The Beas River flows for 470 kilometers and reaches the Sutlej river at Harike Pattan in western Punjab state. The Sutlej river flows in Pakistani Punjab and mixes with the Chenab river thereby forming the Panjnad River.
The ancient Indians called the Beas river as Vipas or Arjiki while the ancient Greeks called it as Hyphasis. The current name Beas is regarded as formed from Vyas who is the author of Mahabharata, the great Indian epic, however some scholars in Himachal Pradesh call this river as Vipasha.
This river is the eastern most border of the conquests of Alexander the Great. The important tributaries of the Beas river are Awa, Banner, Banganga, Chakki, Gaj Khad, Harla, Luni, Manuni, Parbati, Patlikuhal, Sainj, Suketi, Tirthan and the Uhl.
The Beas river is a clear blue easy flowing mountain river. However, in the monsoon it is transformed to an awesome torrent. As per a legend, Lord Shiva cut the Bhrigu Tung mountain with his trishul to create a path which is now called as Rohtang pass.
Towards the right of this pass is the source of the Beas river which is called as Beas Rishi and it is believed that Maharishi Vyas, the great thinker, meditated at the Beas Rishi, on the right banks of which, is the world famous tourist resort of Manali. |
