Ganga ghats resound with ecstasy on first Shahi Snan (Second Lead)

HARIDWAR - With ecstatic shouts of ‘Har Har Gange’ and ‘Jai Ganga Maiya’, thousands of bare-bodied Naga sadhus and saints bathed in the revered Ganga river to perform the first and much-awaited Shahi Snan (royal bath) on the occasion of Mahashivratri Friday, one of the important days of the ongoing Maha Kumbh Mela here.

According to Hindu mythology, Lord Shiva married Goddess Parvati on Mahashivratri. It is one of the focal days of the Maha Kumbh Mela, the once-in-12-year festival that promises to become the world’s largest religious congregation this time.

Shahi Snan - also referred to as the royal entourage of the gods - appeared nothing less than a massive festival when a sea of mendicants (Akhadas) arrived along the banks of the holy river with their musical bands. They showered the Ganga with rose petals and marigolds and sang hymns and bhajans as they were about to enter the water.

Hundreds of thousands of heads with matted hair dotted the sprawling vast expanse along both banks of the Ganga.

Thrill and excitement spread on their faces as the normally expressionless Naga Sadhus stepped into the water. The ghats became vibrant and reverberated with ecstatic shouts of ‘Har Har Gange’, ‘Jai Ganga Maiya’, ‘Har Har Mahadev’, as the sadhus plunged into the river for the Shahi Snan - symbolising their having dedicated themselves to the holy river.

Of the seven Akhadas that were to participate in the Shahi Snan, the Juna Akhada was the first to undertake the royal bath and was followed by the Agni and the Avahan Akhadas.

Juna Akhada, regarded as the most significant, arrived in a long procession that included the largest batch of Naga sadhus, who literally raced on the sandy banks to plunge themselves into the waters.

“As per their traditional belief and rituals, members of the Juna Akhada are the first to undertake the royal bath when the Kumbh Mela is organized in Haridwar,” Anand Vardhan, officer in charge of the Mela, told IANS.

A small group of foreigners, including men and women of varied age-groups, were also members of the Juna Akhada and they too participated in the royal bath.

To catch a glimpse of the Shahi Snan and capture it on their cameras, media persons literally jostled for space. In order to get the best shot, some media men, particularly those coming from abroad, were seen perched between pillars of the bridges at the Har-Ki-Pauri Ghat.

“I was compelled to take this place as the entire area is jampacked,” M. Josephine, a French journalist who sat on a grill between two pillars of the bridge at the Har-Ki-Pauri ghat, told IANS.

As they were about to come out of the water, the Naga Sadhus made it a point to look towards the other devotees and blessed them by raising their hands.

The Shai Snan went on till 5.30 p.m., after which other devotees were allowed to take a dip in the river.

A number of ministers and politicians too bathed on the occasion.

Prominent among them were Arunanchal Pradesh Home Minister Tako Dabi, Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand, Assam’s former chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta.

A thrilled Dabi later told reporters, “It’s just amazing… It appears the Maha Kumbh has transformed the holy city of Haridwar into a small world.”

Airing similar sentiments, Assam’s former chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta told reporters, “Such an event immensely helps revive the traditional values that are fading away with the passage of time.”