Pakistani civil society activists release lanterns into the sky in Lahore on December 15, 2016, as they pay tribute to victims on the second anniversary of an attack on The Army Public School in the city of Peshawar. Taliban militants attacked on Pakistani Army Public School in Peshawar, killing 151 people mostly children on December 16, 2014. (Photo by Arif Ali/AFP Photo)

Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej in serious portrait January 01, 1960. Thailand's Royal Palace said on Thursday, October 13, 2016, that Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest-reigning monarch, has died at age 88. (Photo by John Dominis/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images)

Indian paramilitary forces march during the annual Republic Day parade on Rajpath in New Delh, January 26, 2013. Republic Day commemorates the 1950 adoption of India's constitution. (Photo by Kevin Frayer/Associated Press)

A mother prays for success for her child in the college entrance examinations at a Buddhist temple in Seoul, South Korea, November 12, 2015. About 630,000 students on Thursday sat for the annual exams that could lead them to one of the country's top universities. In South Korea, there is no higher achievement than to be accepted by a prestigious university. As a result, many students prepare for these entrance exams from an early age, often studying up to 16 hours a day for years to take this test. (Photo by Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters)

Cattle keepers from the Dinka tribe perform a traditional dance after a prayer session for peace and good health along the route to Rajaf Payam outside the capital Juba October 18, 2014. (Photo by Jok Solomon/Reuters)

A honor guard soldier stands at attention during a memorial religious service for those killed in the 1989 anti-communist uprising in University Square, in Bucharest, Romania, Wednesday, December 21, 2022. Participants and relatives of those killed marked the 33rd anniversary of the anti-communist uprising which started in Bucharest on Dec. 21, 1989 and left more than one thousand people dead and ended the rule of dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. (Photo by Andreea Alexandru/AP Photo)

Women demonstrate on International Women's Day as they strike to demand the end to domestic violence and the country's prevailing “macho” culture, in Milan, Italy on March 8, 2023. (Photo by Claudia Greco/Reuters)

“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)