Explainer: Mahakumbh of faith, will last for 45 days, know in detail from mythological importance to history of Akharas.

1. On January 14, on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, with the Uttarayan of the Sun, the first Amrit Snan of Mahakumbh will start with the royal bath of the Akharas of Sadhu Sanyasis. Only after the royal bath of the Akharas, common devotees come down to the Sangam banks to take a holy dip.
2. On 29th January, on the day of Mauni Amavasya, the second Shahi Snan or Amrit Snan is held. This is considered the most sacred day to take a dip in Kumbh.
3. The third Shahi Snan will take place on Basant Panchami on 3rd February. On this auspicious day of the end of winter and beginning of spring, people will present a wonderful aura on the banks of Sangam with yellow clothes. Maghi Purnima bath will take place on Sangam bank on 12th February. The last big day of bathing in Mahakumbh will be on 26th February on the occasion of Mahashivratri.

Where does Mahakumbh or Kumbh take place?

Now the question is, what is it that in these few days, crores of devotees flock to take a holy bath and why does this happen only on Mahakumbh or Kumbh. For this we will have to go towards Hindu mythological beliefs. First of all, let us know that Kumbh Mela takes place at four places in India. Every twelve years, Kumbh is organized on the banks of Sangam in Prayagraj, the banks of Ganga in Haridwar, the banks of Godavari in Nashik and the banks of Shipra River in Ujjain. In this way, Kumbh is organized every three years at one of these four places. Ardh Kumbh also takes place every six years in Prayagraj and Haridwar. Now the question is why Kumbh takes place only at these four places. For this we have to know the mythological story of Samudra Manthan.

Know the mythological significance of Kumbh

Kumbh means pitcher in Sanskrit… According to Hindu mythological texts, the ocean was churned to attain Sri Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and grains. Due to a curse of Maharishi Durvasa, the wealth and opulence of Indra, the king of gods, had ended. In such a situation, Lord Vishnu advised him to churn the ocean by the gods and demons. From this churning of the ocean, 14 things including Goddess Sri Lakshmi came out. Like Kamadhenu, Kalpavriksha, Halahal and Amrit… As soon as the Amrit came out, there was a competition between the Gods and the demons to get it. Indra’s son Jayant saved Amrit from the demons and ran away with the Kumbh. During this journey of Jayant, nectar from Kumbh spilled at four places. These are Prayagraj, Haridwar, Nashik and Ujjain. Since then, Kumbh Mela is organized at these four places.

At those places where drops of nectar fell in the rivers, Kumbh bath is performed when the Sun, Moon and Jupiter enter particular zodiac signs. Here, bathing on these occasions is seen as liberation from sins and attainment of virtue. Fairs have been going along with India’s spiritual journey for thousands of years. But there is no exact estimate of when the Kumbh Mela started. There is mention of such big fairs in Rigveda and Skanda Purana, but historians are not of the same opinion about whether it was Kumbh Mela or not.

Chinese traveler Hiuen Tsang also dated Kumbh

The first description of Kumbh Mela is found in history about 1400 years ago. The first written evidence of the Kumbh Mela was found in the book Shi-yu-ki by the Chinese traveler Hiuen Tsang. Hiuen Tsang came to India between 630 to 645 AD. That was the era of King Harshvardhan. In 644 AD, when Hiuen Tsang went to meet King Harsh Vardhan, he was astonished to see such a cultural and spiritual fair. At that time, a fair of devotees was going on at the confluence of Triveni in Prayagraj. Although many historians believe that it was Magh Mela. Whatever be the case, in this fair Hiuen Tsang got a chance to closely see and understand the people of India, their beliefs and their culture.

According to Hiuen Tsang’s estimate, about five lakh devotees had come to that Kumbh, which included many kings and their families. King Harshvardhan was famous for his charity. During Kumbh, people used to donate their wealth openly to the poor. To carry forward the same tradition, many donation centers have been set up in this Mahakumbh where devotees can donate for the benefit of the people living on the margins of the society.

It is said that after this, in the eighth century, the great Hindu philosopher Adi Shankaracharya formalized the organization of Kumbh Mela at four places. His endeavor was to make such big fairs a center of philosophical discussion and deliberations. Some historians also connect the Kumbh Mela with the Bhakti movement of the 12th century.

First mention of Prayag’s Kumbh Mela in British records

The first mention of the Kumbh Mela of Prayag in British records before independence is found in 1868, in which the need for cleanliness arrangements was mentioned in view of the number of devotees. Before 1838, the British authorities used to collect taxes from the devotees but made no arrangements for them. But this changed after the mutiny of 1857. According to some historians, the Kumbh Mela was also making people socio-politically aware. Seeing this, British officials started keeping a close watch on them. Along with this, he also started paying attention to the management and cleanliness of fairs.

Until the British government took over the arrangements for the Kumbh Melas in the middle of the nineteenth century, the work of making arrangements for the devotees in the Kumbh Melas was in the hands of the Akharas of Sadhus and Sannyasis. These arenas of saints and ascetics are the biggest attraction of Kumbh. Among the nectar baths of Kumbh, the royal bath of these Akharas takes place first. It is believed that Naga Sadhus are given the opportunity to bathe first because of their religious devotion. With full royal pomp, the sadhus of the Akharas riding on elephants, horses and chariots come for the royal bath. It is also believed that in ancient times, kings and emperors used to go out for bathing in a grand procession along with sages and saints. Crores of devotees reach Kumbh to see the royal bath of saints and ascetics and seek their blessings.

Know the history of Akharas

The history of these akharas of saints and ascetics is also very interesting. The word Akhara means wrestling place. It is also believed that the Akhara system was established by Adi Shankaracharya in the eighth century. He also established a warrior class among the monks and nuns who could fight the foreign invaders. Initially there were four Akharas, the number of which has now increased to 13 with time.

• Of these, seven Akharas belong to the Sanyasi sect… These are Juna Akhara, Avahan Akhara, Agni Akhara, Niranjani Akhara, Anand Akhara, Nirvani Akhara and Atal Akhara.
• There are three Akharas of Vaishnav sect… Nirmohi Akhara, Digambar Akhara and Nirvani Ani Akhara…
• There are three Akharas which worship Guru Nanak Dev… These are Bada Udaasin Akhara, New Udaasin Akhara and Nirmal Akhara…
• The work of managing all these Akharas, creating harmony between them and resolving disputes is done by the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad, which was established in 1954.
• The president of the Akharas is elected by voting among all the 13 Akharas. The largest among these is Shri Panch Dashnam Juna Akhara, whose headquarters is in Varanasi. This is Shaiva Akhara which was established by Adi Shankaracharya. This Akhara is connected to the four monasteries established by Adi Shankaracharya, Dwarka, Puri, Shringeri and Jyotirmath. Their favorite deity is Lord Dattatreya.
• The second Akhara is Shri Panchayati Akhara Niranjani whose headquarters is in Daraganj, Allahabad. This also belongs to Shaiva sect. It is believed that it was established in Mandvi, Gujarat in 904 AD, it is the second largest Akhara.
• The third Akhara is Shri Shambhu Panchayati Atal Akhara. Its headquarters is in Varanasi and it also belongs to Shaiva sect.
• The fourth Akhara is Shri Panchayati Akhara Mahanirvani. Its headquarters is in Allahabad. This is also a Shaiva Akhara.
• The fifth Akhara is Shri Panchayati Akhara, very indifferent. Its headquarters is also in Allahabad. Its follower is Shri Chandraji, the elder son of Guru Nanak Devji, the first Guru of the Sikhs.
• The sixth Akhara is Shri Panchayati Akhara Naya Udasin whose headquarters is in Haridwar. They belong to the indifferent sect. It was built separately from the big Udaasin Akhara. This Akhara is a follower of Shri Chandra Bhagwan.
• The seventh Akhara is Shri Panch Nirmohi Ani Akhara… Its headquarters is in Haridwar… Its followers are Vaishnavs… Nirmohi Akhara worships Lord Hanuman…
• The eighth Akhara is Shri Panch Digambar Ani Akhara… Its headquarters is also in Haridwar… This is also Vaishnav…
• The ninth Akhara is Shri Panch Nirvani Ani Akhara… Its headquarters is also in Haridwar… This is also a Vaishnav Akhara…
• The tenth Akhara is Shri Panchayati Akhara Nirmala… Its headquarters is also in Haridwar… This is the Akhara of Nirmal sect… It was established by Durga Singh Maharaj in 1856… This Akhara also has a close connection with Sikhism. Is…
• The eleventh Akhara is Shri Shambhu Panchgani Akhara… Its headquarters is in Junagadh, Gujarat… This is a Shaiv ​​Akhara…
• The twelfth Akhara is Shri Panjdashnam Avahan Akhara… Its headquarters is in Haridwar… This is also Shaivite..
• The thirteenth Akhara is Taponidhi Shri Anand Akhara Panchayati… Its headquarters is in Nashik, Maharashtra… This is also a Shaiv ​​Akhara..

Social and economic importance of Kumbh

In the Mahakumbh, when these Akharas enter the Mahakumbh, they come out with great pomp and show of power. The places where these Akharas are established in the Kumbh area are called cantonments. Kumbh not only has religious-spiritual and social importance, its economic importance is also no less. The world of trade and business is also present here to meet the needs of crores of devotees.

Yogi Adityanath government of Uttar Pradesh has executed 549 projects for the facilities of devotees in Prayagraj Mahakumbh, under which facilities range from basic facilities to cleanliness. A budget of Rs 6990 crore has been kept for this. Fair officials estimate that the state government will get revenue of Rs 25,000 crore from Mahakumbh and its total impact on the economy of Uttar Pradesh will be around Rs 2 lakh crore.