<P> In her earliest depictions at temple entrances, the goddess Ganga appeared standing beneath the overhanging branch of a tree, as seen as well in the Udayagiri caves . However, soon the tree cover had evolved into a chatra or parasol held by an attendant, for example, in the seventh - century Dasavatara temple at Deogarh . (The parasol can be clearly seen in frame 3 above; its stem can be seen in frame 4, but the rest has broken off .) The cover undergoes another transformation in the temple at Kharod, Bilaspur (ninth or tenth century), where the parasol is lotus - shaped, and yet another at the Trimurti temple at Badoli where the parasol has been replaced entirely by a lotus . </P> <P> As the iconography evolved, sculptors in the central India especially were producing animated scenes of the goddess, replete with an entourage and suggestive of a queen en route to a river to bathe . A relief similar to the depiction in frame 4 above, is described in Pal 1997, p. 43 as follows: </P> <P> A typical relief of about the ninth century that once stood at the entrance of a temple, the river goddess Ganga is shown as a voluptuously endowed lady with a retinue . Following the iconographic prescription, she stands gracefully on her composite makara mount and holds a water pot . The dwarf attendant carries her cosmetic bag, and a...female holds the stem of a giant lotus leaf that serves as her mistress's parasol . The fourth figure is a male guardian . Often in such reliefs the makara's tail is extended with great flourish into a scrolling design symbolizing both vegetation and water . </P> <P> Kumbh Mela is a mass Hindu pilgrimage in which Hindus gather at the Ganges River . The normal Kumbh Mela is celebrated every 3 years, the Ardh (half) Kumbh is celebrated every six years at Haridwar and Prayag, the Purna (complete) Kumbh takes place every twelve years at four places (Prayag (Allahabad), Haridwar, Ujjain, and Nashik). The Maha (great) Kumbh Mela which comes after 12' Purna Kumbh Melas', or 144 years, is held at Prayag (Allahabad). </P>

Where did the river ganga originate in the himalayas