How Rishi Durvasa's curse resulted in the 'Greatest Show on Earth - The Kumbh Mela'!

Rishi Durvasa holds a special place in the many lores of Hindu mythology.

To begin with he was the ‘avatar’ of Lord Shiva born to Atri and Anasuya.

He was extremely feared for his short temper. He didn’t think twice before giving a shraap (curse) to anyone who didn't please him.

[caption id="attachment_577" align="aligncenter" width="218"] Durvasa cursing Shakuntala[/caption]

Right from Ambaraisha to Shakuntala and even Lakshman ‘suffered’ due to his curse. (more on these stories later)

But the one person who was one of his earliest ‘victims’ and whose attempts to get back to what he had lost resulted in a series of events due to which millions of followers come together once in 12 years to wash away all their sins.

The individual I am talking about is Indra and it is the Kumbh Mela which resulted from curse Sage Durvasa had given Indra.

Let’s know more about this story today.

[caption id="attachment_578" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Vidyadhari giving the garland to Durvasa[/caption]

Once Durvasa was wandering on earth, when he came across a female Vidyadhari (a nymph of the air) who was wearing a beautiful garland of flowers. Seeing Durvasa being attracted to the garland the nymph respectfully gave it to the sage. When he came back from earth, the sage came across Indra riding his elephant, Airavata.

[caption id="attachment_579" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Indra riding on Airavata[/caption]

Durvasa presented the garland to Indra, who not sure of what to do with the garland placed it on Airavata's head. The elephant was irritated by the fragrance of the nectar in the flowers and threw the garland to the ground with its trunk and crushed it with his feet. Durvasa was enraged to see his gift treated so callously and immediately cursed Indra that he would be cast down from his position of dominion over the three worlds, just as the garland was cast down.

Indra immediately begged Durvasa's forgiveness, but the sage refused to retract or even soften his curse, and went on his way.

Because of the curse, Indra and the Devas were diminished in strength and shorn of their lustre. Seizing this opportunity, the Asuras led by Bali waged war against the gods. The Devtas were routed and turned to Brahma for help.

Brahma in turn directed them to seek refuge with Vishnu. Vishnu in turn gave the idea for the Samudra Manthan.

Stay tuned; the story becomes very interesting from here ;)

Kumbha Mela - The world's biggest religious gathering

Kumbh Mela is the greatest pilgrimage and festival in the Hindu religion. Derived from Kumbha meaning ‘pitcher’ and Mela meaning ‘festival’, Kumbh Mela is celebrated four times every 12 years, the site of the observance rotating between four pilgrimage places on four sacred rivers: at Haridwar on the Ganges River, at Ujjain on the Kshipra, at Nasik on the Godavari, and at Prayag (Allahabad) at the confluence of the Ganga, Jamuna, and the 'mythical' Saraswati.

It is held in twelve year cycles, alternating in such a way that about every three years a Kumbha Mela takes place.

Kumbha Mela has gained international fame as "the world's most massive act of faith". The festival is often regarded as the "biggest religious gathering in the world".

There are five types of Kumbh Melas:

1. Maha Kumbh Mela - occurs after 12 'Purna Kumbh Melas' or 144 years – takes place only in Allahabad


2. Purna Kumbh Mela - occurs after every 12 years - at Allahabad, Haridwar, Ujjain, and Nashik


3. Ardh Kumbh Mela - celebrated every six years - at Haridwar and Allahabad


4. Kumbh Mela - celebrated every 3rd year - rotating between Prayag, Nasik, Haridwar and Ujjain


5. Magh Mela - annual, held every year except years of Kumbh Mela and Ardh Kumbh Mela - only in Allahabad

Kumbh Mela is celebrated at different locations depending on the position of the planet of Bṛihaspati (Jupiter) and the Sun (more on this a later post).

Famous ancient traveller, Huen Tsang of China, was the first to mention Kumbha Mela in his diary. His diary mentions the celebration of 75 days of Hindu month of Magha (January-February), which witnessed half a million devotee including sadhus, common man, rich & famous & kings.

The great Indian saint Shankara, who lived in the 8th century CE, is credited with popularizing the Kumbh Mela among the common people.

Renowned American author Mark Twain was so mesmerised after visiting the Kumbh Mela of 1895 that he wrote:

“It is wonderful, the power of a faith like that, that can make multitudes upon multitudes of the old and weak and the young and frail enter without hesitation or complaint upon such incredible journeys and endure the resultant miseries without repining. It is done in love, or it is done in fear; I do not know which it is. No matter what the impulse is, the act born of it is beyond imagination, marvelous to our kind of people, the cold whites.”

Snana Parva or bathing in the river  is one of the most important part of the Kumbh Mela (detailed post on this later). It is believed that it washes away all the sins and the cycle of rebirth and death ends as the soul becomes one with God Almighty.

Starting today we will one by one unravel all the aspects associated with Kumbh Mela.