An Amazing Phenomenon Called the Kumbha Mela Swami Ishadhyanananda

f there is any word in English capable of No wonder that Harvard University sent a d giving a general idea of what a Kumbha Mela multidisciplinary team of fifty faculty members, rasa p is like, it is this: incredible. You might have staff, and researchers to study and document the siba I visited many melas, fairs, in your lifetime, big phenomenon—‘The Mapping of the Kumbha by and small, but if you visit a Kumbha Mela, like Mela’, as they call it. The ‘pop-up megacity’, as the one held at from 14 January to this team prefers to refer to the Kumbha kshetra,

of 2013, 10 March 2013, you will be amazed to find that place, that springs up on the dusty sands to house mela

no other fair comes anywhere near it—of course, hundreds of thousands of sadhus and millions a h for those with a religious bent of mind. of their followers for fifty-five days, is a source

kumb At the Kumbha Mela ‘every day is a surprise’, of amazement. e said Yuri, who had come all the way from Japan To have a first-hand experience of this unique to witness the mela. And she is not the only one phenomenon we visited Allahabad—also called w of th ie surprised; more than ten lakh of tourists from Prayag—from 7 to 11 February 2013. When abroad visited the Kumbha Mela this year to ex- we alighted at the Allahabad Railway Station, photo: v photo: perience the world’s largest human congregation. little could we imagine what lay ahead. Once

PB May 2013 337 32 Prabuddha Bharata outside the station we started having a hunch thousand camps belonging to different , of the grandeur of the mela; a huge number of ashramas, societies, and religious leaders had passengers waited outside the station looking sprung up. The 56 sq km Kumbha City had been for a means of transport to go to the Kumbha divided into 14 sectors, each sector having hun- kshetra. When we got a vehicle, after one hour or dreds of camps. The prominent places had been so, and started moving towards the camp of the allotted to the akharas and important ashramas Mission, we could see the many of the monks belonging to the Dashanami Sam- temporary offices that had been set up by the pradaya, the ten monastic orders founded by government to facilitate the movement of the Acharya Shankara in the eighth century ce. crowds. Even three days prior to the shahi snan, The very large camps of several akharas, with main bath, on Mauni Amavasya, new moon, it capacity to accommodate in one sitting thou- took us more than one hour to reach our camp, sands of people who go there to listen to re- barely 4 km away from the station! ligious discourses, were situated towards the fringes of the city. The Arrangements The entire area had 22,000 temporary elec- On the riverbank at the Sangam—the conflu- trical poles, having two large halogen lights and ence of the three holy rivers Ganga, Yamuna, four loudspeakers on each of them—the halogen and the mythical Sarasvati—a city of about ten lights flooded the city with a yellowish light, and

Avenue and tents at the Kumbha Mela of 2013 People spending the night under the trees during the Kumbha Mela of 2013

the speakers continuously announced the names enough for vehicles to pass over. Apart from the of lost-and-found people. But what amazed us flowing crowds, a good number of pilgrims— the most was the absence of shops in such a huge mostly from the rural areas of , congregation! Many of us cannot imagine a mela , Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan—stay at without any shops. Business is one of the biggest the Kumbha kshetra, especially on the days be- motivations for holding a mela, but when it comes fore the shahi snans. They just stay anywhere in to the Kumbha Mela, except for a few tea vend­ the grounds, indifferent to the harsh North In- ors, one cannot find any other shop around—not dian winter. It matters little for them where they even food stalls. What was the arrangement for stay; rather, they consider it a blessing to be able foods for the pilgrims then? Anna sattras, dole to spend some time in the holy kshetra. Many of houses. Many camps provide the pilgrims good them spend the nights listening to religious dis- quality food free of charge, right from breakfast courses, which go on round the clock, mostly on to dinner. Apart from that, countless families just the Bhagavata and the Ramayana. It is wonder- sit on the ground and cook very simple food in ful that at any given moment hundreds, if not small earthen ovens, offer the food to God, and thousands, open-to-all discourses are going on

a partake of the prasad. at the Kumbha City, each camp vying to attract pt u Where do the pilgrims stay? Most of the pil- as many pilgrims as possible. Both the acts of giv- g as grims are flowing. They enter into the Kumbha ing religious discourses and listening to them at a d ek

h kshetra through any of the several inlets, take a holy place are considered extremely meritorious is h holy bath at the Sangam, offer their prayers, and by the Hindus. ab move away. To facilitate the movement of the Among the crowds one can see countless by crowds the government has constructed eight- urban Indians and foreigners, who booked their photo een pontoons, floating bridges, which are wide lodgings in any of the thousands of camps. All

PB May 2013 339 photo C The Akharas forces can be. At every cross- ers ing, in front of every camp, t One of the greatest attractions O reu

UR y

moving along with every T of the Kumbha Mela is the dif- Mahamandaleshvar—virtu- ESY ferent akharas, which are the r photo b ally everywhere—more than amak chief stakeholders of the mela.

30,000 police personnel and r In fact, it can be said that the i s paramilitary forces were ac- hna Kumbha Mela is a festival of M

tively providing safety to i monks belonging to different ss

millions of pilgrims. Above ion akharas. What is an ?

all, they were cordial and ex- se An akhara, which literally va s

tremely cooperative—it seems h means a wrestling place, is like r to be written on their faces ama, allahabad an organization of regimented that providing security at the monks. When was

Kumbha Mela is as sacred an under Muslim rule the sann- Candidates from an akhara before receiving sannyasa at the Kumbha Mela of 2013 camp at the Kumbha Mela of 2013 act as taking a dip at the San- yasins were often attacked by gam. There is no doubt that Muslims mullahs and soldiers. To protect them- called Nagas, which means ‘naked’—they in fact the camps have small and big tents for living, one of the major reasons for the Kumbha ­Mela’s selves, the monks of the Dashanami maintain the tradition of remaining naked even makeshift toilets, and dining spaces for the dele- success is the efficient and amiable service by recruited militant monks from ordinary people today, with their bodies heavily smeared with gates; most of them have bookstalls and pan- the police. as well as ex-soldiers. These militant monks were ashes; they undertake rigorous physical practices,

dals, temporary sheds, for religious discourses Pontoon bridges at the Kumbha Mela of 2013 learn fighting and the use of arms, dwell near tem- too. The camp erected by the Ramakrishna Mis- ples or in huts, and come before the public only sion, which is but one of the modest camps, held during Kumbha Melas. ­intra-faith meetings of different denominations In order to take part in the procession for the belonging to the Sanatana Dharma, treated shahi snan, which is a big affair and one of the more than 20,000 patients at its dispensary, main attractions of the mela, each monastery distributed 500 blankets to the needy, set up a belonging to the Dashanami Sampradaya should bookstall and an exhibition, and accommodated be affiliated to a particular akhara. The ten orders hundreds of monks and thousands of devotees are: Aranya, Ashrama, Bharati, Giri, Parvata, during the mela. , Sagara, Sarasvati, Tirtha, and Vana. They Another surprising thing once you enter the have four headquarters in India: Joshi Math in Kumbha kshetra is its road system: 156 km of the north, in the south, Dwaraka in the steel-plated roads have been laid down to cover west, and Govardhan Math in the east. Under the entire area. The roads are straight, wide, run these four headquarters there are several mon- parallel to each other, and act as an immense asteries, called maths or ashramas, that are affili- grid that sectors the kshetra. They are kept clean ated to one or the other akharas. by many volunteers and government employees There are seven Shaiva akharas overlapping who often sprinkle them with water and, frankly with the Dashanami Sampradaya of monks: speaking, are wider and cleaner than many of the Agni, Atal, Avahan, Bhairava, Juna, Mahanir- roads of India’s metropolitan cities. vani, and Niranjani. The head of an akhara is The Kumbha Mela is a lesson on how effi- called the Acharya Mahamandaleshvar, or the cient and helpful the police and paramilitary Pithadhish; he is a learned monk belonging to 340 341 Aerial view of Allahabad taken during the Kumbha Mela of 2013 the Dashanami Sampradaya and is elected by the counter the verbal attacks—they had learnt only Mahamandal­eshvars from among themselves at military practices to deal with the physical at- the time of a Kumbha Mela. Mahamandaleshvars tacks of the Muslims. Therefore, they selected are the regional heads under an akhara. They too learned Dashanami sadhus as their heads, a prac- are learned monks having a considerable follow- tice that is still continued now. ing of monastic and lay disciples. The akharas as- There is a dispute among scholars about the sume the greatest role during the Kumbha Melas, period of origin of the akharas. Some scholars be- as it is for the sake of securing a place in the pro- lieve that Acharya Shankara created them, while cession for shahi snan that the several Vairagi some believe that they are much older. But one and Udasin akharas came into existence. Digam- thing is sure, that Madhusudan Sarasvati, the great bar Ani, Nirvani Ani, and Nirmohi Ani are the scholar monk who lived in in the six- Vai ­ragi akharas, and Naya and Nirmal are the teenth century ce, organized the akharas with the Udasin akharas. These akharas, unlike the Shaiva help of Akbar, the great Mughal emperor. ones, do not have Naga or Dashanami sadhus. Curiously, a non-Naga monk is the head of The Procession the akhara of the Naga sadhus. There is an inter- As mentioned earlier, one of the main attractions esting story behind this. Before British rule Naga of the Kumbha Mela are the grand and flam- sadhus used to be the heads of the akharas. But boyant processions of the sadhus of all denom­ when Christian missionaries started attacking inations, including the Mahamandaleshvars and Hindu institutions with their doctrines, includ- their followers, on the days of the shahi snans. ing the monasteries, the Nagas found themselves The day before ashahi snan the crowds thicken in an awkward position. Nagas, who are supposed in the Kumbha kshetra, the pontoon bridges are to defend the monasteries, were not equipped overflowing with the continuous movement of with the knowledge of the English language to pilgrims, and vehicles are restricted in the area.

342 PB May 2013 An Amazing Phenomenon Called the Kumbha Mela 37

The following is a personal account of the Other colourful attractions of the processions shahi snan of 10 February 2013. We started from are the chariots, lorries, and elephants carrying the our Ramakrishna Mission camp at 4 a.m. to join Mahamandaleshvars, who follow the chariot of the procession of the Mahanirvani akhara—this the Acharya Mahamandaleshvar situated just be- is the akhara the Ramakrishna Mission joins for hind the Nagas. The chariot of a Mahamandalesh- the procession. The Mahanirvani akhara goes first var is followed by his monastic and lay disciples. in the procession at the Kumbha Melas in Allaha­ Once we reached the Sangam, we were carried bad, whereas the Niranjani akhara is the first at forward by the sea of pilgrims and had only a few the Kumbha Melas in Haridwar. The order in seconds to dash into the water, have a dip, and which the different akharas go in the procession come back. There was a constant fear of bumping is a serious matter—it is for this position that in into the Nagas, who were at their highest ‘mood’ the past many battles have been fought among the at the time of the bath. If one collides with them, akharas and thousands of sadhus have been killed. there is every possibility of being thrown back by In the Kumbha Mela held in 1796, some 5,000 them. There was a continuous blowing of whis- sadhus of the Shaiva akharas were killed in a fight tles by the policemen, who would protect the with the Sikh akharas. Fights between Shaiva and sadhus and would not disturb them at any cost— Vaishnava sadhus is also not uncommon. Because it seems the security forces are very conscious of such fighting the British made rules regard- that the Kumbha Mela is a festival of sadhus. ing the order of the processions in the four places where Kumbha Melas are held. During the procession we saw literally mil- Kumbha Mela 2013 Facts lions of people standing by the barricades on · 18 pontoon bridges and 35,000 public toilets were both sides of the road. All were jostling to have built for the pilgrims a darshan of the procession of sadhus; they were · 156 km of new roads, made of chequered steel plates, shouting ‘Hara Hara Mahadeva’ and offering were laid on the riverbank flowers to the sadhus. As we moved towards the · 571 km of water pipelines were laid, and 800 km of Sangam, the crowd assumed an enormity hard electric wires and 48 power sub-stations were set up to describe. The yellowish light from thousands in the mela area of halogen lamps at that early morning hour cre- · 125 ration shops and 4 warehouses were opened in ated a mystic atmosphere. the mela area for pilgrims to buy grains, groceries, But when the hundreds of ash-smeared Nagas and vegetables of the Mahanirvani akhara entered the scene— · 30,000 policemen, 30 police stations, and 72 com- decorated with flower garlands and some of panies of paramilitary forces were deployed to pro- them on horseback, beating drums, and wav- vide security ing their hands in the name of Mahadeva—the · 120 cctv cameras were installed combined tumult of drumbeats, music, and the · 22 doctors and 120 ambulances were on round-the- shouts of the crowds changed the environment. clock duty at the 100-bed hospital at the mela Security forces gave way to the sadhus, as they do · The Mela generated employment for over 600,000 not meddle with them during the processions— (6 lakh) people and its revenue was more than 120 the police just concentrate on the crowd, which billion (12,000 crore) rupees. may break the barricades to join the procession. —See The Economic Times, 14 January 2013

PB May 2013 38 Prabuddha Bharata

Th e Mauni Amavasya drew the highest crowd pot of diff erent world cultures, the urban and in a single day: more than 30,000,000 (3 crore) the rural, the old and the modern. Above all, the people took bath in the Sangam—it was the Kumbha Mela celebrates the human endeavour largest human congregation with a single pur- to go beyond the mundane. pose in recorded history, approximately 90 mil- It is the sense of sacredness and other- lion (9 crore) pilgrims throughout the mela.1 worldliness that keeps the pilgrims peaceful, fo- According to the fxb Center for Health and cused, and self-disciplined. Th is simple fact may Human Rights at Harvard University ‘the mil- remain a puzzle to researchers, media, and tourists lions walked to the Sangam with a purpose. Th ey who do not go deep into the spirit of Hindu cul- were resolute in step, but not hurried, they were ture, a culture that demonstrates that diversities carefree but cautious. Th ey were happy. Th ey can coexist peacefully, a culture in which celebra- were accommodating. Th ey were joyous.’2 tions, pilgrimages, and rituals are performed for inner transformation. Inner transformation is a si- The Faith lent process, like the actions of the pilgrims of the What is the secret behind the success of the Kumbha Mela, who come silently, bathe silently, Kumbha Mela? Th e arrangement, the security, and move away silently. Amidst the hue and cry, the planning? All these would have been inad- it is the silent prayer of the heart that captures the equate to make the Kumbha Mela peaceful and essence of the Kumbha Mela. P PHOTO: PEOPLE TAKING A HOLY BATH OF 2013 / FT WORLD AT DURING THE KUMBHA MELA THE SANGAM successful, had the crowd not been moved by faith, the simple faith that a dip at the Sangam References at the auspicious hour would make one free from 1. See offi cial statistics by the Government of samsara, the repeated cycles of birth and death. India at: < http://kumbhmelaallahabad.gov. Moksha is the goal of the pilgrims who come to in/english/kumbh_at_glance.html> accessed 15 March 2013. the Sangam. During the Kumbha Mela the San- 2. See sacred rivers, but also the confl uence, the melting accessed 28 March 2013.