The ravaging fires of बड़वानल prompted Lord Brahma to summon Devi Saraswati. The Creator instructed the Goddess of Learning to carry the devastating blaze to the Western Ocean in order to
quench it. Only Saraswati was capable of doing this. The benevolent mother Goddess agreed, and manifested in river form , springing forth
from the roots of a giant Plaksh tree. She carried the destructive fire towards the Western ocean mainly under the ground, surfacing intermittently when the heat became too much to bear.
This event is narrated in several Puranas which are referenced in the specific section. All these scriptures repeat the same fact -- - that the Goddess Saraswati incarnated as a river from the roots of a Fig tree, at the foothills of the Himalayas. The Mahabharata clarifies the location of this Plaksh-
prasar vana (प्लक्ष प्रसर वन) as being near the Yamuna, where it emerges from the mountains – the place we know as Paonta Sahib today.
The ancient texts further describe the gigantic fig tree which in the vernacular is known as Pakhar or Goolar. The long lived tree species belongs to the same family as Banyan and Peepal. All these trees
bear small round fruits directly on the stems ; the flowers are rarely seen. The fig tree is sacred to many eastern cultures, eg.Chinese, Sri Lankans, Indians and Nepalese. An unusual aspect about the
fruiting of fig trees, is that it bears fruit twice a year. The Australian fig tree can grow to a height of 60 metres, ie. around 200 feet.
The injunction of Lord Brahma to Saraswati was followed up by Rishi Markanda . He carried out severe penance and finally succeeded in making the devi emerge out from the roots of a mighty
Plaksh tree, in the Plaksh-prasar vana. This spot is located on the national highway leading from Nahan to Paonta Sahib, and the gigantic Fig tree is standing there at Jogi vana , with the divine
Saraswati issuing forth from its roots. Just like the largest tributary of the Ganga is called the Bhagirathi since it was created by Bhagirath, simiilarly the upper/ source tributary of the Saraswati
came to be known after its progenitor Maharishi Markandey. After meeting the Ghaggar at Pehowa in Kurukshetra, the Markanda was christened Saraswati.
There is little doubt that the Divine River Saraswati flowed in vedic times through the region we know today as Ambala and Yamuna-nagar. There is also little doubt that the river course was between the Yamuna and the Sutlej, after her origin from the Shivaliks to the north of these two districts, which falls in modern-day Sirmour. There is sufficient literature to attest that the lost Vedic Saraswati, after arising from Sirmour, flowed towards Kurukshetra and was joined by other tributaries while flowin g past Pehowa town.The only question is regarding the identity of the mountain stream which formed the upper course of the Saraswati, since there are several such rain-fed rivulets in the area.
The Haryana Govt. has recently started digging work in an effort to re-create the divine river. The digging has been initiated at Mugalwali, a hamlet few kilometers from Adh-badri, where there is an ancient temple to Lord Narayana at the foothills of the Shivaliks. En-route to Adh-badri from Mugalwali (about 3-4 kms.), is a spot that was identified as the source of the river Saraswati by some previous Government and is marked as Saraswati Udgam Sthal. A piteous trickle seeps out of the miniature hillside here, and soon disappears. The Government plans to continue digging to join the new canal at Mugalwali to this Udgam Sthal. The channel dug up at Mugalwali is planned to be extended upto Kurukshetra and Pehowa.
Though there is mystery in the public perception regarding the actual point of origin of the Saraswati, the ancient Indian texts, namely the Puranas and the Mahabharata, are quite clear about the same. The place of origin is stated in numerous texts as Praksh-prasar-vana or the forest having abundance of Plaksh trees, which are a Fig species , locally called as Goolar, Pakhar, Pilkhan , Peepal and Bargad. The River Goddess sprung from the roots of the Plaksh tree upon being beseeched to do so by Rishi Markanda at the instance of Lord Brahma. All the references are quoted in the Website, which attest that the present day Markanda river is actually the ancient Saraswati.
The Government plans to first dig up this artificial channel which they want to christen the Saraswati, and then water this channel by tapping deep underground water reservoirs and also damming the Markanda and diverting the stored water to this neo-channel. This is ironical to say the least – Destroying the actual Saraswati for an artificial Saraswati. Which in any case will not work for long, since the deep tube wells will subsequently dry up, as has happened in several regions of Punjab and Haryana where underground water was over-pumped. Rather, the effort should be directed towards reviving the actual Saraswati, present and visible as the Holy Markanda.
The present day river Markanda flowing at Ambala is the Vedic Saraswati.
This fact becomes evident upon reading the relevant section of the Mahabharata. The scripture clearly states that the mighty Rig-vedic river Saraswati was already much diminished during the Mahabharata era, and was re-incarnated from Rishi Markandeya’s ashram. At the place where Sage Markandeya had his abode, the Saraswati appeared in the form of a spring from the roots of the Palaksh tree. This was situated in the area referred to as the Plaksh-Prasar Vana in the scriptures.
The Puranas clearly state that the Saraswati was almost disappearing during that era, which corresponds to the writing of the Mahabharata. Much of the river flow had gone underground, with only pools of water seen above the ground. The puranas also mention that the Saraswati was thereafter present as seven streams and was thus fragmented. Over the course of succeeding centuries, the flow in these streams further reduced considerably because of monsoon failure (1).The local populace was also repeatedly displaced brutally by several invading armies, but still the intense racial memory associated with the revered Saraswati survived and many small streams in the region( present day Ambala-Yamunanagar ) were named after the River Goddess and continue to be identified as such even today.
The re-appearance of the river at Rishi Markandeya’s ashram, as the Mahabharata and several Puranas state, led to the mental association of this stream with the great rishi. The pre-eminence of Sage Markandeya can be inferred from the fact that only a very few(or none) Puranas are named after a rishi. The health-giving waters of the spring which gushed forth from the roots of the mighty Plaksh tree , were sanctified by the famous rishi Markandeya, and the local people naturally started calling the waters by the same name. The great sanctity accorded to the River Markanda is apparent from the reverence it receives in present times; several temples are located along the course of the river, and offerings are made every Sunday when local people descend upon these spots with great pomp and celebration, accompanied with the beating of drums ( dhol ). Even though the river has no water for most months of the year, the offerings are still made worshipfully every Sunday.
This mostly dry river turns into an ocean of water during the monsoons, and the water expanse stretches for miles. The ground water re-charge this provides to the region is tremendous, and even today this area sustains large tree plantations . The soil is also replenished by the silt brought down from the muddy hills which form the cachment of the Markandeya river.Crops in this area yield bountiful harvests.Thus the river is a great benefactor even today.
There are several other monsoon rivers in the region, like the Amri, Omla,Begna and the Tangri which also flood during the rains. But none of them is even vaguely worshipped. That does make one think about the reason for the great reverence attached particularly to the Markanda.