Posted by Casey Meade on 2 February 2007
Links: Kumbh Mela, Ascetics With Cameras, Shiv
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The most interesting things about the Kumbh Mela are certainly the immense multitudes of faithful, The Great Saints and the colorful variety of ascetics, this video focuses on our eclectic entourage hanging out downtown in Sector "Ponch" 5. Our little tent was quite a hot-spot... I counted 50+ people in and out over the 10-12 days we lived there (I'm sorry I couldn't remember the names of all the folks who appear in this video), not to mention all the lady saddhus who came in to do their washing. Nicole arranged the tent through Hari Giri before the rest of us arrived. Fernando, Shiv, Witt, Lorna, Serdar, Derya and I rolled in on the train from Delhi without any plan! Somehow I know something would work out. The ashrams that catered to western and urban guests were charging around Rs. 25,000 per person. We gave Hari Giri (and Dharm Giri) about 14,000 collectively. I don't know how he scored it from the Akhara. You never can tell how senior these guys are or how much money they have. I used to think they weren't even supposed to have money! It turned out that Dharm Giri was actually responsible and he didn't even know us at the beginning. Now he's our boy.
This year I realized that the Kumbh Mela is a social gathering as much as it is a spiritual pilgrimage. It's a chance for old friends to get together and hang out... friends you only see every 3, 6 or 12 years. For the Hindu Clergy, it's an industry convention: A chance to show off their new (and old... mostly old) tricks. For pilgrims, it's a day or a week or a month of vacation! And then there are the others: us... We are pilgrims of a sort, drawn by the intense energy and faith but not bound so much by the ancient protocols. Nobody resents us. Most people are happy we are here... not just a few because of the economic and reputable advantages of having foreign "chelas" (disciples). Some of the Babas just like hanging out with foreigners, precisely because we're not pre-coded by the often degrading layers of Hindu dogma. Nevertheless they get excited to enrich our lives with bits of Hindu wisdom and ritual... if they can communicate it. Those who come just for the spectacle won't come back again. I for one can't wait for the next Kumbh Mela in Haridwar, 2010. Each Kumbh Mela is a chance have an even better time than "last year" because you know more people and have more experience... like summer camp is for kids, or burning man for freaks in the US.
Casey Meade
Kolkata, India
2 February 2007
vlognomad@gmail.com
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