The Lilājan River (also known by its Sanskrit name: Nirañjanā) is a river that flows through the
Chatra
Chatra is the headquarters of Chatra district in the Indian state of Jharkhand.
History
Chatra was the “headquarters” of Ramgarh district in the 18th-19th century. The renowned reformer, Raja Rammohan Roy, was ''sheristadar'' in Ramgarh di ...
and
Gaya district
}
Gaya district is one of the thirty-eight districts of the Indian state of Bihar. It was officially established on 3 October 1865. The district has a common boundary with the state of Jharkhand to the south. Gaya city is both the district head ...
s in the
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n
states of
Jharkhand
Jharkhand (; ; ) is a state in eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north and Odisha to the south. It has an area of . It ...
and
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
. It is also referred to as the Nilanjan, Niranjana or Falgu River.
Course
The Lilājan begins its journey north of
Simaria
Simaria is a village in India, along the Ganges river. It is in Begusarai District, Mithila region of Bihar, and near Barauni. Hindi poet Ramdhari Singh 'Dinkar' was born on 23 September 1908 in Simaria village, then part of Bengal Presidency ...
in
Chatra district
Chatra district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand state, India. The district was formed after separation from Hazaribagh district in 1991. Chatra is the administrative headquarters of this district. The district covers an area of ...
on the
Hazaribagh plateau, the western portion of which constitutes a broad watershed
between the
Damodar drainage on the south and the Lilājan and
Mohana
Mohana is a town and community development block in the Gajapati district of Odisha state in India. The town comes under the administrative control of Mohana Police station.
The town had a population of 5,197 in 2011 census and 4,759 in the ...
rivers on the north. It flows through a deep and rocky channel until it reaches the neighbourhood of Jori. There the hills begin to recede and the stream flows sluggishly over a wide sandy bed. From this point to the
Gaya border beyond
Hunterganj
Hunterganj (''Shaligram Ramnarayapur''), is a historic town in the Chatra subdivision of the Chatra district, Jharkhand, India.
Etymology
The town is now named after Shaligram Singh and Ram Narayan Singh, two eminent freedom fighters of Chatra ...
the river becomes sandy. It is dry in summer but disastrous during the rains. About south of
Gaya it unites with the
Mohana River
The Mohana River (also called Mohani River/Mohane River) flows through the Hazaribagh, Chatra and Gaya districts in the Indian states of Jharkhand and Bihar.
Course
The Mohana originates on Korambe Pahar on the Hazaribagh plateau near Bendi v ...
to form the
Falgu River.
Bichkiliya waterfalls
The water falls into a ''dah'' or natural reservoir in the Lilājan River. It is west of
Chatra
Chatra is the headquarters of Chatra district in the Indian state of Jharkhand.
History
Chatra was the “headquarters” of Ramgarh district in the 18th-19th century. The renowned reformer, Raja Rammohan Roy, was ''sheristadar'' in Ramgarh di ...
– about half the distance is motorable, while the rest is only able to be traversed on foot.
Buddhism
Before attaining Enlightenment, the prince
Siddhārtha Gautama
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...
practiced asceticism for six years (ten or twelve years according to some accounts) on the banks of the river, residing in a forest near the village of
Uruvilvā. After realizing that strict asceticism would not lead to Enlightenment, he recuperated after bathing in the river and receiving a bowl of
milk-rice from the milkmaid
Sujātā.
He sat under the nearby
pippala tree
''Ficus religiosa'' or sacred fig is a species of fig native to the Indian subcontinent and Indochina that belongs to Moraceae, the fig or mulberry family. It is also known as the bodhi tree, pippala tree, peepul tree, peepal tree, pipal tree ...
, where he finally achieved Enlightenment. This tree became known as the
Bodhi Tree, and the site became known as
Bodh Gayā.
References
External links
View of the river
{{Rivers in Bihar
Rivers of Jharkhand
Rivers of Bihar
Rivers in Buddhism
Rivers of India