Written by Michael Thervil
Photo by Anushree Fadnavis/Reuters
Maha Kumbh Mela which translates to “Great Festival of The Sacred Pitcher”, is a sacred Hindu religious event/festival that occurs every 12 years in Prayagraj (Allahabad) which is a city located in the north of India. During Maha Kumbh Mela, practitioners of the Hindu faith from all over the world take a pilgrimage to the sacred Ganges, Godavari, Yamuna rivers which is rumored by Hindi lore to lead to another river called “Saraswati”. In bathing in both the Ganges and Yamuna rivers, Hindus baptize themselves as a symbolic way to “wash away any sins that they may have committed” – think in terms of personal “atonement”.
People who participate in the Maha Kumbh Mela also pray for things such as wealth, happiness, and a better life. The Maha Kumbh Mela has been a major Hindu practice for centuries and based upon the Hindu legend that entails Gods (Devas) and Demons (Asuras) fighting over what's known as “The Nectar of Immortality”. It is that nectar of mortality (sacred river water) that practicing Hindus use to “wash their sins away”. It should be noted that the Maha Kumbh Mela festival rotates its host location on each anniversary date to include cities in India such as Nashik, Bansberia, Ujjain, and Haridwar.
The Maha Kumbh Mela festival lasts roughly 45 days long and this year’s Maha Kumbh Mela festival is likely to bring roughly 400-450 million people to both India and to the city of Prayagraj. For many Hindus the Maha Kumbh Mela is based upon Hindu religious writings and text, for other people the Maha Kumbh Mela is based upon the worship of the sun. The reason why so many people think that the Maha Kumbh Mela festival is based upon sun worship is because of how often or the lack thereof the festival occurs. The Maha Kumbh Mela festival occurs on average every 12 years and it falls in line with the alignment of the planet Jupiter, the moon, and of course the sun.
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Being that the Maha Kumbh Mela is by far the largest occurrence of human gathering on earth, it boosts a robust presence on the economic front, the Maha Kumbh Mela festival is a major economic driver for the city of Prayagraj and India as a whole as it injects close to a staggering $30 billion in the economy in terms of economic transactions. In terms of public safety, 3,000 cameras armed with thermal imaging and extensive Artificial intelligence security measures and protocols have been implemented as well as 40,000 police officers and drones (airborne and maritime). Security is the most important variable beside health for this year’s Maha Kumbh Mela which has been the destination for mass stampedes, exploitation, and even massacres. On the political front the Maha Kumbh Mela is a political gold mine for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The Maha Kumbh Mela will feature ritual bathing, royal bath, yoga and meditation, the signing of religious hymns, sermons and communal bonding. In a world plagued by turbulence, people all over the world will greatly benefit from the Maha Kumbh Mela.
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