Lesson video

Hello, I'm Ms. Ramalli, and welcome to today's RE lesson, which forms part of our unit "Pilgrimage: why are people still drawn to ancient places?" Today's lesson, we are going to learn about the Kumbh Mela, a Hindu place of pilgrimage.

Our outcome for today's lesson is, I can explain what happens at the Kumbh Mela and the experience of different Hindus.

To help guide us through today's lesson, there are four keywords.

One, Kumbh Mela, two, dharma, three, sadhu or sadhvi, and four, moksha.

The Kumbh Mela is a Hindu festival drawing large numbers of pilgrims. Dharma means acting with compassion for the good of humans and all living things.

Sadhu or sadhvi is a Hindu man or woman who has chosen to lead a life of meditation away from others.

And lastly, moksha, the end of the cycle of rebirth, becoming one with Brahman or God.

Today's lesson on Kumbh Mela, a Hindu place of pilgrimage, takes two parts.

We're going to begin with exploring the question, why is the Kumbh Mela a site of pilgrimage? And then we're going to move on to consider what might pilgrims experience at the Kumbh Mela? Okay, let's begin our lesson.

Alex explains how we use social science in Religious education.

Alex says, "Social scientists are interested in how people live and how context like where they live or when they lived affects this.

We can better understand people's worldviews by looking at photographs or analysing data.

We can survey or interview people to find out more about their worldview." In this lesson, we will look at photographs and ask Hindus why the festival of Kumbh Mela continues to be a hugely important place of pilgrimage today.

I would like you to look carefully at this photograph.

What do you notice? What might this show? And where might it have been taken? Pause the video, and with your partner, discuss the answers to these questions.

Pause the video, and press play when you're ready to reflect on your answers.

Okay, welcome back.

Fantastic discussions.

Well done.

So this is a photograph of the Kumbh Mela in India.

You can see thousands of people gathered together by the banks of a river.

It is the largest gathering of humanity on Earth.

The Kumbh Mela takes place at the confluence of two ancient sacred rivers in India, the Ganges and the Yamuna.

Many Hindus believe that the mythical Saraswati River meets there as well.

And here, on your screen, you can see whereabouts on the River Ganges those sacred rivers meet.

Kumbh Mela is a Sanskrit term.

Kumbh means pitcher, jar, or pot, often in the context of holding water.

And Mela means unite, join, meet, or assembly.

So the term Kumbh Mela means an assembly or meet around the water.

True or false? The Hindu festival of Kumbh Mela takes place at the meeting of four sacred rivers in India.

Pause the video, and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Well done if you said that statement is false.

The Hindu festival of Kumbh Mela takes place at the meeting of three sacred rivers in India, the Ganges, the Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati.

This is Arjun.

Arjun has a Hindu worldview.

Interviewing Hindus will help us better understand the Kumbh Mela.

Arjun says, "I travelled to the Kumbh Mela with my parents.

We flew from the UK to the sacred city of Varanasi, India, and caught a train to Prayagraj, where the festival takes place.

Hindus from all traditions and from all over the world attend the Kumbh Mela.

It is the biggest festival you can ever imagine.

In 2025, approximately 400 million people attended!" Izzy asks Arjun, "As a Hindu, Arjun, why did you attend the Kumbh Mela?" Arjun replies, "The Kumbh Mela is based on the arrangements of the sun, the moon, and Jupiter.

This astrological event is celebrated every 6, 12, or 144 years.

For my parents and I, it was a once in a lifetime event.

We believe it is a time of great spiritual energy.

To bathe where the rivers meet is an opportunity to cleanse away bad karma and help gain moksha." Okay, let's just check your understanding of what we've just heard.

Select two reasons why Hindus might attend the Kumbh Mela.

A, to go to a festival and meet friends and family.

B, it is a time of great spiritual energy.

C, to reach heaven.

D, to help attain moksha.

Pause the video here, and press play when you're ready to check your answers.

Welcome back, everybody, and well done if you selected B and D as the correct answers.

Two reasons why Hindus might attend the Kumbh Mela is because it's a time of great spiritual energy and to help attain moksha.

Hari also has a Hindu worldview, and he attended the Kumbh Mela as a volunteer.

Hari says, "I travelled there as a volunteer with an organisation called Go Dharmic.

I wanted to be able to serve pilgrims. Our vision is to love all, feed all, serve all.

We believe that to act from dharma is to act with compassion to all.

I was overwhelmed to see so many people from different Hindu traditions coming together in harmony.

The experience is like nothing I've ever witnessed before and will probably never experience again." True or false? Only Hindus living in India attend the Kumbh Mela.

Well done if you said that statement is false.

Hindus from all over the world and from all traditions attend the Kumbh Mela.

So, now we're going to complete our first practise task.

You need to decide if each of the following statements is true or false, then correct the false statements.

So here we have the statements.

The Kumbh Mela is the largest gathering of humanity on Earth.

The Kumbh Mela takes place at the meeting point of four rivers.

The Kumbh Mela is just for some Hindus.

The Kumbh Mela is linked to the arrangements of the sun, moon, and Jupiter.

And lastly, talking to different Hindus will help us better understand the Kumbh Mela and why Hindus may attend it.

Pause the video here, and press play when you're ready to check your answers.

Okay, welcome back, everybody.

We're gonna check your answers now.

So statement one, the Kumbh Mela is the largest gathering of humanity on Earth, and that statement is true.

The Kumbh Mela takes place at the meeting point of four rivers.

That statement is false.

The Kumbh Mela is just for some Hindus.

That statement is false.

The Kumbh Mela is linked to the arrangements of the sun, moon, and Jupiter is true.

And lastly, talking to different Hindus will help us better understand the Kumbh Mela and why Hindus may attend it is true.

So remember, you needed to correct the statements that were false.

So the second statement should read, the Kumbh Mela takes place at the meeting point of three rivers.

And the third statement, the Kumbh Mela is for all Hindus from many traditions.

Fantastic.

Well done.

So that moves us on to the second and final part of our lesson, what might pilgrims experience at the Kumbh Mela? Arjun explains how the Kumbh Mela manages millions of people.

Arjun tells us, "On entering the Kumbh Mela, we saw thousands of tents.

The Indian government creates a temporary city for all the pilgrims with roads, mains water, hospitals, and free food distributed.

Each community or tradition is given an area which they can design for themselves.

Everything is built from reusable materials so it can be broken down afterwards.

It is an important part of dharma to respect the Earth, rivers, and all living beings." True or false? The Kumbh Mela is a permanent pilgrimage site.

Well done if you said that statement is false.

A temporary city is built for the Kumbh Mela and is dismantled once the pilgrimage is over.

The pilgrimage only takes place every 12 years.

What can you see in this photograph, and what might you infer? Talk to your partner, and then come back when you're ready to reflect on your answers.

Okay, so, welcome back.

So what can you see in this photograph? Well, you could probably see lots and lots of people, and you can also see in the background there on the left-hand side, you can see some water.

So, what might this infer? Well, this is the meeting point of the rivers, and this is believed to be, by Hindus, a sacred place.

And the steps that the pilgrims are standing on are called ghats, and these are built for pilgrims to access the water.

Arjun explains the central moment of the Kumbh Mela for him.

He tells us, "With thousands of others, I gathered at this special moment at this momentous time.

We performed puja and then went down to the ghats to the water.

Dipping into the sacred waters was such a liberating experience, even though the water was freezing cold! I felt purified and cleansed afterwards.

But I believe to truly achieve moksha, I need to serve others as well." Let's pause for a moment and complete a check for understanding.

Select two statements that Arjun made about the Kumbh Mela.

A, he knew he had achieved moksha.

B, he felt purified and cleansed.

Or C, to truly attain moksha, he needs to serve others.

Pause the video here, and press play when you're ready to check the answers.

Okay, well done if you selected B and C.

Arjun said that he felt purified and cleansed, and to truly attain moksha, he needs to serve others.

Dhanu also has a Hindu worldview and attended the Kumbh Mela.

She describes her experience for us, "Many people travel to the Kumbh Mela to meet the sadhus and sadhvis.

These are men and women who have spent time away from the world in deep study and meditation.

Walking through the crowds shows you the diversity or pluralism of Hindu dharma and the harmony of different traditions.

Many sadhus and sadhvis perform prayers, give blessings, and lecture on Hindu teachings.

I listened to a talk on the Ramayana.

It was such a marvellous experience having the opportunity to talk to these wise sages.

A group of sadhus that I spoke to had been living, studying, and meditating in the forest for 12 years.

Listening to their stories and experiences is something I will never forget." True or false? Hindus only attend the Kumbh Mela to bathe in the meeting points of the rivers.

And the answer is false.

There are many reasons for attending the Kumbh Mela.

For Dhanu, speaking to and learning from sadhus and sadhvis was important as well.

What can you see in this photograph, and what might you infer? Pause the video here, and with your partner, have a discussion about what you can see in this photograph and what might that infer, what might that mean? Okay, fantastic discussions.

Welcome back.

Well, many Hindu organisations come to the Kumbh Mela to do acts of service.

Go Dharmic is a British-based charity, and they are motivated by dharma to serve others at the pilgrimage.

Hari describes his work with Go Dharmic as a volunteer, "Kumbh Mela is a once in a lifetime experience.

Some pilgrims spend all their savings to come here.

We try to help as much as we can.

We serve 6,000 meals per day.

We help older people with bags, serve tea, and pick up any litter.

For me, serving others is my spiritual practise.

At Go Dharmic, we believe dharma is best understood as love for all beings.

By serving others, we spread compassion to all." Dhanu, Arjun, and Hari all attended the Kumbh Mela.

What is similar and different about the way they experienced it? Did the Kumbh Mela affect them differently? Pause the video here, and either with your partner or in a small group, I would like you to discuss the answer to those two questions.

Press play when you're ready to move on with the lesson.

Fantastic discussions.

Well done.

So those discussions that you've just had are gonna help you complete the next practise task.

Laura is thinking about how the Kumbh Mela is experienced by Hindu pilgrims. Laura says, "I think the Kumbh Mela is experienced the same way by all Hindu pilgrims. We only need to talk to one Hindu who went." Do you agree with Laura? I would like you to use the case studies of Dhanu, Arjun, and Hari to explain your ideas.

Pause the video here, and press play when you're ready to check your answers.

Okay, welcome back, everybody.

Time to check your answers for the practise task.

Do you agree with Laura? Use the case studies to explain your ideas.

You might have said: Laura is not correct.

Different Hindus may do similar things, but they will experience the Kumbh Mela in different ways.

Arjun talked about the feeling of being purified and cleansed by bathing in the waters.

He hopes to achieve moksha.

Dhanu talked about meeting and talking with sadhus and sadhvis and how she valued spending time with them.

And Hari talked about the impact of volunteering with Go Dharmic and how he felt he was putting dharma in action by serving meals and helping others.

So now we're at the point where we're at the end of our lesson on the Kumbh Mela, a Hindu place of pilgrimage.

Here is a summary of our learning today.

The Kumbh Mela is the largest gathering of people on Earth.

The Kumbh Mela is a festival that happens every 12 years in India.

It shows harmony between different Hindu traditions.

Many Hindus will bathe at the meeting point of the rivers, which they believe could cleanse them and help them achieve moksha.

Hindus may learn from the sadhus and sadhvis that attend.

We can better understand the Kumbh Mela by speaking to different Hindus.

Well done on all your hard work in today's lesson, and thank you for joining me.

Goodbye!.