Kumbha Mela: Achieving Moksha… Like a Boss

Sat, Feburary 16 1:36 pm

Kumbha Mela: Achieving Moksha… Like a boss

At six o clock yesterday morning I left my house for the experience of a lifetime. I was to meet Alex, Tania, Vidiay Ji, three of her foreign friends, and my history teacher, Professor Ojha, in order to go to the Khumbha Mela.

A little background:

View from the bridge above the Kumbha Mela

Once every 12 years a major bathing festival occurs in one of three places around India. The tradition is that this festival has been occurring since time immortal, sparked by the actions of Gods and Daemons eons ago. Every three years there are smaller melas, but in a twelve cycle the masses descend  to a specific point to spend a month bathing in holy waters, learning from saudues (Hindu holy men), sharing news, and simply being there.

This year was one of those years and for about a month the banks of the Allahabad, a city abut two hours a way from Varanasi, became the most populated area in the world. In a matter of months, a temporary tent city is built, and throughout the month of the Kumbha more then 100 million people come to bathe. It is the largest gathering of human kind in the world, bigger then all of the major cities you can think of. New York is a village compared to this. Politicians and peasants alike make the journey to the Mela, some walking all the way across India just to bath at auspicious moments surrounded by holiness.

There is a specific point where the river Ganaga, the river Yanma, and Saraswati, an invisible river that has sunk into the ground, meet. It is there that you will find masses of people bathing themselves in a ceremony that guarantees Moksha, salvation, at the end of their life. Simply bathing in this spot during the Kumbha Mela is enough to ensure your salvation, and release you from your cylce of rebirth. And so, a little after 6:00 am this motley crew of students, teachers, foreigners, and locals set out to be part of this incredible event.

The Mela 

We reached Allahabad at about 10:30 and set out to walk the four kilometers to the site of the Kumbha Mela. We joined the millions of others headed in that direction; people from all over the Hindu world. We still attracted attention because of our white skin, but for once people seemed more concerned about what they were doing than us. We walked for about 45 minutes in a never-ending stream of people and we ended up on a bridge overlooking the Mela grounds.

Procession of Sadu Sects

I have never seen anything like it. For as far as I could see in all directions there were tents of all sizes, people doing all kinds of things, vehicles of every kind, and everything else you might need to house and feed 100 million people. We walked to the middle of the bridge to get a birds eye look at the event, and saw part of the procession of the different sects of saudus on there way to bath. While regular people just walk to the bathing area, each sadu sects has its own truck, bus or tractor, highly decorated, with the main guru sitting on top. The sects bathe everyday in a specific order, determined by the power of each individual group.

Listening to the Sadu

We then went down the main grounds and set out in search of Proffessor Ohja’s cousin, who would lead us to the sadu tent where we would have our lunch. It took us almost an hour after entering the grounds to reach that point, but on the way there was so much to see. We saw the procession up close, every color and pattern of Sari you can imagine, people selling jewelry and blessings, cooking, eating, sleeping, sitting, and thriving in this feeling of absolute holiness. We saw a man who is said to have been standing on one leg for 30 years, a floating bolder, chain smoking female Sadu, and more naked men then anyone should every see. These are the sights that create the perception in the west about the overpowering spiritualism of the east. I almost felt as though I was in a novel about times past and places unknown.

At about 12:30 we finally made it to the place where we would eat our lunch, but first we sat down to learn from the head of the community. However, because he was speaking Hindi there is no way for me to tell you what he said. Use your imagination. After some chaii we went in to the tent and had the best meal I have had in India so far, simple lentils and vegetables, hand mixed with rice and eaten with your fingers. (Mom and Dad: remember how long it took me to learn to eat with my hands? Well, I reverted. Deal.)

Fun Fact:

There are two dogs that live with this Sadu community that have become such a presence at the Kumbha that they have their own space in the procession. Everyday they are decorated with garlands of marigolds, and they head down to the Ganga to bathe.

Lunch 

Bathing Point

After lunch we headed out again, this time to find the main bathing point, or the place where the three rivers join. On the way there, I decided that I was going to bathe, even though I promised myself never to step into the Gunga, a place that makes the Chicago or Genesee river look sparklingly clean. I managed to convince Alex and Brian, a 40ish alum of the program, to bathe with me.  Fully clothed, and with nothing to change in to afterwards, we plunged into the most holy water in the world, making everybody around us laugh to see the stupid Americans. But they were proud of us, and happy to see white people paying homage to Hinduism.

After my first dunk I stepped on something, and reached down to grab it. It was a bracelet, a bangle, with seashells on it. Some might say that it was just lost by a woman who bathed earlier; others may say it was a gift from the Mother Gunga. I say it was a hurt foot, but I kept the bracelet anyway. After spending sometime in the water, the three of us got out and a priest blessed the whole group. We set out to explore and come across the VIP area. This being India, we smiled at the security guards and climbed through a whole in the fence. That’s what we call security.

At this point is started to rain, so we made the trek back to the Sadu’s tent to wait out the showers. It ended about a half an hour later, and we headed back to the cars. We reached home at about 11, and I fell right asleep. I didn’t even take the time to wash off the Gunga, whose water made me both dirtier and cleaner then I have ever been in my life, depending on who you ask.

Brian, Alex, and Me Bathing in the Sangum

Achieving Moksha: if Hinduism is the world’s true religion I am in really good shape, although the fact that I said the Shehechanu when bathing may count against me. Or maybe not.

Monday Feb 18, 2:25 pm

I paid for that dip in the most holy but dirtiest river in the world. This saturday I spent all night with rivers of my own coming out if you get my drift. So all you white people out there: Be careful. 

Living Conditions

The whole crew