Kumbha Mela 2013 & Trip to Kasi
What is Kumbha Mela? Why it is so special this year 2013?
The literal meaning of Kumbh is a pitcher, but its elemental meaning is something else. Even as a symbol of pitcher, Kumbh is synonymous with holy activities as in daily life a pitcher (or kalash) is an integral part of all sacred activities in Hindu culture, and this pitcher is a symbol of Kumbh.
Holy scriptures say that in a pitcher, its mouth (opening) symbolizes the presence of Vishnu, its neck that of Rudra, the base of Brahama, all goddesses in the center and the entire oceans in the interior, thus encompassing all the four Vedas. This itself establishes the significance of the Kumbh as symbolized by the pitcher.
Kumbh Mela, is the largest human gathering which is attended by millions of people on a earth irrespective of all worldly barriers of caste, creed, region. The Kumbh Mela has wielded a mesmeric influence over the minds and the imagination of the ordinary Indian.
Devotees believe simply by bathing in the Ganga zone is freed from their past sins (karma), and thus one becomes eligible for liberation from the cycle of birth and death. Other activities include religious discussions, devotional singing, mass feeding of holy men and women and the poor, and religious assemblies where doctrines are debated and standardized.
Kumbh Mela (especially the Prayag Kumbh Mela) is the most sacred of all the Hindu pilgrimages. Millions of holy men and women (saints , monks, and sadhus) attend this spectacle of faith.
There are different Kumbha melas held at Haridwar, Prayag, Nashik and Ujjaini.
1. Artha Kumbha Mela – Happens at Haridwar & Prayag (Allahabad) Occurs once in every 6 years
2. Poorna Kumbha Mela – Happens at Prayag occurs once in every 12 years. Last Poorna Kumbha mela was held at Prayag in 2001.
3. After 12 Poorna Kumbha Mela, Kumbha Mela that happens at Prayag is called MAHA KUMBHA MELA. This year mela event is once in 144 years. Hence it is so special.
Birth of Thought
On 13th Jan read the article on Kumbha Mela in Dinamalar. Though in the past had the desire to go to Kumbha Mela, but the Aarticle made me think why we should not be part of this big event? My surfing starts from there in search of Kumbha mela and its significance. My next thought is when we should visit Prayag. Was looking at options on 14th Jan and found that in Tatkal I have few seats to travel on Jan 16th. But my professional responsibilities made me think an alternative day and also wished that it should happen after Jan 24th. So one decision is taken i.e. I should visit Kumbha Mela 2013 and not before Jan 24th. My wife appreciated my thought, but also puts a constraint that we can’t leave the kids for more days as they are very playful.(usually a trip to Allahabad or Varanasi through Train will be a week event). I acknowledged that but at the same time my question remains unanswered, WHEN?
Decision Made & Travel Confirmed
Finally, after researching through various options in Train and Flight I finalized the mode of travel to be through Air. Immediately I fixed my budget to be Re.50K for the entire trip. I just started reading as much as I can about earlier Kumbha Melas and significance of the current one in various websites. It only excited me more and once such site that was very helpful is the Kumbha Mela 2013 Official Website. Dates that were auspicious were 14th Jan – Shahi Snan, 27th Jan – Poush Pournima, Feb 10th – Mouni Amavasya, 15th Feb – Vasanth Panchami, 25th Feb – Maghi Purnima and 10th March – Maha Sivarathri.
Considering the constraints and also professional work commitments, I finalized the dates 25th, 26th and 27th Jan as it’s a long weekend for my kid’s school. When I shared my feel of going to Kumbh, my mom immediately acknowledged that she will take care of the kids. Though the decision has been taken and necessary arrangements have been made to take care of my sons, my next big challenge is to find a flight option that saves money and also fit in my timeline. Also, found that flight options to fly to Allahabad weren’t helpful as it demands at least 12h break in Delhi. I choose to fly to Varanasi and travel by car to Allahabad staying in Kasi. I made the booking through ClearTrip.com and got a confirmed ticket for 25th Morning 6.40 AM to Delhi and 12.45 PM flight from Delhi to Varanasi. My return ticket is booked for 27th Afternoon 3.50 PM from Varanasi to Delhi and 8.20 pm flight to Chennai.
I have been to Varanasi before to Mr. Siva’s house renowned scholar in Vedas and their entire family dedicated to practicing Vedic culture and were Vedic pundits helping people who travel to Kasi for performing rituals for their forefathers. I gave a call to Mr. Siva and he also gave a positive note of confirming the travel and gave the confidence for me to travel to Allahabad through Varanasi.
26th Jan or 27th Jan should I visit Prayag?
My travel to Varanasi is scheduled for 25th and the guidance given by Mr. Siva on making it on 26th Jan makes more sense to me. Following are the projected visitors per district administration. As the travel between Allahabad and Varanasi will be 3 hrs I decided on a 26th Jan as a safe date so that I can return to Varanasi on 26th Jan itself.
NO.
|
Bathing Days
|
Kumbh 2013
| |
Dates
|
Projected Visitors
| ||
1
|
Makar Sankranti
|
14.1.2013
|
110 Lac
|
2
|
Paush Purnima
|
27.1.2013
|
55 Lac
|
3
|
Mauni Amawasya
|
10.2.2013
|
305 Lac
|
4
|
Vasant Panchami
|
15.2.2013
|
193 Lac
|
5
|
Maghi Purnima
|
25.2.2013
|
165 Lac
|
6
|
Maha Shivratri
|
10.3.2013
|
55 Lac
|
Events on 25th Jan 2013
AI Flight is schedule to depart from Chennai at 6.40 AM; hence the reporting time should be not less than 5.55 AM. I and Gayathri we are all set and the Cab was also ready by 5.30 AM. We reached the airport around 5.50 AM just 5 minutes before the cutoff timeJ.
Landed at Delhi airport at 9 15 AM and were finding it hard to spend the next 3 hours in the airport itself. We spent time doing window shopping in WHS Book store and finally boarded the flight to Varanasi at 1.45 PM (Flight got delayedL). Reached Varanasi around 3 PM and there is only one Baggage collection spot in Varanasi and there was a heavy crowd which includes passengers from AI and also spice jet. Arranged a taxi to reach Hari Chandra Ghat at SonarPura to reach Mr. Siva’s house and reached their house around 5 PM after heavy traffic in Varansi City. Usually it takes 1.5 Hr, but it was worse on 25th and I reached their place in 2 Hrs.
Ganga Aarti
Mr. Siva arranged for a hotel booking (Silver Ganges Hotel) opposite to his house. We relaxed a bit and were ready to venture out in Varanasi. Our first plan is to witness Ganga Aarti that is very famous in the banks of the river Ganga. We started around 6.15 PM and to our mis timing, the Ganga Aarti at Dasaswameth ( a prominent spot in Banks of river Ganga) is about to get concluded. Since it’s a long distance from Harichandra Ghat we decided to go to Kedar Ghat where we find Aarti in action. Please be cautious of the Boatmen, who will be lurking you to witness the Aarti while you travel in Boat. It is always better to be in the river banks and be part of Ganga Aarti. A small diva with flowers will be flown by the devotees in the river ganga as part of their worship of Ganga.
Saptharishi Pooja at Shri Kasi Vishwanathar Temple
As there is very less time to join the Saptharishi Pooja at Shri Kashi Viswanathar temple, we arranged a cycle rickshaw (costing Rs.25/-) to go to the temple. Rickshaws will be stopped at a certain point, all devotees to walk towards, Dasaswametha Ghat and turn to right to reach Gate 1 of Shri. Kasi Vishwanathar Temple.
Saptharishi Pooja is a daily event performed at the temple by a team of priests. Out of 21, atleast 7 of them will be doing the actual Pooja and the rest recites the veda and slokas for the Pooja. It’s a one hour event and the way it is performed is unique and it was amazing. To be part of the Pooja devotees can sit in the temple outside the Pooja place with very little visibility to what actually is carried on by the priests. This is due to very less place in the deity and the cost for the Pooja is Rs. 101/- for one person.
Other Dieties in Temple
Goddess Anna poorna temple is just adjacent to the temple and you can get a handful of rice from the priest as a Prasad. You will also find Kuber deity within this temple.
Warnings
No Mobile phones or any belongings allowed inside the temple and there will be multiple level of screening by the security force.
Saptharishi Pooja ticket allows only sitting near the deity within the available place and doesn’t ensure that you will get a clear view. You may need to be present atleast at 7 PM to grab the comfortable position.
After the Pooja, priests will be out with the Aarti and Prasad to distribute to the devotees. The strangers are easily identified and they will be demanded more money for getting the Prasad. There is no rule that a ticket holder will get a Prasad.
Beware of small time priests who will be just trying to make more business out of you.
As it was too cold at 9.pm we decided to return back to hotel and returned through a cycle rickshaw. Generally, Autorickshaw are bit costly and also very difficult to negotiate. Cycle rickshaw rates are reasonable.
We had light Tiffin at Mr. Siva’s house and on the way to my neighbor’s sister house we had a cup of Curd which is amazing and I can’t explain it further. Don’t’ forget to have a cup of Curd or Lassi whenever you visit Varanasi.
26th Jan 2013
Breakfast
We plan to start for Allahabad at 8.30 am and we got a cab arranged for us for a flat amount of Rs.2300/- to go to Allahabad and return same day to Kasi. Driver was very good and not too aggressive in driving. After 50-60 Kms crossing we stopped at a place to have morning breakfast. Cost of Dosa / Idli are very high and cost of Poori was very reasonable and good also J.
Reached Prayag / Allahabad
After travelling for 3 Hours we reached Allahabad half past 12. It was amazing site of huge number of tents provided by the local administration. They had done their best to provide the facility for this huge human gathering. As I have to peform sankalp, we travelled to Shiv Mutt and did the sankalp to get dip in the triveni. After all the rituals done, we started walking around 2. PM to go to sangam.
Sangam
Sangam - the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers in Allahabad. The entire area circumference of sangam banks were mildly filled with devotees. Devotees took bath and they were feeling themselves proud after their Snan in the holy river and registering their presence in Kumbha Mela 2013. As we walk further there were boatmen making good money to take pilgrims to Triveni spot. My negotiation failed and had to give in to his demand of Rs. 200/- per person and he took us to the Triveni Spot. Area is filled with 5 – 10 boats where pilgrims take dips and also TV crews taking interviews with pundits. Few Pundits (called Pandas in Allahabad) were doing Ganga pooja and making their business.
Holy Bath at Triveni Sangam – Kumbha Mela 2013
Pretending very brave, I first tried to get on to the water and had the first feel of the cold water. I was able to manage the cold and couldn’t express it as it would impact the morale of Gayathri. As a sample, I first showed a demo by making first Dip. Though I did it for Gayathri, I felt I m more blessed at that time. We both joined hands and had the Official First Dip and while doing it we don’t have anything in our mind and it was blank. Most of the times when we go to Tirupathi or few temples, we never have the feel of requesting anything to the almighty and our mind goes blank. Yet to find what makes us like this. We were totally blank and left with no words to express except the pleasure of taking a dip in Sangam during Kumbha Mela. Second Dip, when I dip I dedicated to all my family members and friends who come across my mind requesting that I m dipping on behalf of them. I pointed out Gayathri to think of someone who is very close to herself for their well being and future life. We both had the third dip with me making a general request to wash away all sins committed knowingly or unknowingly by me and who all I know and interact daily.
After having the holy dip we returned to Shiv mutt to perform tharpanam and had good meals there. We started around 4.45 PM and reached varanasi around 8.30 PM
We negotiated with a local vendor (Chettiyar shop in Hanuman Ghat) for metal container to fill it with Ganges that we bring from Allahabad and distribute to all our near and dear ones. Price of the container ranges from Rs.10 to Rs.50/-. We also purchased sweets in Ksheer Sagar. Once you buy there, you will never miss to get some sweets whenever you visit Varanasi.
27th Jan 2013 Kasi Round up
Varahi Devi Mandir
There is a temple for Sri Varahi in banks of river Ganges in Kasi, which is open for darshan only between 5.30 am and 7.30 am. We started around 6.15 am to go to the place. We couldn’t engage a Auto or Cycle rickshaw who can take us there, reason being many couldn’t understand our pronunciation of Varahi. We came to know the local pronounciation is Barahi Mandir. One gentleman came across to us and said it would be good if you walk along instead of engaging a transport. He showed us a Narrow Lane and said not to turn left or right until we reach MIR Ghat. We decided to walk along and the lanes in Varanasi are in very poor hygienic condition. Without minding those, we finally reached a place near Dasaswameth Ghat and checked for few people on the route and finally reached the temple. Temple is very small with a priest sitting outside and another one inside. When we went inside to our surprise there is no idol in the temple. Then the priest in the temple told us to look down to a narrow opening where the Goddess deity is. We could found only the forehead, her hands and foot, beyond that we couldn’t see much. Goddess is kept in the underground of the temple and only the priest make a visit daily to deity.
Lord Shiva sent 64 Yoginis to Kasi to create disturbance in the governance of King Divodas. However all were totally enthralled by the beauty of Kasi and they decided to settle down in Kasi itself. Varahi is one of them. It is worth mentioning here that Varahi is a very powerful devi and it is located underground level.
Kasi Visalakshi Temple
On Friday when we visited Kasi Viswanath temple since it was too late in the night we didn’t visit Visalakshi temple. We decided to make a darshan there. Walking another 5 minutes from Varahi temple there comes the Visalakshi temple in the right and in the left we can go to Kasi Viswanath Temple Gate 2 entrance.
The Vishalakshi Temple is dedicated to the goddess Vishalakshi (an aspect of goddess Parvati/Gauri) at Mir Ghat on the banks of the Ganges at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, India.
The earrings or eyes of the goddess Sati are said to have fallen on this holy spot of Varanasi.
In Visalakshi temple, priests seems to be more generous with giving a holy piece of cloth, Kumkum and a photo. Once we got it in our hands to our surprise, he demanded Rs.50/- for the same. Be cautious.
Kasi Vishwanath Temple
We had the darshan of Kasi viswanathar and also since the crowd is less, we were able to go around the temple and could spend some time worshipping each deity inside the temple. Please note No mobiles, bags etc are allowed inside the temple. There are multiple levels of security before we enter in to the temple.
Brief History of the temple (Extracts from Wikipedia)
A Shiva temple has been mentioned in Puranas including Kashi Khanda (section) of Skanda Purana.[7]In 490 AD, the Kashi Vishwanath Temple was built.[8] In 11th Century AD, Hari Chandra constructed a temple. Muhammad Ghori destroyed it along with other temples of Varanasi during his raid in 1194.[9] Reconstruction of the temple started soon after. This was demolished by Qutb-ud-din Aibak.[10] After Aibak's death the temple was again rebuilt by many Hindu emperors.[11] In 1351 it was destroyed again by Firuz Shah Tughlaq.[2] The temple was rebuilt in 1585 by Todar Mal, the Revenue Minister of Akbar's Court.[12] Aurangzeb ordered its demolition in 1669 and constructed Gyanvapi Mosque, which still exists alongside the temple.[6] Traces of the old temple can be seen behind the mosque. It is said that the Shiv-Linga was thrown in the well and the original Shiv-linga now resides there. The current temple was built by Ahilya Bai Holkar, the Hindu Maratha queen of Malwa kingdom, in 1780.[3] Many noble families from various ancestral kingdoms (states) of India and their prior establishments, make generous contributions for operations of the temple
We are more than satisfied on making a successful trip of Sri Varahi Devi, Sri Visalakshi and Sri Kasi Viswanatha temple early in the morning. In the narrow lane we had the Very Hot Poor/Subzi/Jilepi before we start for Sri Kaala Bhairav temple.
Shri Kaala Bhairav Temple
After light refreshment we walked towards Kala Bhairav Temple. Temple is very small and it is fully crowded. There were a sizeable number of priests who do some hymns for protective blessings within the temple premises.
Kaal Bhairav, is a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. There are nine other Bhairav temples in the city. Kaal Bhairav, the "Black Terror," is widely known as the Kotwal, the "police chief," of Kashi, and the section of the city in which his temple stands is known as Kotwalpuri. Bhairav is considered a fearsome manifestation of Shiva. He wears a garland of skulls and carries a club of peacock feathers. Kaal Bhairav, whose name, Kaal means both Death and Fate, in addition to meaning Black. He is the black one who has also assumed the duties of the God of Death in Kashi. Even Death, it is said, is afraid of Kaal Bhairava.
We too had the protective blessings and bought few sacred threads for our kids. We returned back to our hotel at Hari Chandra Ghat.
Ganges Boat Tour
We engaged a Boat man Mr. Suresh who speaks in tamil and was able to explain us the history of Varanasi and since his association with Mr. Siva & Family, he talks more about Karma and important immersion points etc.
There are four important spots in Ganges River in Kasi where we can have the dip, which are considered holy. Suresh agrees to take us to a ride in his motor boat.
1. Assi Ghat
2. Manikarnika Ghat
3. Pancha Ganga
4. Dasaswameth
Finally we ended our tour to Kasi & Kumbha at 11.30 AM on 27th Jan and started preparing to get back to Chennai. My trip has been more satisfactory and eventful. I wish myself and all my family members come again to Kasi and enjoy the life here.
Tips on Travel to Chennai by Air from Kasi
1. Pack all the small containers of Ganges (Sombu) in a packed box and name it Holy water and make it a checkin luggage.
2. If you wish to bring water can, pack that also as part of luggage and checkin
3. Though Airport authorities may agree for holy water to be taken by handbaggage, the same will not go well with Authorities in your next connection flight. Hence it is better we pack all the water in very good container and check in luggage.
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