Hindi

Glimpses from the Mahakumbh

by Sid

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Feb 16, 2013

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Comments (21)

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Guest Authors , Travelogues

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“बर्तन पे राख़ लगा दो तो वो चमक उठेंगे .. फिर तुम राख़ लगा कर पवित्र कैसे नहीं हो सकते हो ? टूटे बर्तन की तरह हम अपने शरीर को समेटने लगे … अनमने ढंग से जीवन की खुरचे हटाने …और धीर धीरे सारे कपडे जो समाज ने दिए थे, लगे फेकने …और वो गरम राख़ हर जगह  लगा …बढ़ते गए …बढ़ते गए ..जहाँ कुछ देर पहले सभ्यता का आडम्बर चमक रहा था, ये नश्वर तन पर सब उतर चूका था …कोई झिझक नहीं, कोई डर नहीं ..कोई धरम नहीं, न कोई आशा न निराशा ..जो थे सब आँखों से निश्चल हो बह रहे थे … चारो ओर आग की लपेट …और अचानक वो-मैं सब दौड़ पड़े ….ये एक मृत आत्मा जो फिर  सजीव हो उठी थी चमक उठी !”

“If you apply ash to utensils, they start shining .. then why can not you cleanse yourself with ash ? Like broken utensils, we started collecting our bodies together … absent-mindedly started removing the scratches given by life … and slowly, we  stripped ourselves of all the clothes which society has given us, started throwing them away .. and then applying warm ash to our bodies … we started marching … marched … where the pomposity of civilization was galore just some time back, this mortal body had rid itself of all that .. no hesitation, no fear .. no religion, neither hope nor despair .. whatever remained, flowed through the eyes … fire every where… and suddenly them – me started running .. this dead soul which had become alive again, shone bright ! “

I am back after this visit to the Mahakumbh, the biggest pilgrimage of mankind. The above lines are excerpts from my memoirs which I keep publishing on Facebook. Hope you like the glimpses of the Mahakumbh…

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Pilgrims getting ready for the next morning ..

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Fortified with Litti, a common delicacy of the Purvanchal .. and yes, they are not dinosaur eggs !

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And these.. if you know what they are ..

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Blowing the Bigul

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The Happy Sadhu

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The Sauve one ..

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Smoking chillam

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Sadhu on bicycle

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Naga Sadhus marching towards the Sangam

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And the culmination …

 

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About the Author

Sid

A Finance Guru who lives in New Delhi. He is an avid traveler and writes passionately about current affairs, politics and economy.

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21 Comments

  1. Saru Singhal
    Saru Singhal on February 16, 2013 at 7:32 pm

    A mix of spirituality, faith and tradition. Few of the shots are simply superb.

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on February 16, 2013 at 8:17 pm

      Thanks on behalf of Sid Saru 🙂

      Reply
  2. umashankar pandey
    umashankar pandey on February 16, 2013 at 8:53 pm

    Littis and Nagas…! You seem to have hit the heart of Mahakumbha!

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on February 16, 2013 at 11:27 pm

      Thanks Uma on behalf of Sid 🙂

      Reply
  3. avinashgupta_in
    avinashgupta_in on February 17, 2013 at 5:52 pm

    Fantastic Clicks Sid.. Well done

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on February 18, 2013 at 1:26 pm

      Thanks Avinash 🙂

      Reply
  4. Firoze Shakir
    Firoze Shakir on February 17, 2013 at 9:47 pm

    great shots i too bathed with the naga sadhus – my guru is a naga sadhu from juna akahada .. great memories

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on February 18, 2013 at 1:26 pm

      Thanks Firoze .. when was the last time you were there ?

      Reply
  5. saikat
    saikat on February 17, 2013 at 10:06 pm

    awesome picturelogue ,,grt works 🙂

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on February 18, 2013 at 1:26 pm

      Thanks Saikat 🙂

      Reply
  6. Shalini Pereira
    Shalini Pereira on February 18, 2013 at 7:44 am

    Amazing images!

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on February 18, 2013 at 1:27 pm

      Thanks Shalini 🙂

      Reply
  7. Arti
    Arti on February 18, 2013 at 9:20 am

    Very very beautiful! I can so feel the atmosphere, the last picture is my favorite amongst all.

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on February 18, 2013 at 1:27 pm

      Thanks Arti, It happens to be my fav too 🙂

      Reply
  8. Amit Agarwal
    Amit Agarwal on February 18, 2013 at 10:39 am

    A wonderful post!

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on February 18, 2013 at 1:26 pm

      Thanks Amit 🙂

      Reply
  9. maliny
    maliny on February 18, 2013 at 11:50 am

    The pictures are enriched with the essence of the Festival ! Amazing captures 🙂

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on February 18, 2013 at 1:27 pm

      Thanks Maliny. 🙂

      Reply
  11. Ajay Jain
    Ajay Jain on April 13, 2013 at 4:27 pm

    Very amazing blog on Indian culture and tourism i got what i was looking for… thanks for sharing N please keep it up.

    Reply
    • Puru
      Puru on April 13, 2013 at 4:36 pm

      Thanks Ajay .. We will keep trying to make it better 🙂

      Reply

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