“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)

An installation consisting of a series of bird boxes is displayed in a tree in Duncan Terrace Gardens in Islington on March 24, 2011 in London, England. The boxes by artists Bruce Gilchrist and Jo Joelson of “London Fieldworks”, were designed to reflect the architecture of the Georgian terraces and flats that surround the park in the community gardens. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

A Sotheby's employee holds a 110.03 carat sun-drop diamond on October 24, 2011 in London, England. The diamond is the largest yellow pear-shaped diamond in the world, and is expected to fetch between $11-15 Million USD when it is sold at auction at Sotheby's Auction house in London. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

The under-construction Shard building on December 5, 2011 in London, England. The 80 storey skyscraper will be Europe's tallest mixed-use building when it is completed in May 2012; it will contain offices, restaurants, residential apartments as well as a five star hotel. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Girls look at a newly installed “Renew” media point in the City of London on January 26, 2012 in London, England. The “pods” will transmit each market day and will include breaking news, weather and travel information, and information about sport, fashion, the arts and entertainment. The stations which will also double as recycling points are run by media company Renew. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Dan surrounded by seven days of her own rubbish in Pasadena, California. If you've never thought about how much rubbish you throw away an honest photographic series will open your eyes. Men, women, couples and families with young children have been photographed lying on their backs surrounded by a week's worth of their own rubbish – from old cartons of milk, used nappies and even tampons. The startling series “Seven Days of Garbage” by Californian photographer Gregg Segal is an unforgettable reminder of the amount of waste a human collects in just seven days. (Photo by Gregg Segal/Barcroft Media)

Ary Borges feeds his tiger named Dan at his home in Maringa, Brazil, Thursday, September 26, 2013. Borges is in a legal battle with federal wildlife officials to keep his endangered animals from undergoing vasectomies and being taken away from him. He defends his right to breed the animals and says he gives them a better home than they might find elsewhere in Brazil. (Photo by Renata Brito/AP Photo)

People appear dangling as a large-scale installation art piece by Leandro Erlich, named “Dalston House”, in London, England. Part of the “Beyond Barbican” summer series of events, the interactive installation is a full facade of a late nineteenth-century Victorian terraced house built on the ground with a large mirror above it to reflect people as to appear dangling from the structure. (Photo by Dan Dennison)