Come and Experience   Kumbh Mela with us.

Kumbh Mela The origin of Kumbh dates back to the beginning of the Creation. All Devtas (Hindu mythological gods) were suffering due to the influence of a curse that made them weak and coward. Brahma (The God Of Creation) advised them to churn the ocean for Amrit (Nectar), intake of which will make them immortal. However, it was not possible for Devtas to  undertake this mighty mission by themselves, therefore, they sought the help of Asuras (Demons) for the purpose. Gods and demons made a temporary agreement to work together in obtaining Amrita (the nectar of immortality) from the Milky Ocean, and to share this equally. They took the help of Mandara Mountain to be used as a churning rod, and Vasuki, the king of serpents, agreed to become the rope for churning. With the gods at Vasuki's tail and the demons at his head, they churned the ocean for a 1,000 years. Over a period of time, subsequently, 14  supreme gifts appeared out of the sea and at last,  Dhanwantari, the Divine Healer, appeared with the "Kumbh" (pot) containing nectar in his palms, when the Kumbha (pot) containing the amrita appeared, the demons ran away with the pot and were chased by the gods.A battle ensured. For twelve days and twelve nights (equivalent to twelve human years) the gods and demons fought in the sky for the possession of this pot of nector. It is said that during the battle, drops of amrita fell on the earth at four places :  Haridwar, Prayag, Nasik and Ujjain. Kumbh mela is observed at these four locations where the nectar fell. Maha Kumbh is held after every twelve years, which is once in a life time event, if some how your have missed maha kumbh than other option of similar significance is Ardh Kumbh which is held every 6 years. Allahabad will host next Ardh Kumbh in Jan 2007 during the months of Jan - Feb. The combined sanctity derived due to confluence of the three holy rivers (Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati), coupled with the spiritual powers obtained from the pot of nectar of immortality, has earned Prayag the status of tirtharaja ( the king of holy places).  Ganges & Yamuna have their  earthly origin in the Himalayas. Whereas Saraswati, is the mystical river with no physical form. Its is believed that the Saraswati exists only on the spiritual plane and is not visible to the human eye. For those, who believe only on logic and scientific evidences, it has now been established by geologists that Saraswati river did actually exist in this area and due to various natural turbulences, vanished more than 5000 years back. Prayag (near the city of Allahabad, in the state of Uttar Pradesh) at the confluence of three sacred rivers Ganga (Ganges), Yamuna and Saraswati Haridwar (in the state of Uttaranchal ) where the river Ganga enters the plains from Himalayas Ujjain (in Madhya Pradesh), on the banks of Kshipra river, and Nasik (in Maharashtra) on the banks of Godavari river.