20250205 MAIN IMAGE CANDIDATE_Kumbh Mela

Hundreds of millions of Hindu Indians are converging on the central city of Prayagraj to observe the Kumbh Mela festival, held there every 12 years. Believers say that entering the water during this time can cleanse away sins. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)

India's Kumbh Mela: Nothing can match festival for 400 million people

The world's largest religious gathering casts a powerful spell

KIRAN SHARMA

February 8, 2025 06:00 JST

PRAYAGRAJ, India -- "Have you taken a dip yet?"

After arriving in the central Indian city of Prayagraj in late January, almost everyone I spoke to asked whether I had joined the millions of pilgrims submerging themselves each day to ritually cleanse away their sins at the point where the Ganges and Yamuna rivers are said to mix with those of the mystical Saraswati .