Kumbh Mela: Songs of the River

The Kumbh Mela is the "Festival of the Urn" that pours out the nectar of immortality to Humanity. It is a great roving festival that has moved around India for more than four thousand years, erecting temporary cities along the Ganges River. Millions of Hindu faithful gather there to wash away their sins in the holy waters. The 2001 Kumbh Mela in Allahabad, India was the largest gathering of humanity in recorded history. It was not just the final Kumbh Mela in a 12-year cycle of festivals. It was the final festival of 12 cycles - the conclusion of a giant 144-year cycle, making it "Maha" Kumbh Mela, the Great Festival. This 144-year buildup of spiritual meaning made it a powerfully auspicious time for pilgrims to bathe in the Ganges. Even the planets and stars joined in, providing heavenly alignments not seen for 144 years. Here, East joined West at the opening of the 21st Century. Roughly 70 million people came from all over the globe to pray for peace and rebirth for self and the world, truly a meeting of ancient and future in a remarkable moment.