Prayagraj: The Maha Kumbh Mela, the grandest religious gathering in India, will kick off at Prayagraj on 13 January 2025, with millions of pilgrims from all over the world coming to the site. The event, which is organised once every 12 years, will last for 45 days and end on the day of Maha Shivratri, which is the 26th of February.
The Maha Kumbh, which is often referred to as the ‘Festival of Immortality’ in Hindu scriptures, is a prominent event that attracts pilgrims who consider it a means of spiritual purification through ritual bathing at the Sangam, the intersection of the Ganges, Yamuna, and the imagined Saraswati rivers. Saints, ascetics, and devotees from all corners of the world will attend this event, which will also hold special significance for them as the royal bathing days, ‘Shahi Snan,’ are the special ones for them to take the ‘holy dip.’.
The beginning of the Kumbh Mela is uncertain, although a number of old manuscripts describe it as stemming from the philosopher Adi Shankara in the Satya Yuga. Other texts have it referencing the cosmic ocean’s mythological churning. Academics, however, have suggested that the Kumbh custom has its origins in ancient times since inscriptions from the far past suggest it, and a 6th-century BCE Buddhist text mentions a river festival.
The legend is connected to the Kumbh Mela that is equally interesting as the event itself. It is said that during the time of the cosmic ocean being churned, there was a fierce battle between the gods and the demons over the pot of the nectar of immortality. Jayanta, who was the son of Lord Indra, took the pot, and as a result, there was a chase of 12 days (which was equivalent to 12 human years), and the drops of nectar fell at four places: Prayagraj, Ujjain, Nashik, and Haridwar. These places are the venues for the Kumbh Mela, alternately.
As Prayagraj gets itself ready to serve the highest-ever number of pilgrims, the city is in the thick of preparations for this backbreaking event that will display India’s cultural and spiritual heritage.