Alternatively organized in the holy cities of Allahabad, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik, the Kumbh Festival or the Kumbh Mela features the largest human gathering in the world. The religious festival invites devotees, sadhus, rishiks, yogis and tourists from almost every corner of the world. Hindus believe that the waters of the Ganges turn into nectar on the auspicious occasion of Kumbh Mela in Haridwar. And that a holy dip in the divine waters of Ganga eliminates all the evil and past sins from an individual's life.
The most surreal scenes can be witnessed on the riverbanks of the Ganges during Kumbh Mela. From dawn till dusk, rites and rituals continue while Naga Babas, a big attraction for all, keep themselves busy meditating and practicing different yogic postures.
History of Kumbh Mela
The religious history of Kumbh Mela remains associated with numerous legends. There is an interesting legends which relates to the origin of the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar. Hindus believe that Lord Brahma gave gods a piece of advice to rid them of their weakness, caused during the creation of the earth. Following Lord Brahma's advise, the gods began to churn the ocean to obtain amrit from its waters. As the task was quite tough, the gods sought the assistance of demons. The gods, in return, made a deal with the demons that the latter could have half of the nectar that was to obtained from the ocean. The demons agreed to it.
However, after the gods became successful in procuring the nectar, they tried to run away without sharing half of it with the demons, as was promised in the deal. The gods feared that if the demons got their share of nectar, they might put it to some wrong use. Irritated and angered, the demons ran after the gods to receive their promised share of nectar.
Finally, when the demigods came to the rescue, they hid the nectar in four different places. While doing so, the demi gods happened to spill a drop of this nectar fell down on earth. Blessed by this drop of nectar, four sacred sites came into being, one among these being Haridwar itself. Therefore, astrologers also have the belief that the water of the Ganges attains nectar-like properties during the Kumbh Mela season in Haridwar.
* 14 January 2010 (Thursday) - Makar Sankranti Snan - First Snan (bath)
* 15 January 2010 (Friday) - Mauni Amavasya and Surya Grahan ( Sola Eclipse) - Second Snan
* 20 January 2010 (Wedesday) - Basant Panchmi Snan - Third snan
* 30 January 2010 (Saturday) - Magh Purnima Snan - Fourth Snan
* 12 February 2010 (Friday) - Maha Shivratri - Pratham Shahi Snan - First Royal Bath
* 15 March 2010 (Monday)- Somvati Amavasya - Dvitya Shahi snan - Second Royal Bath.
* 24 March 2010 (Wednesday) - Ram Navmi - Fifth Snan
* 30 March 2010 (Tuesday) - Chaitra purnima sna
* 14 April 2010 (Wednesday) - Baisakhi - Pramukh Shahi Sanan.
* 28 April 2010 (Wednesday) - Shakh Purnima - snan
How To Reach
Positioned at 214 km from New Delhi (India's capital city), Haridwar has easy accessibility from all key tourist destinations in northern India. Though Haridwar can also be accessed by air route, the easier option is to travel either by road or rail. For more information on reaching Haridwar by air, rail or road, read below.
Rail Connectivity
If you want to make a rail journey to Haridwar from India's capital city, you can catch a train either from Delhi or Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station. Other key places that remain connected to Haridwar by rail route include Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Chennai, Howrah, Puri, Chennai, Ujjain and Varanasi among others.
055/2056 New Delhi-Dehradun 4309/4310 Ujjain-Dehradun 9019/9020 Bombay-Dehradun
4041/4042 Delhi-Dehradun 4265/4266 Varanasi-Dehradun 3009/3010 Howrah-Dehradun
2017/2018 Delhi-Dehradun 4113/4114 Allahabad-Dehradun 5005/5006 Gorakhpur-Dehradun
4319/4320 Dehradun-Kathgodam 2687/2688 Dehradun-Chennai 9265/9266 Dehradun-Okha
National Highway 45 that passes through Haridwar provides good road connectivity to the town. Frequent public and private buses are available from Delhi to reach Haridwar. The road journey from Delhi to Haridwar takes around 4-5 hours. Other major cities in northern India are also quite well connected by road to Haridwar.
Delhi-214 Agra-386 Ambala-168 Badrinath-325 Dehradun-52
Kedarnath-250 Saharanpur-81 Nainital-286
No comments:
Post a Comment