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Kate Farmer

Cutting to the chase

Alle Stories

Erstellt am: 14. 1. 2013 - 15:14 Uhr

The largest gathering of humanity in the world

Reality Check: India's Kumbh Mela, Military service in Europe, France intervenes in Mali, Whistleblowing hotline, Aaron Swartz obituary.

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EPA/ANINDITO MUKHERJEE

The Hindu Kumbh Mela lasts 55 days and attracts up to 100 million people

Catherine Zeta-Jones can't wait to get there, and she'll probably take hubby Michael Douglas along too - but for anyone who doesn't like crowds, the Indian festival of Kumbh Mela is one to miss.

Maybe it's my inner agrophobe (I get twitchy on a crowded U-Bahn station) but the idea of up to a hundred million people heading to the confluence of two rivers to bathe in the waters and wash their sins away evokes pure horror and panic. However, that's just me. Ms Zeta Jones and a hundred million others can't all be wrong.

Described as the largest gathering of humanity in the world, the Indian Kumbh Mela festival is held every 12 years. However you feel about crowds, you can't help but be impressed by the organisation that enables the 55 day festival, held on 20 square kilometres of land, to receive up to 100 million people and to go off without major incident.

Figures like 30,000 police, 40,000 toilets, 80 million litres of water and 250 doctors sound gargantuan - but when you divide them back through the number of pilgrims, it's clear that the organisation has its work cut out .

It's a highly spiritual event, steeped in mythology, tradition and religious ritual. One highlight is the procession of sadhus, Hindu holy men, who march through the area accompanied by elephants, horses and music. Some of them are clad in saffron robes, while some are completely naked, their bodies smeared in ash.

EPA/HARISH TYAGI

The ritual bathing of sadhus is a highlight of the festival

Geeta Pandy reports from the centre of the festival at the meeting of the rivers - the Sangam - on the mood and the extraordinary spectacle that is the Kumbh Mela.