The Kumbha Mela
The year 2007 has started with the world’s largest and greatest religious gathering in the world…The Kumbh Mela.Millions of Hindu pilgrims travel to one of the specific holy locations in India four times every twelve years. The festival lasts ove-r a month and sees pilgrims taking part in daily spiritual rituals such as bathing in holy waters as a method of body purification.
The pilgrimage this year is called the ‘Ardh’ (half) Kumbh Mela as we are in the sixth year of the twelve-year cycle. Each twelve-year cycle consists of one ‘Maha’ or ‘great’ Kumbh Mela. In the year of 2001, records were smashed as it was reported over 100 million people attended, making it the largest gathering of human beings for a single purpose. The gathering was so large it was seen and photographed from space via a high-resolution satellite.
February 4th, 2007 at 10:48 pm
Good article.And it also shows that Indian really do know how to organise big events.Just imagine the whole population of the UK going to Southend for the weekend and what chaos that would create but the Kumbh mela had even more people turning up.
February 5th, 2007 at 5:01 pm
Such a dramatic show of faith and yet no coverage in US press. A small number of muslims go to Haj and it gets covered around the world. During Jubilee the pope gets a fraction of the visitors for KM and that gets covered for a year. - shows the power of the press and the anti-hindu slant.
Does Indian press cover the KM equitably?
hariaum
February 9th, 2007 at 2:12 am
It is obvious that Hinduism gets very little representation in the Western media compared to Islam and whatever representation it gets is mostly negative, yet there seems to be quite a few journalists in the Western media coming from a Hindu background. Are they affraid to loose their jobs, if they were to point out this lack of Hindu representation or misrepresentation to their producers? Or are they just not interested in the religion or culture they come from? Perhaps an enquiry by UK Hinduism Today is called for.
Nehru Lall
February 22nd, 2007 at 11:49 am
The Kumbh is a world phenomena with a such zealous piety, people descend onto the banks of India’s holy rivers.
There is no other religion on earth were gods in their all encompasing manifestations are revered and honoured with dignity.
We now live in a world that degrades the worship of deities and demigods for a male controller God.
Hinduism represents all manifestations open for your own style of worship, this includes male female forms , animals and plant form or even spiritual form. There is no religion as open and all welcoming as Hinduism.
There are no dogmas or rites, there are no rules or commandments, there are no pressures to conform to a congregation. This is the Beauty of Hinduism in the Modern day world. We must realise that this faith has the power to survive all form of conversion and missionary work.
You can drink bhang (alocohol intoxication) Shivaism, smoke chilum , dance and sing Vaisnaism , You can climb mountains or bathe in rivers all is allowed .
although bhagwat gita prohibits eating of flesh ….dog eaters as they are called.
It is the Oldest religion on earth , The Third largest , Henotheist and monotheist , we have one supreme God , we have Million Gods, you have to look to no other religion , please brothers and sisters realise the beauty of this faith that allows you so much freedom to worship.
we still become blind and become converts to others …..this is a pity !!!!!!