Hindu devotees visit the banks of the river Ganges in India during the Kumbh Mela festival, the world(***)s largest religious festival [AFP]
Published On 14 Apr 201014 Apr 2010
Pilgrims have arrived at the northern holy city of Haridwar for the festival which is held every three years [AFP]
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The festival is rotated among four different Indian cities - Prayag, Ujjain and Nashik being the three others [AFP]
Pilgrims believe washing in the river cleanses them of sins, and thus makes them eligable for liberation from the cycle of life and death [AFP]
Haridwar is where the Ganges reaches the plains of India from the Himalayas [AFP]
Nearly eight million people converged on the banks of the river on Wednesday [AFP]
The festival began on January 13 and ends on April 28 [AFP]
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Thousands of police were on alert for stampedes and funneled people into orderly lines to specially marked bathing areas [AFP]
The most auspicious days of the festival are the bathing days [AFP]
PUG076 - Haridwar, -, INDIA : Hindu devotees arrive at the banks of the river Ganges to take a bath during the Kumbh Mela festival in Haridwar on April 14, 2010. The Kumbh Mela, world(***)(***)s largest religious festival, which is held every three years and rotates among four Indian cities, attracts huge crowds of devotees who believe a dip in the river cleanses them of sin and frees them from the cycle of life and rebirth. AFP PHOTO/ PEDRO UGARTE
Pilgrims need to maintain pure lives after washing to remian free from the life-death cycle [AFP]
