Triveni Sangam

In Hindu tradition, Triveni Sangam is the "confluence" (Sangam in Sanskrit) of three rivers (Ganga, Yamuna & Saraswati). The point of confluence is a sacred place for Hindus, with a bath here said to flush away all of one's sins and free one from the cycle of rebirth. One such Triveni Sangam, in Prayagraj (Allahabad), has the confluence of three rivers — the Ganges, the Yamuna and a third mythical river the Saraswati. The two rivers maintain their visible identity and can be identified by their different colours. The water of the Ganges is clear, while that of the Yamuna is greenish in colour. A place of religious importance and the site for historic Kumbh Mela held every 12 years, over the years it has also been the site of immersion of ashes of several national leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi in 1948. The auspiciousness of the confluence of two rivers is referred to in the Rigveda, which says, "Those who bathe at the place where the two rivers flow together, rise up to heaven".