Rhetoric Race and Religion
Every 12 years, millions of pilgrims gather for the Kumbh Mela at the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers near Allahabad, India. The pilgrims bathe in the holy waters to purify themselves of sin. The Kumbh Mela is one of the most important pilgrimages in Hinduism and the largest temporary gathering anywhere in the world.
Many observers describe the Kumbh Mela as a religious fair. This description is apt. The atmosphere is as much spectacle as spiritual, with flashing neon lights depicting scenes from theMahabharata, lavish facades decorating wealthy ashram camps, and deafening loudspeakers broadcasting religious messages 24 hours a day.
I spent a week at the 2013 Kumbh Mela with two friends. Rather than stay in nearby Allahabad or in hotel-like tents at the edge of the mela, we chose to embed ourselves in the event by staying in the temporary tent city itself. A series of chance encounters led us to stay first with representatives of a socialist political party, and later at the ashram of Swami Vivekananda Giri.
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