1. The fear of facing the massive human gathering
Every time Simhastha Kumbha Mela
witnesses one of the largest gatherings of humanity on the face of earth.
Millions of people, including the holy saints, mahants, mahamandaleshwars and
devotees gather there for the holy bath and for other hindu rituals. Many
people consider the millions of people gathering at a single place during a
specific time as a threat and hence avoid going to one of the most divine
celebrations of faith; the holy Kumbha Mela. Their main concerns include the
possible occurrence of stampede, fear of getting lost in the gathering and most
of all, the likelihood of a terror attack during such a gigantic human
assembly.
1 2. Poor management by the concerned authorities
Many
doubt the authorities with respect to the crowd management during the festival.
A large capital and a dedicated team is required to handle such a massive crowd
and it seriously can be an issue if not handled properly by the concerned
authorities. Creating an ephemeral town on the ghats of the holy river and
maintaining it for the period of one month during which millions of people will
take a dip in the holy river is undoubtedly a huge task. Basic needs including
water, food and tents for living need to be arranged which is a major task in
itself.
3. Fear of acquiring
infection/epidemic diseases
Due to immense crowd
converging at a single place, some people also believe that this could lead to
transfer of communicable diseases as people come from various backgrounds,
environment, and climatic conditions. Also, the place of Kumbh
Mela is new for many, due
to which many devotees get bothered regarding the environment related health
issues.
4. Hygiene Issues
Kumbh Mela sees millions of people living together for a month long period
in a temporary town. Creating and settling in this transient town with
limitation of space and moreover taking bath in the sacred river, often leads
to arousal of hygiene related issues among the visitors of Kumbha Mela. Some
even consider the risk of catching water borne or air borne diseases due to the
unhygienic environment.
5. Fear of Aghoris (as
they feed on corpses at times)
They certainly are one
of the most feared and respected group of naked holy men in Simhastha
Kumbha Mela. Many people
across the globe are terrified by the extreme practices of Aghoris or the
Naga Sadhus. They are believed to be feeding on putrefied human corpses, animal
faeces, rotten food and drink animal urine. It is also said that they can see
the future and are the most mysterious group of sadhus.
6. Coming out of your
comfort zone
In accordance with the
usual belief, living in Kumbha Mela Kshetra is certainly not everyone’s cup of tea. It requires sacrifices
to be made with regards to leaving the comforts of your house and staying along
the banks of the holy river in temporary tents with compromised basic
facilities like water,sanitation, food and a proper place to sleep.
7. Being afraid of
getting mugged
People from all
background and social status attend the holy festival of Kumbha Mela. They
doubt the security and often tend to feel unsafe. Many of the devotees hold
this opinion that there might be robbers and pickpockets coming at the Kumbha
Mela. They set this fear
in their minds and further avoid visiting the largest religious festival.
8.The suspicion of a terror attack
This is a general
belief that people often avoid crowded areas, as there might be a possibility
of a fatal terrorist attack. Some pilgrims decide on not attending the Kumbh
Mela due to this
particular assumption.
Author – Priyal Matreja
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