Jahnu () is a hermit-king in Hinduism, belonging to the Lunar dynasty dynasty. The son of King Ajamīḍha, Jahnu abdicates his kingdom in favour of his son, Balākāśva, or sometimes Ajaka, and retires to perform a penance.
Legend
Curse on Ganga
Jahnu's curse on the goddess Ganga is described in the
Brahma Purana:
Descent of Ganga
As prophesied, Jahnu appears in the legend of Ganga and
Bhagiratha. When the goddess Ganga descended upon the earth after being released from
Shiva locks, her torrential waters wreaked havoc upon Jahnu's fields and penance. Angered by this, the great sage drank up all the Ganges' waters to punish her. Seeing this, the devas prayed to the sage to release Ganga, so that she could proceed on her mission to release the souls of the ancestors of Bhagiratha. Jahnu relented, and he released the Ganges from his ear.
For this, the
Ganges river is also known as
Jahnavi, meaning "daughter of Jahnu".
