Maha Kumbh Festival
The last Kumbh Mela took place in Haridwar in 1998, while the previous Kumbh Mela at Allahabad (Prayag) was held in 1989. The latter was recorded as the largest assembly of people in the history of mankind drawing over 35 million people. Without doubt the Mahakumbh is an event of epic proportions. Saffron-clad, ash-smeared yogis raise their hands towards the heavens as the age-old and omnipresent hum of mantras, or sacred verses, chants and hymns, the din of prayer bells and cymbals, and the symbolic blowing of conches make for a befitting orchestra. A celebration of the esoteric and the popular, the Mahakumbh that brings the countries spiritual dimension to the fore, is a rush, and could lay siege to one's senses.
The Mahakumbh is interspersed with the Ardh Kumbh Mela that takes place once in six years, whereas the Magh Mela is held annually in the Hindu month of Magh, around January or February on the banks of the Sangam except during the years of the Kumbh Mela and the Ardh Kumbh Mela.
The origins of the Kumbh Mela are traced to the Hindu mythological tale of "Sagar Manthan" (the Great Churning of the Ocean) which resulted in the pitcher of nectar or the "Amrit Kumbh" to emerge from the ocean. Despite the Devas (Gods and Demi Gods) and the Asuras (demons) putting in equal efforts to attain the coveted urn containing the elixir of life, it was the Devas who are believed to have tricked the Asuras and fled with the pitcher or "Kumbh". Whilst the Asuras chased the Devas, drops of the eternal nectar fell on certain areas and marked the four destinations of Allahabad, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nashik as sacred "dhams" and thus became associated with the Kumbh Mela for
During the period of the Kumbh Mela, a tent city comes up for over a month to provide shelter to thousands of devotees. Several Hindu religious organisations set up camps during this period. Folk theatre groups enact different stories and scenes from Hindu religious texts in different patches of the mela grounds. This period of retreat is called Kalpavas, and those who submit to its exigencies are known as Kalpvasees. All these holy fairs commemorate the struggle between the gods and demons over the kumbh of the elixir of life, and draw innumerable crowds in quest of the definitive cleansing of the soul before entering the realm of god.
Prayag is the holy site that marks the confluence of the mystical river, Saraswati (not physically visible but believed to flow in the recesses of the earth or to exist on the spiritual plane) - joining the two most ancient and revered Indian rivers-the Ganges and the Yamuna. This 'Sangam' or the confluence of the holy rivers is considered sacred. The Hindu belief is to scatter or immerse one's cremated ashes at the 'Sangam' to attain 'Moksha' or salvation- a freedom from the infinite cycle of life and death. The Maha Kumbha Mela or the great festival of the ethereal urn symbolizes attainment of this state of 'Nirvana' or 'Moksha'.
The Kumbh Mela, one of the most important of Hindu spiritual gatherings takes place every three years in rotation between the four major Hindu pilgrim centers-Allahabad, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nashik. Hindu believers in millions congregate at these locations to cleanse themselves, symbolizing the attainment of 'Moksha'
Haridwar is located in the state of Uttaranchal Pradesh where the holy Ganges flows in from the Himalayan plains and believed to flow out some 15,500 miles towards the Bay of Bengal in the East coast of India. The ancient city of Ujjain is located on the banks of the Ksipra River in Madhya Pradesh and Nashik on the banks of the Godavari River flows past the West coast of Maharashtra. The Kumbh festivities could be reckoned as a colorful pageant of diversities in the Hindu religion, exposing facets of the cult or occult nature of Hinduism as a diverse religious order.Hermits, sages, learned yogis and miracle men all rub shoulders and exhibit their spiritual prowess through their "chakraa" or meditative senses to commoners and missionaries alike. The Kumbh Melas attract all sorts, from traditional to non-traditional followers of Hinduism from the Himalayas, Swamis and missionaries from South of India and also from shores abroad -Africa, Japan, Europe and also America. The faces of ash-smeared mendicants, the "Digambers", add to the mystic appeal of the Kumbh "snan". The diversity of the learned men and their commoner devotees but speak volumes about the overwhelming mass appeal that India continues to wield over other countries spiritually---a trend which has intensified with tour operators cashing on this season and developing tour packages around the Kumbh Mela and its destination.
