The 2013 Maha Kumbha Mela at Prayag

Sri Ajit Halder

Kumbha Mela is a mass Hindu pilgrimage, the most popular religious festival and fair in which Hindus gather to perform the ritual of Snaan, i.e. to bathe in a sacred river adjoining a holy site.  It is held every third year at one of four places by rotation.  These places are: (i) Prayag or Allahabad at the Sangam (i.e. confluence) of the Ganges, the Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati (that supposedly flows underground); (ii) Nasik by the river Godavari; (iii) Ujjain by the river Shipra, and (iv) Hardwar by the river Ganges.  Thus the Kumbha Mela is held at each of these four places every twelfth year.  The site where the Mela will be held is determined by the zodiacal positions of the Sun, the Moon, and the planet Jupiter according to the Stotras (scriptural verses):
 

1. Makare ca Divaanaathe, Vrishage ca Brihaspatau /

    Kumbha Yogo bhavet tatra Prayage hi atidurlabjha //

2. Vrisha Raasi gate Jeeve Makare Chandra Bhaskarau /

    Amabshyaa tada yoga Kumbha akhoyau teertha Nayaaka //

This year the Sun is in Makar Raasi while Jupiter is in Vrishava Raasi.  These celestial positions fulfill the criteria of Stotra1 for holding this Mela at Prayag (Allahabad).  The Kumbha Mela that is held only at Prayag is called Purna Kumbha and is the largest of all Kumbha Melas.  This year’s Prayag Mela comes after twelve Purna Kumbhas i.e. after a gap of 144 years and is very special.  It is called the Maha Kumbha and is considered to be the most holy and auspicious of all Kumbha Melas.

 

The mythology of Kumbha Mela:

‘Kumbha’ means a pitcher.  According to Hindu mythology, the Gods and the asuras (demons) once churned kheer saagara (i.e. the ocean of milk).  This churning, known as Samudra Manthan, was done with the Mandar Mountain used as a churning rod and the serpent Basuki used as a rope tied around the mountain. The Gods pulled one end of the rope while the asuras gripped the other end.  Hindu mythology also states that this churning yielded amrita (i.e. the nectar of immortality) which was collected and placed in a Kumbha.   In order to prevent the demons from forcibly grabbing the amrita-filled Kumbha, Lord Vishnu flew away with the Kumbha spilling drops of amrita at four places, namely Prayag, Nasik, Ujjain and Hardwar.  Kumbha Mela is held in these four places by turn.  The next Kumbha Mela will be held at Nasik.

Significance of the Kumbha Snaan

The Kumbha Mela is an event that offers an opportunity to witness religious activities like devotional singing, mass feeding of holy men, women and the poor, assemblies of learned scholars discussing religious issues, and beholding the power of faith that motivates millions of devotees to come to the Mela.  Yet of all the sights, sounds and activities one is likely to encounter at the Mela, it is the experience of participating in (and witnessing the multitude of fellow pilgrims) bathing in the holy river that leaves the most profound and lasting impression of Kumbha Mela on a visitor.

The offering of a prayer and taking of Snaan (i.e. holy dip) result in a renewal of the Self, of bringing in an awareness of ‘leaving behind’  one’s sins and misdoings of the past, and of reawakening of the ‘I-ness’ in the mind – all leading to a new, spiritually enriched life.  The two phrases - ‘Immersing in’ and ‘Emerging out’- are eloquent expressions for the reward one gains by undertaking the entire ritual.   While taking the dip, the devotee immerses his/her entire body, mind and spirit into the bosom of Mother Ganges, and emerges out of the water as a transformed, uplifted, resurrected and reassured person, empowered to make a fresh start towards a richer, more enlightened  life.  It brings home a feeling of the Yoga (union) i.e. the linking of the individual self with the Universal Self, of Jibaatma with Praamatma.  This is the religious benefit one achieves by participating in the Maha Kumbha Snaan.

The 2013 Maha Kumbha Mela:

This year’s Kumbha Mela began on the day of Makar Sankranti (i.e. 14^th January 2013), and continued for eight weeks, ending on Maha Shivaratri (10^th March 2013).  I consider myself very fortunate for having been able to attend this auspicious event and taking a holy dip at the Sangam. I feel doing so helped me gain immense spiritual boon.  I experienced the aforementioned transformation within me while approaching the bathing ghat, taking a dip in the water and then coming out of the river onto the bank and facing the Sangam while chanting ‘Jai Ganga Maayi’.  I am sure millions others performing the same ritual experienced similar uplifting feeling of their souls as I did.

The Snaan on Mouni Amavasya (which fell on 10^th February 2013) attracted the highest number of pilgrims.  It’s been estimated that nearly three crore pilgrims took Shahi Snaan (i.e. the royal bath) that day.  The second largest crowd numbering one crore was registered on 15^th February, 2013, the day of the Basant Panchami.  Although taking a dip in the Ganges any day during the Mela period is considered to be a pious act, there were three other days earmarked as being very auspicious for taking the Shahi Snaan: the Makar Sankranti (on 14^th January), Pous Purnima (on 27^th January) and Maghi Purnima (on 25^th February).

Public Facilities, Media Coverage, Consumerism and Modernity at the Mela:

The 2013 Maha Kumbha Mela was extensively covered by the Indian and foreign newspapers.  They printed hordes of statistical data on the number of devotees attending the Mela, detailed description of the construction of a temporary city at the site to cater to millions of visitors to Allahabad, and the opening of hospitals staffed by large team of doctors to provide health care.  It was reported that a huge number of police and volunteers were recruited to manage crowds on the roads leading to the bathing ghats and to ensure the safety and security of the visitors.  Accounts of thousands of pilgrims lost and separated from their families and later reunited with their loved ones after an agonizing period of waiting in suspense touched our hearts.  These extensive reporting on the enormity of the Mela was interesting to read as I witnessed the largest ever congregation of people I had ever come across in my life!



 

Banner advertising radio coverage of the Mela proceedings

It was a huge undertaking to feed the millions of visitors and to provide for their accommodations.  Hundreds of food stalls and dhabas had sprung up all over the place. These outlets sold mouth-watering food items and soft drinks to tired and thirsty pilgrims who stopped in for a snack and a drink during their long strolls to scour the Mela.  Besides the food stalls, many shops displayed religious merchandise, artefacts, and even small jugs filled with the water of the Sangam for pilgrims to take back home and share with their friends and relatives.   Listening to the experiences of those who visited the Mela, touching a jar filled with the water of the Sangam, and sipping a drop of holy water can certainly help those who were unable to attend the Kumbha Mela, feel religiously uplifted.

Crowds making their way through the Mela and to the bathing ghats

 The Uttar Pradesh government and several commercial firms erected hundreds of tents with modern facilities to serve as temporary lodgings.  A large number of new hotels also opened up to meet the demand of the visitors for suitable accommodation.  The arrangements made by the state authorities to offer care and hospitality to the Mela visitors were indeed amazing and admirable. 

The 2013 Maha Kumbha Mela was more than a spectacle of spirituality; it also showcased to the consumerism and the march towards modernity that have accompanied the economic growth of modern India to the rest of the world.  The extensive press coverage and telecasts brought to the world’s notice the rich, Hindu religious tradition along with the emergent consumer culture in India.  Considering the fact that the Mela attracted the largest number of individuals gathered at one place at the same time, it is not at all surprising that Indian Corporate bodies like banks and commercial groups used the opportunity to publicise their business activities through eye-catching hoardings and the distribution of trade literature from information booths.

The author will remember the 2013 Maha Kumbha Mela as a spectacular event in which age old Hindu rituals and religious practices were intertwined with the new consumerism and market economy that have visibly penetrated into small towns and rural India.