Kumbh Mela or famously known as Kumbha Mela, is a mass Hindu pilgrimage in which Hindus gather to bathe in a sacred holy river. The main festival site is located on the banks of a river: the Ganges at Haridwar; the confluence also knows as a sangam of the Ganges and the Yamuna and the invisible Sarasvati at Allahabad; the Godavari at Nashik; and the Shipra at Ujjain. At any given place, the Kumbh Mela is held once in a 12 years. So guys lets roll down the list of the top 10 amazing facts of the massive festival of the hindus, The KUMBH MELA.
10. Attendance at the Mela
As the time passed more and more pilgrims attended the Kumbh Mela. In 1903, around 400,000 pilgrims attended the Mela. In 1954 more than 500,000 people gathered for the Mela. In 1998 the number of people rose to 10 million and in 2001 40 million. 2007 marked the attendance of around 70 million people. Recently in 2013 100 million people attended the Mela making it the largest religious gathering in the world.
9. Discovery of the Mela
The first discovery of the mela is over 2000 years old. In the stories of the Chinese tourist Xuanzang, who visited India during King Harshavardhan's reign, the first written proof can be found of the mela. The first documented account of the Kumbh Mela was recorded during the period of 629 BC -645 BC.
8. Kumbh meaning
Interpretation of the mela ‘Kumbh’ literally means nectar. Kumbh Mela's origins date back to the time when Gods (Devtas) and Demons (Asura) lived on earth. Devtas were influenced by a curse, which eventually caused fear and weakened them. Brahma (the creator) advised them to churn the milky ocean to get the elixir of immortality and this very churning takes place amongst the hindu devotees till date, at the time of kumb mela.
7. The Improvement of the mela
In 1892, in the Mela at Haridwar an outbreak of cholera occurred, which lead to the formation of Haridwar Improvement Society to take care of the arrangements of rapid improvement of the Mela. Due to the Improvement of the Mela about 400,000 people attended the Mela in 1903. During Kumbh Mela 1954 a stampede at Allahabad resulting a death toll of, around 500 people , and millions casualties.
6. The Golden ticket
There is a Hindu belief that if they take bathe in the water of these sacred rivers during the Kumbh Mela, they will eternally blessed by thee divine. All their sins will be washed away and they will come one step closer to salvation.
5. Contrasting figures
The attendees of the Mela also include several holy men from different Hindu sects. The Nagas don't wear any clothes. The Kalpawasis take bathe thrice a day. The Urdhawavahurs put the body through severe austerities. All these holy men perform sacred rituals related to their respective groups.
4. Job Creation
In 2013 the Mela created approximately 650,000 jobs and was estimated to earn around Rs 12,000 crore. Mela also attracts many tourists from all around the world. For the 2013 Mela, officials set up 14 temporary hospitals, staffed with 243 doctors, and stationed 50,000 police officials to maintain law and order.
3. Kumbh mela and the solar system
The Kumbh Mela is held on the dates when the waters of these sacred rivers are said to turn into nectar. The exact dates of the Mela are calculated according to a combination of zodiac positions of Jupiter, the Sun and the Moon. The Four different combinations are: Jupiter and Sun both in Leo is the Nashik Mela. Sun in Aries is the Haridwar Mela. Jupiter in Taurus and Sun in Capricorn is the Prayag Mela. Jupiter and Sun both in Scorpio is the Ujjain Mela.
2. Visible from Space
In 2013 an estimate of 100 million people participated in the Mela. The Mela is so big that you can literally view the Mela from space. The epicenter of the Mela which is called Kumbh Nagri in Prayag is spread over an area of 58.03 Sq. Km. The ISRO satellite at a height of 817 km from earth clicked images of the Mela which clearly shows the roads and the camps in the festival and even the people gatherings.
1. Number Facts Of the Kumbh Mela
During the Kumbh Mela 750 Mela special trains run to reach the pilgrims to the Mela site. A temporary road or 56.20 kilometres is also constructed. Around 25,800 metric tonne of food grain is distributed among the pilgrims. To accommodate incoming vehicles to the Mela 36 parking slots are made across Allahabad city for a total of 162,000 vehicles.
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