The Maha Kumbh Mela, due to begin on Monday on the auspicious day of Makar Sankranti, has a very special significance for Hindus. The mela near Allahabad, at one of the holiest sites at the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati, holds great fascination for India and the world. To see a congregation of such numbers driven purely by faith is an experience by itself, and symbolic of man’s yearning for something far higher than the comforts of the material world. Some estimates have it that over the next 55 days a record number of 200 million people will visit the Sangam city of 70 sq km, which just goes to show that despite modernisation and the world getting transformed into a global village, faith still remains the greatest motivator of mankind. The harmony witnessed in millions gathering in crowded, noisy and virtually insanitary conditions underlines once again the belief that faith can move mountains.
The touch of Eastern mysticism in all this may appear fascinating to the West, although the simple principle of a symbolic holy bath not only washing away one’s sins but also promising salvation for humans susceptible to worldly temptation is sufficient to drive millions and millions to get to the holy Ganga. The sheer logistics of the world’s largest human movement may seem frightening, but one must remember this event has been held for over a thousand years. Fears over security are inescapable in our modern age, and it’s a reflection on life today that so many precautions must be taken, including satellites to keep a watch from the sky, deployment of paramilitary forces, disaster response teams, bomb disposal squads and counter-terrorism specialists. Hinduism, with its all-embracing philosophy, appears to attract all kinds of people, from jet-setting swamis to movie celebrities like Catherine Zeta Jones this time and, of course, millions of India’s “godmen”.
Significantly, the mela fosters a convergence of various sects — Vaishnavites, Shaivites, Arya Samajis and Sanatan Dharma followers. Atheists and agnostics may as well try not to see reason and logic in a mela that attracts the faithful as well as ascetics of all types, naked fakirs, sadhus and “Naga” sects. It may be worrisome to think that such a great holy gathering might turn into a hotbed of religious politics, as has been known to happen in the past.
It’s a matter of some relief that the crush of modern quotidian requirements as well as the existence of a multiplicity of sects and groups will ensure that the Dharam Sansad, that once played a key role in the Ayodhya moment, is no longer a defining moment of Hindu religious thought. The seeking of salvation overrides everything else these days.