Once upon a time, there was a king named Halan. He had no son, only a daughter. The king and queen always prayed to the Ganges to bless them with a son, and finally, they had a boy. As he grew up, he got married to the Ganges. His mother firmly believed in the Ganges, but she did not pay the dowry. When the prince’s wedding took place and the wedding procession was crossing the Ganges, all the guests had crossed, but the prince was drowned in the Ganges. The prince became one with the Ganges and stayed beside her. The Ganges built a temple on her bank for the prince. During the day, the prince stayed with the Ganges, and at night, he would leave Ganges and stay in the temple. The Ganges would call him ‘Ganga-Ganga’ as she considered him her own, and when morning came, he would leave the temple and go into the Ganges.

One day, a milkmaid came to sell curd. It was nighttime, so she stayed near the same temple. At night, the prince cooked his food and served it in a bowl, but it multiplied into two. When he served food in one bowl again, it turned into two. He thought someone must have come, so he called out, ‘Who is there?’ The milkmaid replied, ‘It’s I, the milkmaid! Come, open!’ She told him, ‘No, brother, stay just as you are!’ But when the prince insisted, she ate and stayed there all night. This way, she visited again and again and stayed.

The next day, she returned home. Her house was the same place where the prince had married. The milkmaids saw the prince at the wedding, and she told her queen that ‘Your bridegroom stays at the temple by the Ganges at night!’ Hearing this, the queen went with the milkmaids and stayed in the temple that evening. The prince was served food in a bowl, which multiplied into three. When she called out, they both arrived and ate, then fell asleep. The queen then started staying there. Gradually, she began to love the prince. When the time came for her to have a child, she told the prince, ‘Let’s go home.’ The prince said, ‘My mother is very mischievous!’ Still, he was ready to go with the queen. He took his queen home at night and roamed around until dawn, then he went into the Ganges.

And so, the queen reached her husband’s house disguised as a beggar, and her mother refused to recognize her. On her sister’s request, her mother took her in. After two days, she had a child, and Durgin (the daughter) was told to stay with her. That night, the prince came back to see his queen and brought food. Durgin saw him. The next day, he told his sister everything. His sister also stayed undercover that night. The prince came again and gave her food before leaving. His sisters also saw him. The next day, she told her mother, ‘Truly, mother, the brother has come!’ But she did not believe Durgin’s words, nor entirely trusted her sisters, so she decided to see for herself tonight.

Today, Durgin, her sisters, and the mother also stayed hidden among the beggars. Around midnight, the prince arrived. He went to feed his wife, but his mother, covering her face, said, ‘Babu, Babu, where are you going? You are our son.’ The boy replied, ‘Now I am no longer your son; I am only the son of the Ganges. You did not pay the dowry, so Ganges herself has taken me!’ That day, the prince did not stop. The next day, his mother and sisters went proudly with the Ganges to her bank, accompanied by musicians and celebrants. That night, the prince returned home but did not leave again. He lived happily with his wife and his own parents.