Arrival of Bhagirath and Ganga on Earth

According to legend, in ancient times there lived a king named Sagar. He was a majestic and mighty king. He had two wives. The name of one was Keshni and the other was Sumati. Long ago, the sage Aurav had given two gifts: the first gift was a wise and pious son who would one day become a great king, the second gift was sixty thousand sons. Where Keshani asked for a wise son, Sumati chose sixty thousand sons. The sixty thousand sons of Emperor Sagara created a lot of trouble for everyone. Indra and the other gods and sages were fed up with the trouble they had caused. Indra turned to sage Kapil for a solution. Sage Kapil asked the king to perform an Ashwamedha Yagya to attract the attention of these sons to the cause of the kingdom. King Sagar's horse Ashwamedh was caught by Devraj Indra and tied in Kapil Muni's ashram.

On the other hand, 60,000 sons of the king of Sagara set out in search of Ashwamedha's horse. When he saw the horse tied up in the sage's hut, he thought that the sage had stolen the horse. They attacked the ashram itself. At the same time Kapil Muni's meditation immersed in penance got distracted and he became angry.

Seeing the 60,000 sons of Sagara instantly reduced to ashes, the sage's eyes lit up. When King Sagar's second son Anshuman came to know about this, he prayed to Kapil Muni for the peace of his brothers' souls. Then Kapil Muni told them that if the water of the holy Ganges is sprinkled on the burnt sons of Sagar, they can be saved. Anshuman tried a lot but could not save his brothers from Kapil Muni's anger. Later in his generation his grandson King Bhagirath was born. Thus Ganga came to earth and came to be known as Bhagirathi.

Ganga called Jatashankari:

Bhagirath heard the voice of Ganga in a low voice. “Your Highness, I am ready to come to earth as you wish, but who can stop my rapid flow on earth? If I do not stop it, I will destroy the layers of the earth and destroy Patala." When Bhagirath asked the solution to this problem, Ganga said, "Your Majesty, only Shiva can stop my stream. I can get down if they agree to stop my stream by a hair's breadth. After that Bhabhagirath started worshiping Lord Shiva. Satisfied with his penance, Lord Shiva began the practice of "preparing to stop the flow of the Ganges over the head. Then Lord Shiva tied the river Ganges in his hair. After that, Lord Shiva made a lock out of them. He Opened the gates and released the river Ganga.She was named Jatashankari because of being born from the locks of Lord Shiva.

When Ganga came to earth and she was named Jhanvi:

Jal Rishi's cottage was on the way when the continuous stream of Ganga emanating from Lord Shiva's hair hit the earth, but the cottage was washed away in the strong current of Ganga. This enraged the sage and he stopped the flow with the power of yoga. When Bhagirath prayed, the sage freed Ganga. After that Ganga's name became world famous because she had left the hut of Jahu Rishi.

Thus mother Ganga saved the ancestors of Bhagiratha:

After reaching the abode of Kapil Muni, Ganga nurtured the ancestors of Maharaj Sagar etc. from Bhagirathi and they were saved, hence Mother Ganga is also called Mokshadayini. 

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