Alongside India’s sacred rivers, a temporary city is rising in preparation for a Hindu religious festival anticipated to be so large that it will be visible from space, marking the biggest gathering in history.
This photograph taken on December 18, 2024, shows Digambar Ramesh Giri, a Naga Sadhu or Hindu holy man, looking on as he sits inside his tent near Sangam, the confluence of Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers, ahead of the Mahakumbh Mela 2025 in Prayagraj. Source: AFP.
Rows of pontoon bridges stretch across the rivers at Prayagraj, as Indian officials gear up for an estimated 400 million pilgrims—more than the combined population of the United States and Canada—during the six-week-long Kumbh Mela.
This ancient, sacred event of religious devotion and ritual bathing takes place once every 12 years at the confluence of the holy Ganges, Yamuna, and the mythological Saraswati rivers.
However, the upcoming event, running from January 13 to February 26, is expected to be especially massive, coinciding with a rare planetary alignment.
Beads of sweat shine on laborer Babu Chand’s forehead as he digs a trench for what seems like an endless stretch of electrical cables, working alongside countless other laborers day and night on the sprawling 4,000-hectare (15-square-mile) site.
“So many devotees are coming,” said the 48-year-old Chand, who views his work as contributing to a noble cause for the mela, or fair.
“I feel I am contributing my bit – what I am doing seems like a pious act.”
Unwavering Faith
A massive tent city, covering two-thirds of the area of Manhattan, is under construction on the floodplains of Prayagraj, previously known as Allahabad, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.
“Some 350 to 400 million devotees are going to visit the mela, so you can imagine the scale of preparations,” said Vivek Chaturvedi, the spokesman for the festival.
Preparing for the Kumbh is akin to establishing a new country, as it involves the creation of roads, lighting, housing, and sewage systems.
“What makes this event unique is its magnitude and the fact that no invitations are sent to anybody… Everyone comes on their own, driven by pure faith,” Chaturvedi told AFP.
“Nowhere in the world will you see a gathering of this size, not even one-tenth of it.”
Approximately 1.8 million Muslims participate in the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
The scale of the Kumbh Mela, as described by Chaturvedi, is staggering.
Around 150,000 toilets have been constructed, 68,000 LED lighting poles installed, and community kitchens have the capacity to serve up to 50,000 people simultaneously.
In addition to the religious preparations, Prayagraj has undergone a significant infrastructure upgrade, with large posters of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath displayed throughout the city.
Both leaders belong to the ruling Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), where politics and religion are closely interwoven.
Elixir of Eternity
The Kumbh Mela is an age-old celebration with deep roots in Hindu mythology.
Hindus believe that immersing oneself in the sacred waters of Sangam, the confluence of the rivers, purifies them of their sins and grants the opportunity to attain “moksha,” liberation from the cycle of birth and death.
Legend has it that a battle took place between gods and demons over a pitcher, or “kumbh,” containing the nectar of immortality.
During the battle, four drops of the nectar fell to Earth.
One of these drops landed in Prayagraj.
The others fell in Haridwar, Nashik, and Ujjain – the three other cities that host the rotating Kumbh Mela on alternate years.
However, the Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, held once every 12 years, is the largest.
The event is often referred to as the great, or “Maha” Kumbh Mela.
The last Prayagraj Kumbh Mela in 2019 saw 240 million devotees, according to officials, although that year was the smaller “Ardh” or half festival, held between the main gatherings.
“When you talk about the Kumbh, you have to talk about astronomy,” said historian Heramb Chaturvedi, 69.
“Jupiter transits one zodiac sign in a single year,” he added. “Therefore, when it completes 12 zodiac signs, then it is Kumbh.”
At the heart of celebrations is the act of giving alms to the “wise and learned, the poor and the needy”, he said.
Naked monks
Some pilgrims have already arrived, including the naked naga sadhus—wandering monks who have journeyed for weeks from the distant mountains and forests, where they typically dedicate themselves to meditation.
These sadhus will spearhead the early morning procession into the cold river waters on the six most sacred bathing dates, beginning with the first on January 13.
“I have come here to give my blessings to the public,” 90-year-old Naga Sadhu Digambar Ramesh Giri, who is naked and has dreadlocks tied in a bun, shared with AFP.
“Whatever you long for in your heart you get at Kumbh.”
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