Ganga Lake- India-Mongolia share ancient spiritual connection

Umroi, July 3 – Ambassador of Mongolia to India, Dambajavyn Ganbold today said he sincerely believes that “India and Mongolia are spiritual connected” and evidence to that effect is the Ganga Lake in Eastern Mongolia. 

After inaugurating the 16th edition of India-Mongolia joint military exercise, “Nomadic Elephant” here, Ganbold said: “scholars say Mongolians, on their way back from India, use to carry water from river Ganga and poured into the valley in Mongolia, creating the Ganga Lake.” 

Ganbold said he “personally believe” the legend as true. “Every autumn hundreds of thousands of birds get to the lake before flying to India. This gives us evidence how we are spiritually connected.” 

Ganga Lake is a saltwater lake located in Dariganga sum, Sükhbaatar Province, Mongolia. The lake and its wetlands covers 32.8 square km and is an important breeding and resting area for endangered migratory birds. 

The Mongolian Ambassador said India and Mongolia have been connected from ancient times when monks and scholars from his country came to India on spiritual and educational journeys. 

Some of the scholars came to India to study at the Nalanda University others sought spiritual guidance in Buddhism. Stating that this ancient connection dates back to thousands of years, Ganbold said, it’s “our duty” to rebuild and continue this connection.

“Mongolian monks and scholars used to come to India and some from India used to go to Mongolia. With no means of transportation these monks and scholars used to travel barefoot crossing the Himalayas. If our ancestors, despite all these difficulties, managed to come, it’s our duty to continue this connection,” he added. 

Ganbold said this ancient connection was somehow lost during the 70 years of Communist rule in Mongolia. “We were behind the iron curtain and we lost some of the links,” he said. 

Emphasising on strengthening bilateral education like in the past, Ganbold added, it is also vital that awareness is created among the present generation about this ancient connection. He said once the present generation in India and Mongolia is made aware of this ancient cultural heritage, they would understand about this “spiritual and religious connection and get to know each other and can build trust.” (Eom)