Prayagraj Station to Kumbh Mela Distance

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Prayagraj Station to Kumbh Mela Distance

Hindus consider the Kumbh Mela and Sangam Prayag in present-day Allahabad to be the most significant pilgrimage sites. River confluences are traditionally thought to be fortunate locations. However, in Sangam, the confluence holds particular religious importance as it is the meeting point of the sacred Ganga, Yamuna, and the legendary Saraswati.

Legend has it that while Vishnu was carrying a Kumbh (pot) of amrit (nectar), there was a fight that resulted in the spilling of four drops. At the four Tirthas of Prayag, Haridwar, Nasik, and Ujjain, they fell to Earth. A tirtha is a location where the pious can find redemption. The Kumbh Mela, which is celebrated in each tirtha in turn to commemorate the event, takes place every three years. The Sangam, also known as Tirtharaj, the "King of Tirthas," is where the Kumbh is held once every twelve years, making it the greatest and holiest of all.

With millions of attendees, the Maha Kumbh Mela is the biggest religious gathering in India. An enormous tented township, replete with platforms, huts, cottages, municipal amenities, administrative, and security measures, is built to commemorate the more than month-long fair. The police, municipal government, and government all maintain impeccable organization. A remarkable variety of religious ascetics, known as sadhus and mahants, who are drawn from secluded hideaways in forests, mountains, and caverns are particularly well-known for their presence during the mela. The first people to step into the water are hordes of Naga Sadhus, also known as Naga Babas, who cover their nude bodies with ash and wear their hair in long dreadlocks, once astrologers have decided the auspicious bathing time, or Kumbhayog.

Seen as defenders of the faith, the sadhus advance on the confluence at the appointed hour with all the ostentation and bluster of a charging army. The next Maha Kumbh Mela is scheduled for 2025; the last one took place in 2013.

Sangam

This is the confluence of the green Yamuna water and the brown Ganga water, as well as the fabled Saraswati, thought to flow underground but unseen. Situated approximately 7 miles away from Civil Lines, it is hidden behind the eastern ramparts of the Akbar Fort. Muddy banks and broad flood plains stretch in the direction of the holy Sangam. Priests sit on little platforms at the mid-river point to conduct puja and help the pious with their ceremonial ablutions in the shallow waters. For a devoted Hindu, taking a plunge in the Sangam river is considered the holiest of all holy pilgrimages. Both pilgrims and visitors can rent boats to the Sangam at the ghat next to the fort. The Sangam really comes to life during the Maha Kumbh/Kumbh, drawing devotees from all across the nation.

Method of Arrival: Air

6 miles to the Bamrauli Airport in Allahabad 150 km to the Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport in Varanasi Lucknow's Amausi International Airport is 200 km away.

By Train Prayag Station is 4 kilometers from Allahabad Railway Junction.

Via Road: 5 miles to the Civil Lines Bus Stand.