A journal of my trip to Haridwar – Maha Kumbh Mela 2010
If I could do it, so can you….don’t miss this ‘incredible’ experience India can ever offer!
The only reason for my taking this effort of putting down my experience of the Kumbh Mela trip, is to encourage everyone (particularly, women) to experience such a mass and incredible display of simple devotion, atleast, once in a lifetime. Go for it!
Disclaimer: Please use reliable sources for facts about Kumbh Mela, its history etc. The article below is only an account my personal experience of the trip and does not provide much fact. And I am no expert on this topic so I cannot vouch for the authenticity for even the few facts I happen to provide in some situations!!
Haridwar, what it means to me? I had heard of Maha Kumbh Mela many times before my trip and never in my wildest dreams I thought I would experience it! I heard that it is extremely crowded with chances of stampedes even and of course, attracts mostly strange looking, ash smeared sadhus! I also heard it is a pious, religious gathering like no other in the world and potentially, brings down grace if we manage to bathe in specific parts (bathing ghats) of the Ganges on certain auspicious days. That is, if we manage to survive the experience!!
As it happens that my favorite personal God is my beloved Krishna or ‘Hari’ and ‘dwar’ is ‘gate’ – ‘Haridwar’ is supposed to denote the ‘gateway’ to higher spiritual realm. The town is said to be the stepping stone for further up to the Himalayas (or spiritually, ascension to higher level of consciousness).
In any case, to me, the charming Avatar of Krishna symbolizes and personifies the infinite, all-pervading formless Brahman that is not easily comprehended except through knowledge, discipline and devotion. And when I got to know that opportunity to go for the Mela, I was hoping it was a Divine calling. I still like to believe it is!
My apprehensions before starting the trip! When I got to know that YSS has decided to set up camp at the Kumbh Mela and that a small group from our Kendra (Yogada Satsang Society) was going in Mar, I could not decide. On one hand, I was looking forward to the most unusual journey I would ever undertake. I regularly practice Kriya Yoga and some Hatha Yoga which are quieter but I am generally wary of noisy, crowded temples or pilgrimages. And this kind of trip would supersede any kind of adventure I had dared to take before, given all the pre-conceived notions I had about Kumbh Mela!
Blessing in disguise? And as if to bless me and remove any fear or doubt, two days before the trip, I had a most unusual dream in wee hours of morning, of filmstar Rajnikanth doing ‘aarti’ for Lord Ganesha and Venkatesa!! Bizarre! I hardly consider myself ‘star-struck’ and or even ‘Diety-struck - very rarely watch films and even rarely visit temples or follow traditional poojas! Though I do watch and enjoy the superstar’s yearly releases. Otherwise, the only other link is, we both pray to the same Babaji. Babaji is too precious to write further about, His preferred language is ‘silence’. If He bids, I may write someday in the future.
Setting off for Haridwar. Anyways, I flew down to Delhi with renewed belief in the invisible hand of my Masters and was escorted by my childhood friend based in Delhi, to the Nizamudin station. Trust me, for someone who has never been to the capital before and has heard that it is general not a safe place, even the trip from Airport to railway station late in the night can be a nightmare! I was happy to have my friend around till I boarded the midnight train to Haridwar. I could hardly sleep on the train, as I was to get off at 3.30 pm at Haridwar where my group was waiting for me. They had been to Dwarahat and reached Haridwar in an earlier train. The thought of missing the station or missing my group kept me alert!
My first impression of Haridwar. It was good alright, surprisingly – I looked around the railway station which was neat though with many pilgrims sleeping around covered in blankets. I joined my waiting group and in the wee hours of morning, we proceeded to Keshavananda Ashram just 10 from the station. We got accommodation there as Keshavanada who attained Samadhi decades ago was a follower of Lahiri Mahasya and being co-brothers, YSS members were given preference.
And this good impression of Haridwar, stayed throughout….despite millions and millions of pilgrims and sadhus the town hosted during the Mela, there was surprisingly no dirt or confusion! I was quite not prepared for this positive experience!! It took me time to digest and wonder how there was peace, harmony and cleanliness all around with so many people from all over??
Peaceful ashram stay. The lovable pair of black Labs guarding the Ashram, barked loud enough to wake up the staff. The Ashram itself was serene with many trees, meditation centre and small temple. They provide simple, wholesome vegetarian breakfast and headed to the Kumbh Mela site on the opposite site of the road. Our stay was so well taken care by one of our senior members from Delhi Kendra who was a core member of the YSS camp at Kumbh Mela
Maha Kumbh Mela site was a rare sight of sadhus everywhere! From that point, began the incredulous and fascinating journey. We went over a wooden bridge was over-burdened with sadhus everywerhe - some naked, semi-clad or fully clad in bright, ochre robes shining under the sun and ….walking, riding or driving and fully glad! Some of the sadhus were driving some fancy vehicles, wearing sun-glasses that much amused me! There were sadhus of all ages – young and old and mostly, only men. Our first encounter was with a group of ash-smeared, semi-clad Naga sadhus who were camped together. There were friendly and quite practical…you take a photo of them and you give them a small tip! Though throughout, atleast I never had even one sadhu seeking alms from me! Infact I voluntarily doled out to quite a few of them whenever I could and in some cases, I had to stuff some notes in their pockets, as they would refuse!
Strangest looking Sadhu! The sadhu I found most strange had pound of flesh hanging, which I realized on close observation, was one of his nostrils just like Ganesh’a trunk! His one eye was like a small pea pod above the trunk. The other eye and nostril looked quite normal. The sadhu offered some ashes and blessings and kept on with his prayer/ ritual.
Strange or normal, clad or naked, what I found most touching was all of them were immersed in their rituals and acts of devotion and other activities, least concerned about anyone watching them. Infact many were disarmingly naïve and were like eager children posing before the camera! They especially loved to pose in the act of blessing, with hand raised over head!! Very endearing!
Festivity and spiritual celebration all across Kumbh Mela site. The Kumbh Mela is actually centered in a section of the town where vast, barren hundreds of acres land is allocated by Govt for participating groups and individuals to set up their camp sites. Some small hut like camps and some big tented mandals. This is the heart of the Mela. With the maximum activity in the mornings and evenings, the entire atmosphere reverberated every day with mix of sound and activity of vedic chantings, yajnas /rites, devotional singing, scriptural discourses. Each mandal or camp represented different religious / spiritual order or group. And each followed its own unique ways of attaining Godhood. Poor sadhus and slum dwellers (who were living there constructing tents) enjoyed freely distributed food (Prasad). Most camp groups, distributed free snacks or food for any visitor, rich or poor, who walked in. This was one of the most touching sights…that the spirit of Oneness and seeing God in everyone, unconditionally, that all religion attempt to convey, was clearly demonstrated to us by this act of generosity.
Later I learnt from a saint leader of the most popular Joona Akada that the Kumbh Mela campsite stretches around 75 km in radius and there were 10 lakhs of registered sadhus/saints as per their records participating the Mela. There were more unregistered, independent participants, over and above. He revealed much more as he was, at that opportune moment when we were with him, being interviewed by a journalist. Though it will take another lengthy article to cover everything he said – he made much sense!
Wild goose chase for Devaraya Baba’s camp! I even had the privilege of running around with a Western couple who had converted into Vaishnavaites (with huge traditional symbols boldly drawn on their foreheads!), searching for their camp! All they knew was their guru’s name Devaraya Baba! They had no other details…no registered number or lane number of the camp site or lane! No clue! The cheerful big Australian spoke such fluent Hindi and heartily laughed when I was incredulously asking her how she could just like ‘land up’!! I could never do it! Their ‘blind’ faith surely did pay off….as I had discovered them talking to a group of workers and curiously joined them! It was only then I learnt the couple had arrived in Haridwar the previous night and were searching around for their camp! I took them to our YSS camp and they in turn provided the driver/van and with the help of our neighbor camp (Joona Akada) member, we went on the wild goose chase! To cut it short, we did locate their camp after 2 hours finally!! Incidentally, both Devaraya Baba and Mahavatar Baba are co-brothers…did they send me to the right spot at the right time to help the couple? Can never say!
My lineage of Great Ones and power of silence through Kriya Yoga. I could easily declare that the Yogoda Society Satsang (YSS) founded by my Gurudev Yogananda Paramahamsa, clearly stood out admidst all the spiritual endeavors and noise in the Mela….because it stood for ‘silence by meditation’ through Kriya Yoga. The language of silence is most divine and universal in its appeal. I could proudly say that there was not a single camp anywhere within my sight in those acres (we could not cover every nook and cover of the Mela site even in 4 days!), that matched YSS in its silent dignity. Power of serene silence is such.
Ganga Aarti at Hari Ki Pauri ghat, highlight of the trip. The whole trip filled me with fascination for such mass devotion and simplicity. I saw a big size of India’s rural population surge around during the last 2 days of our trip. As we wanted to experience the Ganga aarti on the eve of the Somvasya Amavasa, we ventured to the Hari Ki Pauri ghat along Ganges. The Ganges with lined with wide, well carved walking pavements towards our side and old fashioned houses and motels on opposite side of the river. It was a quaint, beautiful sight and looked like Indian version of Venice- the houses and hotels hob-nobbed with the water directly with no shores separating them. It was most beautiful and clean (I was dreading there would be dirt and mess) all along the Ganges with wide well-laid sidewalks all through the banks. Maybe I was in the cleaner parts of the town.
We had to go through a deliberately build one way maze of narrow paths divided by wooden rows, to reach the famed Ghat. All this we did with millions of people peacefully, never did we encounter any chaos.
What confronted me were a most touching sight - traditional women who normally go around with head covered by sari pallu, readily stripping off and entering the holy waters half-naked with such reverence and oblivious of anyone watching! Westerners with professional cameras discreetly were hovering around a group of sari-clad women, some of them eagerly shooting from strange angles, standing knee-deep in water to get the right shot!
I could see the vast expense of Ganges dotted with floating lamps in all sizes, shapes. Poor folks too in torn clothes in silence and humility paid their respects to Mother Ganges…. Even our most revered spiritual discipline and practices, fades in the face of such simple faith and devotion writ largely on their tired faces Some of them must have walked miles with little money or barely any food, to reach their destination. Both sides of the river banks had thousands of people lined up, some sitting on the wide steps and some near the water doing the ritual. There were pundits who for a fee of Rs 200 or less would help do the short, yet poignant water ritual of blessing ancestors and current generations before lighting the lamp. I did too and whether or not, I did it right (some of the tongue-twisters went over my head, as the pundit made me repeat them!), I did with faith and felt at peace. The air was too contagious with millions of hearts filled with faith and in that environment, even a skeptic like me found it hard not to believe in power of such age old rituals in the lap of India’s most revered rivers!
Bid Adieu to Haridwar with a cold dip in Ganges. The last day of the trip saw us leaving the safety and comfort of our Ashram at 3 am. We headed straight for the Ganges and took a dip in the freezing cold water. I prayed deeply and was filled with reverence for the powerful elements of nature as the cold, deep waters kept its steady fast pace.
As we walked to the railway station, along with thousands of pilgrims, through long winding and diverted paths, I felt my ego melt in the milling crowd. People walked in easy paces just in the right direction with such discipline and peace, it had to be experienced to understand what it means considering the massive numbers of visiting pilgrims, mostly rural folks, old and young. All my pre-conceived fears transformed into fascination, respect, love for my fellow pilgrims. Even the Gods must be pleased by such a dignified show of synchronized devotion and simplicity.
Infact, the experience is enough to humble anyone…I recommend such trips as a positive escape therapy for anyone dispirited or stressed or even too ego-centric! The mundane realities and responsibilities of life seem far away in such moments. I was far removed from all that l left behind in Chennai and was transported into another realm all the time in Haridwar…quite ‘divinely’ unforgettable. Not sure if I would go to Allahabad next but I wont hesitate like before J
