The Divine Experience of Kumbh - Moment of Truth

The Mahakumbh is not just a religious event — it’s a spiritual journey that truly calls to be experienced. Held every 6 years - 12 years - 144 years in Prayagraj, Haridwar, Ujjain, and Nashik, is all I knew about the Kumbh mela till that day. Little did I know that it would blow me up completely. Starting from the end, everything seemed divine and magical. 

My story has two halfs to it. First was how the universe heard my prayers and responded with its magial support and second was the experience itself at the kumbh. It was an experience that had the power to connect me to something far beyond the physical world mystically. 

Since it was the maha kumbh, talks and light discussions had started about it since after Makar Shankranti. I was giving a casual hear at the start but as the days passed, the news on it started increasing and my interest started building up. With a lot of back and forth, disheartened enough I started my silent conversations with the universe that I have to go please make some arrangements. True to the fact that universe listens to our prayers, I had just called up a friend to inform that my plans got cancelled and check if she was going, to my utter surprise she said "why don't you join us". My happiness went leap n bounds. From the time of the call everything started moving on its own and before I could realize I was on my way to Kashi. Against all the noise, traffic and chaos it seemed like we navigated under the divine guidance. 

I had heard a lot of stories about kumbh before but, this was the first time experience for me personally. I had never seen such a huge gathering of spiritual seekers, practitioners and masters and the humungous crowd. Some had come with the religious beliefs of the shahi snan, some had come to explore the energy and some had come to check what is it all about. 

I was in a trance all along and even after our return I needed a pinch to realize that I was finally a part of the kumbh in reality. Few experiences that made it heavenly mystical. 

• The Body-Mind-Soul Refreshing Sacred Sangam Dip was beyond expression. From the steps one starts taking towards the holy river, it was not about just taking a dip — it was partaking in an ancient ritual believed to purify the soul. We got lucky to get a boat that agreed to take us a little deep to the point where the three rivers met - the Ganga, the Yamuna and the invisible Saraswati. Whether for spiritual rejuvenation or personal reflection, the moment was a highly emotional one for me. It was like asking pardon for all my deeds in this and all my previous birth, knowing / unknowing. 
• Encountering the Aghoris, the Naga Sadhus and the Siddha Sadhus, was one of the most astonishing sights for me. Clad in white sacred ash and knotted hair, these strange looking mystics presented such a strong opposite perspective to the common man's thinking embodying the essence of renunciation and spiritual pursuit. 
• Watching the degree of devotion, discipline and the dedication of these mystics that they put to their sadhana was unbelievable. Hours, days, months and years undisturbed is no child's play. Promises like not to cut the beard or the hair and keep the jata or standing by a penance unbroken was shocking. 
• The energy and the vibration that came from the chanting of the mantras, the hawans, the yagyans was all electrifying. Participating in these rituals, did not leave me just as an observer, but it pulled to be a part of the spiritual energy that filled the air. 
• Meditative moments in the midst of all the noise around touched on and off. After finishing the dip ritual at the point of merge (sangam), we decided to spend some time in the evening on the banks of the river ganga. It was dusk and the sun was about to set. We stopped to take a walk along the bank to experience the peace and the stillness that the rivers carried with them flowing beautifully. Witnessing moments of inner silence  as I watched the rivers flow was unbelievably mesmerizing - difficult to put in words.
• Last but not the least, finding "self" in the whole game was the master stroke. Questions were hitting hard - who am I really, what is my relation with this universe, where have I come from and where do I go from here, who is the third identity within if I am not this body and not this mind. Tears were flowing unceasingly with a profound state of ecstasy. It was a numinous state - a reality beyond the physical state, inviting contemplation of the spiritual dimension that underlie our existence.

I was amazed to witness our country’s rich spiritual heritage up at such close proximity.  All the experiences put together, it was a clear conclusion that the Kumbh Mela is a glimpse of that huge unseen world that is beyond the realm of time and space. May divinity grow further and the human race rise to its highest potential and god realization.