Gods, Myths and Heroes - Part 59

Maha Kumbh Mela

Kumbh Mela is a Hindu pilgrimage event celebrated approximately every 12 years, correlated with the astrological position of Jupiter in the heavens, which corresponds to the time it takes Jupiter to make one revolution in its orbit around the sun.

Every 12th Kumbh Mela (approximately every 144 years) is a Maha (Great) Kumbh Mela, and the Maha Kumbh Mela is currently going on in India from January 13 to February 26.

It is said to be the largest religious gathering in the world.  The last time around, in 2013, 120 million people attended the Kumbh Mela at Prayagraj, which is only one of the sites where this event is held; a total of 200 million people were said to have attended at all of the sites, and a staggering 400 million people are expected to participate this year.  Dozens of people were trampled to death when the crowd got out of control a few weeks ago in Prayagraj on January 29.

Important participants in the Kumbh Mela are the naga sadhus, also called naga babas.  They are holy men who have renounced all earthly possessions, including clothes (above).  Unlike Western religions where nakedness is viewed as shameful, the nakedness of these holy men is considered admirable.

Another naga sadhu.

Above, a naga sadhu performing what I call the penis trick, where he wraps his penis around a pole.  Sometimes it's wrapped around a sword, though I think in that case the sword is blunt, not razor-sharp.  The purpose of this is supposedly to mortify the flesh to demonstrate a renunciation of lust.

Back to the Kumbh Mela event.  The naga sadhus attend in large numbers.  The most important part of the event is for them to bathe in the Ganges river, which is supposed to wash away all their sins.  Above, some of the thousands of naga sadhus marching toward the river.  Note that many of them are gray-colored, the result of covering their bodies with ashes, which is another way of mortifying the flesh.

There are certain special sites on the Ganges river where this happens.  The most popular site is at Prayagraj, formerly known as Allahabad, at the confluence of three rivers: the Ganges, the Yamuna, and the entirely mythical and imaginary Saravasti river (hey, nobody said that religion has to make sense).

Here are some naga sadhus bathing in the Ganges.  Does it wash away their sins?  I don't know, but it certainly washes away the ashes that they cover their bodies with.

And here are some naga sadhus, washed clean of ashes and of sins.

Events - Part 5

 Kumbh Mela

Kumbh Mela is a Hindu religious festival held every three years and rotating among four different sites in India, forming a twelve-year cycle.  It involves bathing in a holy river, but it is also a huge fair and entertainment spectacle.  The event is the world's largest gathering of religious pilgrims.  The Hindustani Times claimed that attendance for the nearly two-month-long festival in 2019 was 240 million.

The event is also a gathering of naga sadhus and naga babas, holy men who have renounced everything, including clothing.

These naked holy men, their bodies smeared with ashes, are everywhere at the festival.

This well-endowed guy, with a cowboy hat and sunglasses, looks less holy to me, but what do I know?

The penis is not only exposed by these men, it seems to be actively featured by many of them.  It is apparently considered a repository of sacred power.  This guy has a padlock in his penis.

The penis is also used as a demonstration of ascetic control by performing what we might call "dick tricks."  This holy man is winding his penis around a rod.  Others wind their penis around a sword blade (ouch).

This guy is taking it one step further.  Having wound his penis around a rod, he has an assistant climb up and stand on the rod.  Is all his weight being supported by the holy man's penis?  Not really.  His feet are pressed against the holy man's thighs, which are supporting his weight.  But it's a good trick.

But this dick trick doesn't seem to be faked.  This holy man is lifting a pile of bricks with his penis.

Finally, we have a procession of 36 naked holy men.  This isn't from Kumbh Mela, and they are not smeared with ash (an improvement, in my opinion), but it shows the reverence that the people have for these naked men.