Plakshāvataraṇa is a tīrtha (a holy place of pilgrimage) on the river Śatadru, also written Śatabdru, which is today called the Sutlej. It lies in the Himālaya foothills, where the Śatadru comes down from its source in the Himālaya. Here the waters of the Gaṅgā, flowing under the earth, rise to the surface and join the Śatadru.

The Mahābhārata names Plakshāvataraṇa in the Vana Parva, among the tīrthas that Lomaśa describes in his tīrtha-yātrā (pilgrimage) account.

Meaning of the name

The name Plakshāvataraṇa means “the descent, or coming forth, at the plaksha tree”. The plaksha is a kind of fig tree.

Sacred power of the place

This is one of the places in the holy geography of the Himālaya foothills where rivers become especially sacred. The meeting here of waters of divine origin makes it a tīrtha with the power to purify. The Mahābhārata’s passages in praise of tīrthas (tīrtha-māhātmya) treat such places, where sacred rivers come forth, as places of great puṇya (merit).

Sources

Mahābhārata, Vana Parva (Lomaśa’s tīrtha-yātrā)