Ganga is a Hindu goddess that personifies India's most sacred and purifying of rivers, the Ganges. There are various myths of Ganga's birth, in one, she was born from the toe of Vishnu. Often considered to be the sister of Parvati, Ganga is revered for the forgiveness of sins and ability to cleanse mankind. She is commonly represented as a beautiful woman riding on the back of the monster Makara. She is also credited for helping in the creation of the god of war, Kartikeya.
The legend of Ganga's descent to earth begins with King Sagara praying and performing penances desperately for sons until his two wives fell pregnant. One wife bore 60,000 and the other only bore a single son. Sagara was filled with joy, and some time later he decided to offer the gods a sacrifice in the form of a fine horse. However, the horse was stolen by Indra, and Sagara's sons went out to search for the animal. They eventually found the horse at the ashram of the Sage Kapila. Thinking that the sage had stolen the horse, the sons interrupted him while he was in deep meditation. This infuriated the sage, and with his ascetic's gaze burned all sixty thousand sons to ashes.[1]
Sagara learned that the only way for his sons to reach heaven was for the sacred water of the goddess to wash over their ashes. Thus Sagara's descendant, the sage Bhagiratha, performed powerful penances to please Brahma. Eventually, Brahma agreed to allow the goddess to fall to the earth, but the force of Ganga's descent so powerful it could threaten the world. Shiva then stood on the spot where she fell and upon hitting his head, her waters streamed from his coils. Bhagiratha later led her to the sea where her waters washed the ashes and liberated the sons of Sagara.
"Origin: India. The deification of the holy Ganges River. She's also said to be Parvati, Shiva's wife. She comes from the Himilayas and the water pouring from her mouth is the Ganges' source. It's said that this river's water can cleanse all kinds of sins."
—Shin Megami Tensei A-Mode DDS dictionary
Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE[]
Ganga appears as a field boss on Ueno field and within Kuchinawa Caves during the in-game night periods. An inexperienced variant can be obtained in the Shinjuku Babel hacked chip instance.
Persona 3[]
"The personification of the Ganges river. Originally from the heavens, she came to earth to clean the souls of the people as a result of the prayers of Bhagiratha."
—Persona 3 compendium
Persona 3 Reload[]
"The personification of the Ganges River. Originally from the heavens, she came to earth to clean the souls of the people as a result of the prayers of Bhagiratha."
The female member of the Tribhvana, Tribhvana: Heaven, transforms into Ganga during encounters. She will use heavy hitting magic attacks on the party. They are first encountered on the 20th floor of the Karma Society Tower.
They try to ambush the party again on the 32nd floor, however, not much has changed since the first battle aside from HP totals and gaining access to an enemy combo.
