(CLO) The Kumbh Mela festival with about 400 million Hindus participating in the mass bathing ritual will take place in India from January 13.
The Prayag Kumbh Mela 2025 or Maha Kumbh 2025 will be held at the confluence of the Triveni Sangam, the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna and Saraswati rivers in Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh state) from January 13 to February 26, 2025.
The last time the festival took place here was in 2013, attracting 120 million people.
Kumbh Mela is the largest spiritual festival in India and the world. Photo: AD
Some 150,000 toilets have been set up, along with a network of community kitchens that can serve up to 50,000 people at a time. 68,000 LED light poles have been installed for the festival, so large that the lights from the area can be seen from space.
Authorities and police forces have set up a network of search centers on mobile apps to connect with passengers lost in the huge crowds.
As the world's most populous country with 1.4 billion people, India is used to hosting large-scale events.
In 2019, the country hosted the "Ardh Kumbh Mela" or "half Kumbh Mela", a smaller version of the Kumbh Mela, which attracted 240 million devotees, according to government statistics. In Hindi, the word "ardh" means "half". The festival is held between the two main Kumbh Melas, which take place every 12 years.
The government calls the Kumbh Mela a vibrant blend of cultures, traditions and languages, representing a miniature India where millions of people come together.
Hindus believe that bathing in the waters will help cleanse them of their sins, free them from the cycle of reincarnation, and bring them salvation. Many devotees choose to live a simple life during the festival, pledging non-violence, observing morality, giving alms to the poor, and focusing on prayer and meditation.
Kumbh Mela (Festival of the Sacred Water Vessel) is one of the world's largest religious festivals, held every four years, rotating between four holy cities in India: Allahabad, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik. The festival was listed as an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO in 2017.
Many world news agencies have assessed that Kumbh Mela 2025 is not only one of the most spectacular cultural events on the planet, but also an opportunity for the Indian tourism industry to explode. However, they do not rule out the possibility that this festival will contribute to increasing the extremely dangerous environmental pollution situation in the country of a billion people...
UNESCO recognized the Kumbh Mela as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2017. This is an important recognition for the festival, recognizing the cultural, religious and community value of the Kumbh Mela, as well as its impact on the millions of devotees who participate each year.
Source: https://www.congluan.vn/400-trieu-nguoi-tham-du-le-hoi-tam-tap-the-lon-nhat-hanh-tinh-post330071.html
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