By Gigi Kotze
23/01/2025
From 13 January to 26 February, millions of Hindu devotees will gather at the holy Triveni Sangam (the sacred confluence of three rivers in India—the Ganga, the Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati) in Prayagraj, India, for spiritual purification and renewal. During the gathering, several Shahi Snan (royal bathing) days are observed. On these holy days, devotees bathe in the waters, believing this will cleanse their souls and bring spiritual blessings. This year’s celebration is especially significant as the Maha (grand) Kumbh Mela (Festival of the Pitcher) occurs only once every 144 years. It marks the twelfth Kumbh Mela on this scale, coinciding with a rare celestial alignment of the Sun, Moon, and Jupiter. This year, it is expected to attract over 400 million people – the largest crowd in its history – bringing together a vibrant mix of sadhus (holy men), pilgrims, and tourists.
Origin of the Maha Kumbh Mela:
The Kumbh Mela has its roots in a Hindu tradition in which Lord Vishnu, the Preserver, took a golden pitcher (kumbh) containing the nectar of immortality from the demons. During a twelfth-day celestial battle for the pitcher, four drops of the nectar fell to Earth at Prayagraj, Haridwar, Ujjain, and Nashik. These cities now host the festival in rotation every three years. While historians debate the exact origin of the Kumbh Mela, Hindus trace it to the legend of Samudra Manthan (the churning of the ocean), where Vishnu is believed to have spilled drops of the elixir at these sacred sites.
What Hindus Believe They Gain from Sacred River Baths:
Bathing in the sacred waters is believed to cleanse sins, purify the soul, and bring spiritual renewal. Hindus also believe it can help them break free from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, ultimately bringing them closer to moksha (liberation). Taking part in the Kumbh Mela is thought to multiply spiritual benefits and blessings, and the waters are considered to carry divine energy, especially during the festival, when they are believed to be charged with celestial power.
Maha Kumbh Mela and Politics:
This year’s Kumbh Mela is expected to surpass all previous events in scale and grandeur, reflecting both its religious and political significance. Under the Hindu nationalist BJP government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh’s Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath, the festival has become a powerful symbol of Hindu unity. With over 70 billion rupees (£670 million) spent on infrastructure and sanitation, this year’s event is also the most expensive to date.
The Light that Shines in the Darkness:
South Asia has the largest population of unreached people in the world. Out of 1.5 billion people, 969 million South Asians – including 80% of India’s population – continue to worship Hindu idols made by the hands of humans. The Bible contains several scriptures addressing idols and God’s perspective on them. In Exodus 20:3-5 (NIV), God says, “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God…” Similarly, in Psalm 115:4-8 (NIV), it says, “But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see, they have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell, they have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats. Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.” These verses display God’s opposition to idols and His desire for true worship – for He alone is worthy!
The Maha Kumbh Mela highlights the spiritual lostness of India and, by extension, the world. A video shared on The Times of India’s Facebook page featured a man from Cape Town, South Africa, attending the festival who spoke about practising and spreading Sanatan Dharm in the West. Sanatan Dharm is a term often used to describe what is commonly known as Hinduism. The phrase itself translates to “eternal religion” or “eternal law” in Sanskrit. It reflects the belief that the principles and teachings of this spiritual tradition are timeless and universal, transcending the limitations of time and space.
India is home to around 2.22% Christians. Although it is illegal for Christians to share the Gospel at the Kumbh Mela, a few believers bravely risk imprisonment and even their lives to reveal to others how they can truly have their sins washed away. “For there is [only] one God, and [only] one Mediator between God and mankind, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom [a substitutionary sacrifice to atone] for all, the testimony given at the right and proper time,” says 1 Timothy 2:5-6 (AMP). While the Hindus of the world seek atonement and forgiveness of sins through these rituals, as Christians, we believe that Jesus Christ is the One True Mediator between God and humanity – declaring that salvation and atonement are only possible through Him.
The festival is a wonderful opportunity for the global Church to pray that Hindus may find the Only One who can truly cleanse our souls and grant eternal life, while also giving local believers in India the chance, led by the Spirit of God, to seek opportunities to share Jesus. A friend from INcontext who serves in India shared that “Just as Christians create booklets and prayer resources for Ramadan, the Maha Kumbh Mela holds such spiritual significance in the Hindu world that greater awareness of it is needed, both among local Christians in India and the global Church.”
Another ministry friend of INcontext, who served in India for a few years, shared the following thoughts about the festival: “I think what it does for Christians to physically see so many millions of people, half a million people go there, they see the darkness and the deception of people physically on display – that is one thing the Church is awakened towards, and hopefully the Church will be awakened to lostness more than before when they see these numbers turn up. It also becomes a problem in one way because for those who do not know God, people think the majority is right, so when they see half a million people coming together like this, you cannot believe how many foreigners attend… So, people are looking for belonging, to belong to something bigger, where it is practised and exercised and on display – this gives the Church the opportunity – we need to put our faith on display. If that is darkness, we need to live much differently from the way the world does. We also can’t water down our message…”
He further stressed, “That people would see the seriousness of the lostness and the opportunity that is in front of them and that more of them will intentionally pray and reach out to their neighbours… People must pray that they (those attending this festival) will become more disillusioned to what is happening, to think about the reality of dirty water washing away sins, will this really work? That they would know the real inner needs of their hearts and they would see the discrepancies around them… This is a wonderful chance for the Church to get out of their Church building and to get into the homes of Hindus or get the Hindus into your home so that they can see how we pray and how we live… They need to see changed lives. God wants to achieve the salvation of people. Inside all of the darkness, the perversity and sin, there is this deep inner need to be known not only by God but by others for who they really are.”
While physical wars rage in places like Israel, Sudan, and Ukraine, we should not be distracted by the physical; rather, we must remain sensitive to the spiritual battle unfolding over nations, particularly in regions of deep darkness and spiritual blindness like in India. In such unreached nations, we are called to be faithful in prayer, breaking down strongholds and responding when God calls us to step out in faith and serve Him in places devoid of His light and truth. As John 1:5 reminds us, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” We are called to be that light, faithfully spreading His truth wherever it is needed – from within our homes to the ends of the earth.
Another local believer in India shared the following prayer points with us:
- Pray that the Churches in India will awake and reach out to the lost in their areas.
- Pray for the opportunity for local and global Churches to share the Gospel, asking God for wisdom and guidance in reaching out to those who do not know Jesus.
- Pray that God will open the hearts of the people who are celebrating the Maha Kumbh Mela, enabling them to encounter God.
Resources:
https://radical.net/article/what-is-kumbh-mela/
https://jwipn.com/pray-for-hindus-during-kumbh-mela/
