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The Kumbh Mela is what it is because of the devotion of millions who make it an experience like no other.
It is experiencing the heart and soul of India and the brotherhood of mankind.
When I heard that friends were going to Prayagaraj for the Kumbh Mela in January 2025, my wife Malti and I immediately seized the opportunity to go with them for a most unusual experience and the journey of a lifetime.
Luckily we got a booking in the specially created tent cities built for the Kumbh Mela and also on the direct flight from Mumbai to Prayagraj.
We were on our way during the holy days of 13th and 14th January during which the crowds were going to be especially large leading to a curfew of normal activities.
Through contacts, we were able to able to enjoy the largest festival in the world without any hindrance.
As per government statistics, this Kumbh Mela would draw crowds of over 400 million during the 45 days it would last from January 13 to February 26, 2025.
To house such a huge influx of pilgrims and tourists, the Uttar Pradesh government established a temporary city spanning 4,000 hectares comprising 150,000 tents apart from sanitation and transport facilities and over 40,000 security personnel.
The bathing ghats extended over 12 km, the parking space covered 1,800 hectares, there were over 150,000 toilets and over 3,000 security cameras.
Thirty pontoon bridges were built across the Ganga to enable movement between the two banks of the river.
The estimated budget for the Kumbh Mela is around Rs 12,000 crore (Rs 120 billion) and is estimated to generate over Rs 2 lakh crore or $25 billion in revenue). The numbers are mind boggling.
While these figures could be overstated, the fact is that the Kumbh Mela is the largest gathering on the planet with pilgrims and tourists coming in from all over the world apart from sadhus from the remote corners of the Himalayas who are the heart of the festival.
This year's Kumbh Mela is special as the planetary configuration is the same as that which was prevalent at the time of the Samudra Manthan which occurred when drops of nectar mistakenly fell from the pot being carried by the devas to prevent the asuras from seizing it.
We arrived at a sparkling new airport terminal in Prayagraj and drove to the Kumbh Mela site over clean roads, with huge hoardings of the Kumbh featuring the prime minister and the UP chief minister.
Many roads were blocked and we had to navigate our way to reach our tented accommodation.
The tent city had come up on the banks of the Ganga and the enormity of the arrangements have to be seen and experienced to be comprehended.
The climate was cool and the water of the Ganga and Triveni Sangam were clean and refreshing, not very cold, with special arrangements made to take a holy dip with strong temporary railings in the river.
To manage the humongous crowds, all vehicles were banned and one had to walk over huge swathes of land to visit the akhadas and the dhams which are the core of the festival.
The area was dusty and filled with people but there was no stampede and the crowd was well disciplined with the security and police managing the site very efficiently.
There was sufficient facility for snacks and drinking but with a lack of sufficient toilets in the main area.
On the first day, January 13, we crossed one of the pontoon bridges to visit the akhadas and dhams. It took a while for us to reach the numerous dhams, which were temporarily constructed housing religious leaders and their devotees conducting havans within their site.
Many of the sadhus agreed to meet us due to the arrangements we had made though there were huge crowds inside the dhams.
We met saints from Kashmir to South India, offered donations and had private audiences with the heads of the dhams who gave the normal good advice of leading a life doing good deeds and in harmony with nature avoiding excesses.
After visiting the dhams we walked further into the Kumbh Mela site housing the akhadas (14 of them including one for transgenders established in 2025) apart from the normal akhadas with Naga sadhus and Aghoris.
There was a constant milling of crowds resembling a fun fair and again we got to see the main sadhus along with their disciples.
We took their blessings and exchanged pleasantries with them, getting prasad; we also made donations.
This festival was meant for the sadhus who sat on their thrones, dispensed advice and were constantly sought by the milling crowds who could manage to get an audience with them.
We walked over 10 kms within the Kumbh Mela to experience the many dhams and akhadas.
On the second day, January 14, the auspicious day of Makar Sankranti, we went for a holy dip close to the Triveni Sangam on the side of the Yamuna.
The facilities were well provided by the UP government -- the changing rooms for women near the sand bank of the river, toilets some distance away, and temporary railings in the river to facilitate a complete dip and also protect oneself from being swept away by the river current.
While there were numerous people near our side of the river, it was all very orderly and everyone was able to soak in the experience and feel the bliss of bathing in the holy Ganga.
It was amazing to see crowds of people sitting on the sand banks to experience this holy and unique festival, with some chanting hymns.
In the evening we went to the Parmarth Niketan ashram to meet Swami Chidanandaji and Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswatiji.
The Parmarth Niketan ashram, established temporarily near the banks of the Ganga, was an oasis of calm and peace, neat and clean, evoking bliss and solitude despite the crowded Kumbh Mela.
The makeshift tents were aesthetically made of jute with paintings done by the locals on them; the flooring neat and clean and free of dust.
We were privileged to get an audience with Swami Chidanandaji and Sadhvi Saraswatiji who specially mentioned that the makeshift ashram was built by the local people using local material with children doing the art work to add beauty to it.
It was a perfect combination of materialism and spirituality of providing local employment and also shelter to the visiting pilgrims.
On the 3rd day, we were privileged to participate in a havan conducted by Swami Chidanandaji and Sadhvi Saraswatiji amongst devotees with chants and rituals creating a truly devotional atmosphere.
If I were to sum up the experience of the Kumbh Mela it would be to quote a friend: "It's the largest collection of the devoted, the gullible, touts, conjurers, tricksters charlatans, the disillusioned, the opportunists (including photographers), derelicts (hate to use that word) the underprivileged, the privileged etc... but all things considered, the brotherhood and love all around diminishes everything else... it's a mad and fantastic churning of humanity. The true India. A circus one must witness to believe and I am glad I did."
The Kumbh Mela is what it is because of the devotion of millions who make it an experience like no other.
It is experiencing the heart and soul of India and the brotherhood of mankind.
A must visit to experience the Kumbh Mela in its totality.