The Story of the birth of Uma and Ganga (Sarga 35)

There is a mountain named Himavān, the king of mountains. His wife is Mena—written as Mīnā in the text. From the union of Himavān and Mena, two daughters were born: the elder daughter is Gaṅgā and the younger daughter is Umā. This is the story told in the thirty-fifth chapter.

To understand this, we must remember that whenever the Purāṇas mention the Himalayas or Mount Himavān, they are not referring to the physical Himalayan mountains in northern India. It is symbolic. The sages and authors of our scriptures used familiar physical images to explain deep spiritual truths, because subtle spiritual principles are hard to grasp directly. Symbols make them easier to understand.

So here, Himavān stands for certain qualities of our own inner personality. A snow-covered mountain has two main characteristics:

1. Whiteness or purity,
   
   

2. Stability or steadiness.
   
   

Thus, Himavān symbolizes a personality that is pure and steady.

Next is Mena. To understand Mena, we look at the word. “Me” or “mai” comes from the sense of “I, I,” the ego-sound. “Na” means “not.” So Mena means: “where there is no ‘I-I’,” a mind without the noise of ego. In the Bhagavad Gītā, this is called nirabhimānitā—freedom from pride and ego.

So when our personality becomes steady, pure, and free from ego—when Himavān unites with Mena—then two qualities arise within us:

1. Gaṅgā — the flow of knowledge

Gaṅgā symbolizes knowledge, especially self-knowledge.
So when purity, steadiness, and egolessness come together, the river of self-knowledge begins to flow within us.

2. Umā — pure, awakened intelligence

Umā means pure, clear intelligence.
There are two types of intellect:

• One that is tied to the body — ordinary intellect.
  
  

• One that is connected to the Self — wisdom or prajñā.
  
  

Umā represents this higher wisdom.

Thus, when Himavān (purity + stability) joins with Mena (egolessness), two great qualities appear in us: self-knowledge and awakened wisdom.

The chapter then goes on to describe the greatness of Gaṅgā—her power, her influence, and how she uplifts beings (as seen later when she liberates the sixty thousand sons). And in the next chapter, it describes Umā and mentions that Umā did not give birth to any children. This symbolizes that wisdom itself is complete. Wisdom does not “produce” anything because it is whole, fulfilled, and perfect in itself.