Kumbh: the largest fair on the earth!

( originally published in Kannadaprabha  newspaper Sunday special  here http://archives.kannadaprabha.com/pdf/epaper.asp?pdfdate=3%2F3%2F2013  page 17)

It is morning 4 am and a little walk in the cold sand  bring you Sangam ( Joining of Ganga and Yamuna River in Allahabad) . After the divine bath at Sangm a small worship to the god sun who just rose. On the way back thousands of tents of Sadhus , saints who came all over from India. Infront of many tents , ashrams one can enjoy free team and breakfast which are being given as a free service to the pilgrims. Finish your breakfast stomach full and start visit some amazing Saints , Sadhus . Lunch is very easy ! Finish the vegetarian  lunch in any ashrams and continue .Just walking for miles  shows you never ending rows of tents, shops ,river , pilgrims and you notice the  pain in the joints only when you sit. Evenings are bright with lights and Aarti’s to holy river Ganga and the energy flowing around will make you forget how the day spent. Listen to philosophical talks , hindu epics  from the sadhus , finish lunch and sleep there!

This is not a story from a 10th century  healthy Kingdom! This is a  dairy of a pilgrim  who came to Kumbhmela, 2013 which is happening in Allahabad right now . He walked all the way from his little village of Madyapradesh to Allahabad to witness the largest religious fair of the earth and he intend to go back only after it finishes in March second week!

An old couple who came crawling , a brother who brought his two blind brothers , a son who tied his father to his back , a women who walked three hundred kilometers for her daughter, a sadhu who is standing from eleven years , a saint who lives only in his red Ambassador  car,foreigners  and many more varieties are the one of the amazing feature of Kumbhmela. The religious  beliefs and practices of people visiting here  will shake you to the core! One will really tend to sit on the banks of Ganga , watch these pilgrims ,feel the energy around here and start thinking about destiny!

Already 8-9 crore people are visited this amazing fair and is going to conclude this week after the Mahashivaratri which is happening on Sunday this week. If haven’t visited yet still you have a chance. If you cannot visit this time the next time Mahakumbh happens only in 2015 at Nasik.

Watch this space for my series Kumbh faces

I met so many wonderful people and I managed to capture few of them along with their stories . I will  be adding one by one soon here . The shortest way to get there is

PROJECTS>Kumbh faces

Read in details about Kumbhmela ( wiki link) here