malayaman.
Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar began his Thirukkural with verses on God, and then began his verses on the importance of rain. He described rainwater as nectar. There is a Tamil saying that emphasises the importance of water — to not realise the value of water is worse than insulting one's mother.
Our mythological stories are aimed at teaching us valuable lessons. Suppose someone merely emphasised the importance of water to us, without giving us examples, then we would ignore the lessons, until we actually find ourselves in trouble during a drought, when it will be too late to benefit from the advice of our elders. That is why even our stories about Gods have a hidden message in them. When souls of Bhageeratha's ancestors had to be redeemed, he had to bring the Ganges to the Earth, and ensure that it ran over the ashes of his ancestors.
The Ganges was the water that had washed the feet of Lord Vishnu. So it was a sacred river. Bhageeratha had to do intense penance to get the Ganges to the Earth. This shows that at some point in our lives we may yearn for water, and that we must therefore treat our rivers with reverence.
The force of the Ganges' descent to the Earth could be sustained only by Lord Shiva. So Lord Shiva received the Ganges in His hair, as the river descended to the Earth. But to curb the pride of the Ganges, and to teach her a lesson, He trapped her in His matted locks. So now we have yet another message from the story — if we are proud and arrogant, we will be taught a lesson by God.
Tamil poet Avvaiyar began her praise of a king by praying for rains. Those around her were bewildered. Her verse said that with a good monsoon, the fields would yield plentifully. When the fields yielded well, people would prosper, and if people prosper, the King would prosper too. Thus she stressed the importance of timely rains.
