Maha Kumbh Mela 2013

Maha Kumbh has increased international reputation as the world's most massive act of faith. Kumbh Mela is a mass Hindu pilgrimage of faith in which Hindus gather at a sacred river for a bath in the river.

Maha Kumbh celebrate at Haridwar, Allahabad, Nasik and Ujjain, these four places by rotation on every third year. And the Maha Kumbh Mela is held at each of these four places every twelfth year. Ardh Kumbh Mela is held at only two places, Haridwar and Allahabad, every sixth year. The rivers at these four places are: Ganga (Ganges) at Haridwar, confluence (sangam) of Ganga and Yamuna at Prayag, Godawari at Nasik and Shipra at Ujjain.

Faith is the most important thing for the pilgrims at Kumbha Mela, they have an unflinching trust in something sublime. To understand the significance of the Kumbha Mela and the important role that it plays in the spirituality of India, it is helpful to know something about the background of the sacred Ganges River.

Bathing Date Maha Kumbh Mela 2013 in Allahabad

The main highlight for most pilgrims during a Kumbha Mela is the observance of a sacred bath at the sangam. It is said that a bath in either of the sacred rivers has purifying effects, but where the three rivers meet, the bather's purification is increased one hundred times. Furthermore, it is said that when one takes a bath at the sangam during the Kumbha Mela, the influence is one thousand times increased.

Most Significant Days During The Kumbh Mela

Makar Sankranti
A Holy bath during this period carries special significance. Those who take a holy bath in the rivers Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari, Krishna and Kaveri acquire pious credits.

Paush Purnima
The day occurs when the moon is full in the Hindu month of Paush. This is the last full moon of winter. By this time, the sadhu and hundreds of thousands of pilgrims arrive at the Kumbh Mela.

Mauni Amavasya Snan
For the holy men and women, this is the main bathing day. New members to various holy monastic orders receive their first initiation on this day.

Basant Panchami Snan
This is the fifth day of the luminous half of the lunar month and is the beginning of spring in North India.

Rath Saptami Snan
Rath Saptami festival is observed on the seventh day of Shukla Paksha in the Magh Month (January – February) in the traditional Hindu calendar.

Bhishma Ekadasi Snan
On this day, Bhishma Pithamaha, the oldest, wisest, most powerful and most righteous person belonging to the Kuru dynasty (approx. over 5000 years ago), narrated the greatness of Lord Krishna through Sri Vishnu Sahasranama to Yudhishtira, the oldest brother of Pandavas.

Rare photos from the Kumbh Mela

Few spectacles on Earth can compare to the great six-week Hindu pilgrimage, the ancient Kumbh Mela, during which literally tens of millions of people make their way to the river Ganges in order to bathe and worship. The 2013 Kumbh Mela takes place at Allahabad (Prayag) in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. Sixty years ago, in 1953, LIFE photographer James Burke chronicled an earlier Kumbh Mela in a series of pictures that, for reasons lost to time, were never published in the magazine. Here, in the midst of the 2013 Kumbh Mela, LIFE.com posts a series of those images — photos that capture something of the raw intensity and almost overwhelmingly sacral nature of the celebration's rites.