See pictures documenting the magnificent Padma river

Full of life and antiquity, these bold images chronicle the Padma, Bangladesh’s main river, which constitutes the final leg of the Ganges journey.they are taken from The Great Padma Book: The Life and Times of the Magnificent River By Kazi Khalid Ashraf who set out to paint a comprehensive picture of the land, water and people of Padma, the Sanskrit word for lotus flower.

Starting in the Himalayas, the Ganges completes its 2500-kilometer journey in the Bengal Delta, where it becomes known as Padma (shown in main image). This is the world’s largest river delta, a rich culmination of history and culture shaped not just by waterways, but by the flow of rivers.

Ashraf wrote in the preface about how, in the past, “perhaps more attention was given to the origins” of the Ganges in the mountains than how it ended at sea. His book, which features a foreword by author Amitav Ghosh, “starts where others have stopped,” he writes.

The image above shows (from top to bottom): A fragment of a 1420s map by Venetian cartographer Fra Mauro, suggesting the delta of the Ganges region. Mangoes being transported to a market in Chapai Nawabganj, known as the mango capital of Bangladesh. A boat market in the Manikganj district of the country (pictured above).

great padma book It’s out now.