MAGH MELA PRAYAGRAJ-My Evocation
– N K Tripathi
A mela or a fair in early life carries its impressions for long. More so the Magh mela of Prayagraj. A few days back, it was reported in small column in a newspaper that a fire has broken out in Magh mela of Prayagraj. The fire was controlled, but it ignited gushy, haunting, and reminiscent fire in my memories.
I have an emotional bond with the Magh mela of Prayagraj. Nearly six decades back, when as a student I was staying in A N Jha Hostel in Allahabad University, I used to go to mela, sometimes in rickshaw and sometimes on foot, along with my other hostel friends. This Mela continued for a month and a half and we used to visit it several times during this period. To be frank our purpose of visiting mela was purely for fun and not for religious purposes. It was great late evening outings with friends.
During those times this mela had very visible rural touch. One could see large number of bullock carts parked, which used to come from distant places from all over adjoining districts of Allahabad. One could count the number of motors in fingers. There was no parking lot for motors. Most of the shops in the mela had goods to cater to the people coming from the villages. All the food stalls had the traditional Indian delicacies. Chat was specially delicious. One Noodles, Pasta, Pizza, or even Dosa were not seen in Mela. We enjoyed ourselves at Spring Machine to test our strength, shooting balloons by air gun or taking our weight. We used to buy some modest decorative items to be kept in our rooms in the hostel.
This year Magh Mela started, as per tradition, on Paush Poornima, 3rd January. This will end on Maha Shivratri, 15th February. The Magh Mela is the annual Hindu pilgrimage to Prayagraj and usually attracts around one crore people. The Magh mela becomes Ardh Kumbh in every six years and Kumbh in twelve years. In 2019 I visited Ardh Kumbh, organised like main Kumbh. This was the largest gathering of the human beings on this planet, only to be surpassed in 2025.
Hindus regard Prayagraj as a place of great cosmic significance. Three holy rivers converge here – Ganga, Yamuna, as well as mythical river called the Saraswati. Pilgrims come to bathe in the sacred waters of the confluence and cleanse themselves of their sins, hoping to achieve “moksha” – liberation from the cycle of rebirths. The Magh mela festival is mentioned in the Mahabharat and in many major Purans. The Magh mela is a part of the river festivals of India. This spiritual conglomeration represents the quintessential of Indian heritage and culture.
