Traditionally, the holiest place for a Hindu to bathe is at the Tribeni Sangam, or the meeting of the three rivers Ganga , Saraswati & Yamuna - here at the Kumbh Mela.

But in fact there is no trace of the Saraswati river anywhere to be found - The river has vanished to the mortal eye, living on only in the tales of priests and sadhus, and the common man. This is all the more surprising, since it is clear that the Saraswati was once far more famous and holy than the Ganges herself: The Rig-Veda, oldest of the four Vedas, talks little about the Ganga, but repeatedly mentions the Saraswati as the great holy river of India. Where the story of this once mighty river started, and if it in fact ever existed, continues to baffle archaeologists, geologists and cultural historians.

There seems to be little geological evidence of another river here at Allahabad, although the great age of the Vedas (composed around 4,500 years ago), means that it is possible that ancient earthquakes and seismic disturbances caused t he river to dry up.

But others are convinced they have found the Saraswati in other parts of India: Sir Aurel Stein, the imperial archaeologist who discovered the Silk Route, believed that the dry bed of Hakra, around Bikaner and Bahawalpur in the western Indian State of Rajasthan was Saraswati. Other theories try to place the Saraswati in the Northern India. There is evidence that an Afghan river - the Helmand - once flowed all the way to the Punjab - perhaps this was the Saraswati...

But some astonishing new evidence on the possible course of this ancient river has recently been discovered: Using satellite imagery, and the latest soil-testing techniques, two nuclear scientists, Dr S.M.Rao and Dr. K.M. Kulkarni, believe that they have found evidence of the course of a river in the western part of Rajasthan which could well be the legendary Saraswati.

In the north-western part of Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer district, in spite of very low rainfall and extreme weather conditions, they have discovered groundwater at a depth of about 50-60 metres and wells in the vicinity that do not dry up throughout the year. Analysis of the water, shows that it has the same properties as water found in the Himalayas 1,000km away - from which the Saraswati reputedly flowed - while satellite imagery betrays the course of a long dried up river….

But real or not, the Saraswati lives on everywhere in India - though she has now been transformed into the four-armed goddess of learning, knowledge and the fine arts.

And if you dare to ask exactly where she is at the Kumbh, you will be told, with a quizzical glance, that she is easy to find - living on in all the knowledge of all the millions of pilgrims that flow through this place...