Dynam employees say a greeting message as they receive customer-care training ahead of the grand opening of the company's pachinko parlour in Fukaya, north of Tokyo July 29, 2014. Japan's once-booming pachinko industry, grappling with a greying customer base and the threat of new competition from casinos, is adopting a softer touch and smoke-free zones to lure a new generation of players, particularly women. Pachinko, a modified version of pinball, is a fading national obsession, with about 12,000 parlours nation-wide and one in thirteen people playing the game. But that figure is declining as the population shrinks and younger people prefer games on their mobile phones. (Photo by Issei Kato/Reuters)

The proliferation of marijuana edibles for both medical and recreational purposes is giving rise to a cottage industry of baked goods, candies, infused oils, cookbooks and classes that promises a slow burn as more states legalize the practice and awareness spreads about the best ways to deliver the drug. Edibles and infused products such as snack bars, olive oils and tinctures popular with medical marijuana users have flourished into a gourmet market of chocolate truffles, whoopie pies and hard candies as Colorado and Washington legalized the recreational use of marijuana in the past year. Photo: In this Thursday, July 10, 2014, photo, Mike Fitzgerald, right, teaches behind a sample display of cannabis-infused products during a cooking class at the New England Grass Roots Institute in Quincy, Mass. (Photo by Michael Dwyer/AP Photo)

“Kumbh Mela is a mass Hindu pilgrimage in which Hindus gather at the Ganges river. The normal Kumbh Mela is celebrated every 3 years, the Ardh (half) Kumbh Mela is celebrated every six years at Haridwar and Prayag, the Purna (complete) Kumbh takes place every twelve years, at four places (Prayag (Allahabad), Haridwar, Ujjain, and Nashik). The Maha (great) Kumbh Mela which comes after 12 “Purna Kumbh Melas”, or 144 years, is held at Allahabad.

The last Ardh Kumbh Mela was held over a period of 45 days beginning in January 2007, more than 70 million Hindu pilgrims took part in the Ardh Kumbh Mela at Prayag, and on January 15, the most auspicious day of the festival of Makar Sankranti, more than 5 million participated. The previous Maha Kumbh Mela, held in 2001, was attended by around 60 million people, making it at the time the largest gathering anywhere in the world in recorded history”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Sadhus (holy men) smoke at their camp near the ritual site at Sangam, the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers during the Ardh Kumbh Mela festival (Half Pitcher festival) January 18, 2007 in Allahabad, India. Millions of Hindu pilgrims have flocked to the largest religious gathering in the world which lasts for 45 days in northern India. The festival commemorates the mythical conflict between gods and demons over a pitcher filled with the “nectar of immortality”. Devotees believe that taking a holy dip in the Ganges at this time washes away their sins and paves the path to salvation. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Pedestrians cover their face as they walk along the dusty road in Kathmandu, Nepal February 27, 2017. Nepal has forced 2,500 old vehicles off roads in its capital city of Kathmandu, part of a fight against alarming air pollution levels that have hit nine times World Health Organisation (WHO) limits. Air pollution has been a chronic problem in rapidly growing Kathmandu, which sits in a Himalayan valley and is home to more than 3mn people. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)

A shot of Pu'uo crater, the main source of lava from Kilauea, taken from a helicopter in Kilaura, Hawaii. (Photo by Kirk Aeder/Barcroft Media)

Flames rage through a pile of tires at the tire dump of Sesena in Toledo, Spain, 13 May 2016. The tire dump reportedly contains over 100,000 tons of tires and reaches to the neighbouring town of Valdemoro in Madrid. According to local authorities, the fire was apparently deliberately started as it had been raining till midnight and the fire started early 13 May 2016 at a small spot in Valdemoro. (Photo by Ismael Herrero/EPA)

A woman takes part in a global March for marijuana in Medellin, Colombia, May 7, 2016. The Global Marijuana March (GMM) is an annual rally held at different locations across the planet. It refers to cannabis-related events that occur on the first Saturday in May, or thereabouts, and may include marches, meetings, rallies, raves, concerts, festivals and information tables. (Photo by Fredy Builes/Reuters)

Two women lighting cigarettes on a tennis court in Essex, England circa 1930's. (Photo by Keystone View/FPG/Getty Images)