The world’s largest religious gathering begins today, 13 January, as millions of Hindu devotees gather on the banks of Ganges in India to mark the beginning of the Maha Kumbh Mela. This ancient festival has astronomical origins, and is about the path of Jupiter as we see it in the night sky. Over 12 years, Jupiter moves one zodiac sign each year, making its position easy to track in the night sky. Its brilliance and slow movement make it an ideal celestial marker. This year’s celebration is particularly significant as the Maha or grand Kumbh Mela only takes places every 144 years, marking the 12th Kumbh Mela and a special celestial alignment of the sun, moon and Jupiter.
According to the Guardian:
More than 400 million people, the biggest crowd in its history, are expected to attend this year’s festivities, which will be held over 45 days in Prayagraj in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. (1)
The Maha Kumbh Mela, celebrated every twelve years at one of four specific locations across India, is one of the most significant and ancient religious gatherings in the world. This year the festival takes place at Prayagraj, also known as Allahabad. Bathing in the river is an ethical act, which allows a person to wash away their sins. The Mahabharata (400 BCE–300 CE) mentions a bathing pilgrimage at Prayagraj as a means of prāyaścitta (atonement, penance) for past mistakes and guilt. The location of this city at the confluence of Ganges and Yamuna rivers is key, and it has been known in ancient times as Prayāga, which means "place of a sacrifice" in Sanskrit (pra-, "fore-" + yāj-, "to sacrifice"). It was believed that the god Brahma performed the very first sacrifice in this place.
As the timing of this festival is linked to the ancient calendar, and the tracking of the movement of the planet Jupiter, this article explores the astronomical basis of the Kumbh Mela, its connections to ancient Indian cosmology, and the symbolism that ties celestial rhythms to earthly rituals.
Origins and Significance of the Kumbh Mela
The Kumbh Mela derives its origins from the Samudra Manthan myth, according to which gods and demons churned the cosmic ocean to extract the nectar of immortality. According to legend, during the ensuing struggle, four drops of this nectar fell to Earth, sanctifying the locations of Prayagraj, Haridwar, Nashik, and Ujjain.
The Devas (gods) and Asuras (demons) were both in search of immortality and divine strength. However, the Devas had lost much of their power due to a curse and turned to Lord Vishnu for guidance. Vishnu advised them to work together with the Asuras to churn the cosmic ocean of milk (Kshira Sagara) to obtain the nectar of immortality, Amrita. The great serpent Vasuki was used as a churning rope, and the mountain Mandara served as the churning rod. The gods and demons pulled Vasuki alternately, churning the ocean. The process yielded many divine treasures, including Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth; the Moon; the celestial horse Ucchaisravas; and ultimately the pot of Amrita. Once the Amrita emerged, a fierce battle broke out between the Devas and Asuras over its possession. Fearing that the Asuras might consume it and become invincible, Lord Vishnu took the form of Mohini, a beautiful enchantress, to distract and deceive the Asuras. While distributing the nectar, Mohini ensured it went only to the Devas. During the struggle, four drops of Amrita spilled from the kumbha (pot) onto four locations on Earth. These sites are Prayagraj (Allahabad), where the Ganga, Yamuna, and mythical Saraswati rivers converge,
Haridwar, along the Ganges River, Ujjain, on the banks of the Shipra River, and
Nashik, on the Godavari River. Each of these locations became sacred because the nectar imbued them with divine energy, making them places of immense spiritual power. The rivers at these sites are believed to carry the essence of the spilled Amrita, granting purification and liberation to those who bathe in them during the Kumbh Mela. Prayagraj (Allahabad): Known as the Triveni Sangam, it is the meeting point of the Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswati rivers. This confluence symbolises unity and the merging of divine energies. Haridwar: Situated on the banks of the Ganga, it is considered a gateway to the heavens. Ujjain: The Shipra River is associated with the deity Mahakaleshwar, a form of Shiva, emphasizing the cyclical nature of time and cosmic order. Nashik: The Godavari River is often referred to as the "Ganges of the South" and holds immense spiritual significance.
This myth may symbolise the cycle of axial precession, whereby the constellations of the zodiac turn slowly around, with a full cycle being completed in just under 26000 years.
The rivers associated with the Kumbh Mela, the Ganga, Yamuna, Saraswati, Godavari, and Shipra, are seen as earthly manifestations of cosmic pathways. Perhaps these rivers symbolise the Milky Way, the celestial river that connects the heavens to the Earth. This association reinforces the festival’s theme of aligning earthly actions with cosmic principles.
These sites have since become the focal points of the Kumbh Mela, where pilgrims gather to bathe in sacred rivers, seeking purification and spiritual renewal. The drops of Amrita fell at these locations at specific cosmic moments when the alignment of Jupiter, the Sun, and the Moon occurred. This celestial alignment repeats every 12 years, and during the Kumbh Mela, it is believed that the rivers are re-energised with the same spiritual potency.
The astronomical basis of the Kumbh Mela: Jupiter’s 12-Year Cycle
The Kumbh Mela’s timing is intricately tied to the orbital period of Jupiter, which takes approximately 12 years to travel through the 12 zodiac signs, approximately one year in each sign. Jupiter rises in the east and sets in the west due to Earth’s rotation. It appears to move slowly across the background stars over the course of a single night. Over weeks, Jupiter’s eastward drift among the stars becomes noticeable, shifting its position slightly within the zodiac.
Each zodiac sign corresponds to one-twelfth of the ecliptic, the Sun’s apparent path through the sky, as we see it from earth. Jupiter’s alignment with specific zodiac signs, combined with the Sun and Moon’s positions, determines the festival’s occurrence at a given location. For instance, when Jupiter is in Taurus and the Sun is in Capricorn, then the Kumbh Mela occurs in Prayagraj. When the alignment shifts to Jupiter in Aquarius and the Sun in Aries, then the festival takes place in Haridwar. For Nashik, Jupiter must be in Leo and the Sun in Cancer. And for Ujjain, Jupiter is in Leo and the Sun in Aries. These alignments establish a rhythmic pattern, ensuring that the festival alternates among the four sacred sites every three years, with each site hosting the Maha Kumbh Mela once every 12 years.
The Kumbh Mela held every 144 years is known as the Mahakumbh Mela, which is considered an even more auspicious and spiritually significant version of the regular Kumbh Mela cycle. This extraordinary event occurs after 12 cycles of 12 years, representing the alignment of multiple celestial and symbolic cycles in Hindu cosmology. In Hindu tradition, each cycle of the Kumbh Mela is imbued with divine significance, but the 144-year mark is considered an epochal event. It is believed that the Amrita (nectar of immortality) in the rivers is at its most potent during this Mahakumbh, and bathing in the sacred waters during this period can erase the sins of countless lifetimes.
A 12 year cycle is mirrored in the 12 months of the solar year. The number 12 is associated with the Roman god Jupiter, and the Greek god Zeus, associated with the planet at the heart of this festival. However, Jupiter is associated with rocky high places, not so much rivers, and still today in France and Italy there are hills with names such as Mons Jovis.
In Indian cosmology, Jupiter is known as Brihaspati, the teacher of the gods and a symbol of wisdom, spirituality, and cosmic order.
Multiples of 6
The numbers associated with the cycle of festivals are 3, 6, 12 and 144. The Kumbh Mela is held every 3 years, the Ardh Kumbh Mela every 6 years, the Purna (Full) Kumbh Mela every 12 years, and the Maha Kumbh Mela every 144 years.
In his Histoire de l'Astronomie Ancienne, Bailly tells us there was an ancient Indian cycle of 24000 years, which he equates with precession, even though the actual duration of a precessional cycle is closer to 26000 years, and generally thought of as 25920 years in historical astronomy (2). Could this 24000 year cycle be associated with this cycle of Jupiter, being simply, in that case, 2000 cycles of 12 years? This cycle of 12 years also fits well within the 25920 cycle of precession as it goes in 2160 times. Bailly mentions that there was a cycle of 144 years in the Indian tradition associated with the movement of two stars, which he thinks may have been Antares and Aldebaran, but he says that makes no sense because there is no such cycle. Perhaps over the centuries various traditions became confused, and the 144 years he mentions had some other significance, apart from being 12 cycles of 12 years, associated with Jupiter.
The Chinese calendar features a 12-year zodiac cycle, also, where each year is associated with an animal. This is directly linked to Jupiter’s movement through the zodiac, which takes approximately one year per sign. In addition, every 60 years (5 cycles of 12), the Chinese zodiac completes a Jupiter-Saturn cycle, which also ties into larger timekeeping systems.
Perhaps the two stars in question mentioned by Bailly to explain the 144 year cycle are simply Saturn and Jupiter, as 60 x 2.4 = 144. This is only approximate, however. Jupiter's Orbital Period is 11.86 years around the Sun, Saturn takes approximately 29.46 years. With 1/(1/11.86-1/29.46) = 19.852, we can see that Jupiter and Saturn align approximately every 19.85 years, close to 20. After 60 years, the conjunction occurs in nearly the same part of the zodiac, completing a cycle.
The number 60 is important too, as it is also (approximately) a way of harmonising the sun and moon cycles. The solar and lunar years multiplied by each other are close to 129 600 days. (365.242199 x 354.36708 = 129 434.67)
In addition, 600 years are very close to 7421 lunar months (600 x 365.242199 / 29.53059 = 7420.959737, and 7420.959737 / 7421 = 0.99999457)
Role of the Moon
The Moon’s phase is crucial in fine-tuning the festival’s timing, but seems to be secondary in importance to the cycle of Jupiter. Typically, the most auspicious day for bathing falls on a full Moon (Purnima) that coincides with the celestial alignments. This year's lunar standstill is perhaps relevant also, adding another layer of astronomical and spiritual significance to the Mahakumbh Mela for 2025. Lunar standstills occur approximately every 18.6 years when the Moon reaches its maximum declination relative to the celestial equator. During a major lunar standstill, the moon's declination reaches its extreme, meaning it will appear at its farthest point north or south in the sky during its monthly cycles. This results in the Moon rising and setting at points farthest from the east-west line on the horizon. It also causes the Moon to appear higher in the sky at certain latitudes, leading to more dramatic lunar movements.
The four Kumbh Mela locations
The distances between the four Kumbh Mela vary, with each site strategically positioned to correspond to sacred rivers and celestial alignments. While the exact distances have not been universally interpreted, their placement reflects deep symbolic and astronomical considerations. Each site is associated with a particular set of planetary alignments and a unique mythological event tied to the nectar of immortality.
Google Earth screenshot showing the four locations of Kumbh Mela
The day to night ratios of these sites may be of interest. Haridwar is the most interesting, in that respect, as on the 1st May an important cross quarter day in many ancient calendars, it has very close to 800 minutes of daylight.
Haridwar is on a line of other places with 800 minutes of daylight on the 1st of May. This line links Giza, Saqqara, Petra, Persepolis, Kerman, Harappa, Haridwar, a number of mountain temples in Nepal and China, the famous giant Buddha in Leshan, and three of the four sacred Buddhist mountains, Mount Emei, Mount Putuo and Mount Jiuhua. (see here)
Conclusion
The Maha Kumbh Mela is a testament to humanity’s enduring connection to the cosmos, and a world in which astronomy and number are taken seriously. Rooted in myth and guided by meticulous astronomical observations, the festival bridges the celestial and the terrestrial, linking Jupiter’s 12-year cycle with the sacred rivers of India.
Notes
"India’s Maha Kumbh Mela festival gets under way for first time in 144 years", Hannah Ellis-Petersen, Mon 13 Jan 2025 06.00 CET, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/13/india-maha-kumbh-mela-festival-kicks-off-for-first-time-in-144-years
Bailly, Histoire de l'Astronomie, p 76-77