NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India began on Monday its Maha Kumbh Mela, or Great Pitcher Festival, which is expected to draw more than 400 million visitors to the northern city of Prayagraj over six weeks, making for the largest gathering of humanity in the world.
WHAT IS IT?
The Kumbh Mela is held every three years in four cities on the banks of sacred rivers across India. The event held every 12 years in this cycle is prefixed with the term ‘maha’, or great, as its timing is considered more auspicious, attracting the largest number of worshippers.
Devout Hindus believe that immersion in the sacred rivers absolves people of sins, and such dips during the Kumbh Mela also bring salvation from the cycle of life and death.
HOW DID IT START?
Its origin stems from the Rigveda text of Hindu scriptures. The word ‘kumbh’ refers to a pitcher containing the elixir of immortality that emerged during a divine event called the ‘Sagar Manthan’ or churning of the cosmic ocean.
During a celestial battle for the elixir that spanned 12 days in divine time, equivalent to 12 human years, drops of the nectar fell at four places – Prayagraj, Haridwar, Nashik and Ujjain – which became the venues for the Kumbh Mela.
Here, devotees from different Hindu sects, or Akharas, join in grand processions to take the ‘Shahi Snaan’ or royal bath, when they take a dip in the sacred river.
The grand spectacle attracts millions who come not just for the ritual, but also hoping for a glimpse of thousands of ascetics, often clad in traditional saffron attire, who immerse themselves in near-freezing temperatures.
WHO WILL ATTEND?
Officials in Prayagraj, formerly known as Allahabad, expect more than 400 million to swarm the large, temporary city set up on the banks where the Ganga and Yamuna rivers meet the Saraswati, a mythical, invisible river.
Among them are sadhus, who follow a strict path of spiritual discipline and hermits who leave their secluded lives for cities only during the Kumbh Mela.
The fascination with the Kumbh spreads beyond India, attracting attendance by celebrities such as actor Richard Gere, movie director David Lynch and Tibetan Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama in the past.
In 2017, UNESCO placed the Kumbh Mela on its listing of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
HOW IS IT BEING ORGANISED?
Organising the mammoth event gives authorities a bigger challenge every time. In contrast, about 1.8 million pilgrims attended the Haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia last year.
Authorities have set up 150,000 tents to accommodate pilgrims, expected to number around three times the population of Russia.
They also target provision of 450,000 new electricity connections, with more than half already allotted. About 5,000 workers are involved in the effort.
The Kumbh is expected to require nearly 300 million rupees ($3.5 million) worth of power supplies, or more than the monthly average consumption of 100,000 urban apartments in the region.
Additional toilets and better sanitation are among the additional infrastructure.
Drones and surveillance cameras will boost safety for visitors. Stampedes have marred some past events, with 36 pilgrims killed in 2013.
(Reporting by Tanvi Mehta; Editing by YP Rajesh and Saad Sayeed; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
