The holy festival of Kumbh is the most sacred celebration for Hindus. The festival falls every 3 years and is celebrated in 4 different cities, viz., Allahabad, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik. According to popular belief, Kumbh mela has the powers to the wash away all the sins of a person and free him from the cycle of birth-rebirth, of those who participate in them with full devotion. The festival is held at the banks of Ganga in Haridwar, as Haridwar is the place where Ganga enters plains, from hilly region.

Kumbh's history originates from the beginning of the Creation of universe. All devtas (Gods) were under the influence of a curse that made them weak and coward, Brahma, (the creator God) advised them to churn the ocean for Amrit (Nectar), intake of which will make them immortal, the devtas sough the help of demons for the purpose. Gods and demons made a temporary agreement to work together in obtaining amrita (the nectar of immortality) from the Milky Ocean, and to share this equally. The Mandara Mountain was used as a churning rod, and Vasuki, the king of serpents, became the rope for churning. With the demigods at Vasuki's tail and the demons at his head, they churned the ocean for 1,000 years. However, Dhanwantari, the divine healer, appeared with the "Kumbh" containing nectar in his palms, when the Kumbha (pot) containing the amrita appeared, the demons ran away with the pot and were chased by the gods. By their joint churning Amrit was one of the resultants, found in the last. For twelve days and twelve nights (equivalent to twelve human years) the gods and demons fought in the sky for the possession of this pot of amrita. In the end the demons started winning and to save the Kumbh ( pot of nector ) gods ran away with it and moved around almost all over the earth. During this run and chase they kept the kumbh at four places Prayag, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik.It is said that during all this, drops of amrita fell on to four places:. The Kumbha mela is observed at these four locations where the nectar fell.

The festival is religiously most important for the Hindus. At every Kumbh occassion, millions of Hindus take part in the celebrations. During 2003 Kumbh at Haridwar, more than 10 millions devoteed gathered at the site. Saints, priests, and yogis from all corners of India, gathered to participate in Kumbh. Haridwar is considered very holy, due to the fact that Ganga enter plains from mountains here itself.

The festival is visited by the most amazing saints from all across India. The Naga Sadhus are one such, who never any cloth and are smeared in ash. They have long matted hairs and are not at all affected by the extremes of heat and cold. Then there are the Urdhwavahurs, who believe in putting the body through severe austerities. There are the Parivajakas, who have taken a vow of silence and go about tinkling little bells to get people out of their way. The Shirshasins stand all 24 hours and meditate for hours standing on their heads. Spending the entire month of Kumbh on the banks of Ganga, meditating, performing rituals and bathing thrice a day, are the Kalpvasis.

It is believed that bathing during Kumbh cures the bather of all sins and evils and grants the bather, salvation. It is also believed that at the time of Kumbh Yog, the water of Ganga is charged with positive healing effects and that water at the time of Kumbh is charged positively by enhanced electromagnetic radiations of the Sun, Moon and the Jupiter, the flux of which also varies in accordance to positions and the phases of the moon, and also by the + and - signs of the sun spots.

As per the astrologers, the Kumbh Fair ( Mela ) takes place when the Jupiter enters Aquarius and the Sun enters Aries. This planetary position is said to medicate the waters of Ganga at a particular spot called Har ki pauri on the banks of River Ganges in Haridwar, and turns it into nectar on these days, thereby attracting millions to purify their inner-self through holy bathing rituals. Spiritually, position of planets during the Kumbh Mela is good for concentration and meditation. Though all the Hindu festivals in Haridwar are celebrated with great vigour, Ardh Kumbh & Kumbh Mela are the ones which attracts majority of pilgrims.