On Tuesday, on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, the Akharas conducted ‘Amrit Snan’ of the Maha Kumbh Mela. Shri Panchayati Akhara Mahanirvani and Shri Shambhu Panchayati Atal Akhara were the first to take bath in Amrit on Makar Sankranti.
The first Amrit Snan is special in many ways. This happened a day after the first major bath on the occasion of Pausha Purnima in the Sangam area on Monday. Thirteen Akharas of saints from different sects are participating in the Mahakumbh.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said in a post on X, “This is the living form of our Sanatan culture and faith. Today, on the auspicious occasion of the great festival of folk faith ‘Makar Sankranti’, Mahakumbh-2025, the first nectar at Triveni Sangam in Prayagraj. Hearty congratulations to all the devotees who have acquired virtue by taking bath.”
Despite the icy water during the cold season, slogans of ‘Har Har Mahadev’, ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and ‘Jai Ganga Maiya’ were heard as devotees moved in groups towards the bathing area.
Akharas have got information about the dates of Amrit Snan and their bathing sequence.
The Uttar Pradesh government said in a statement on Monday that the Maha Kumbh Mela administration has issued orders regarding the date, sequence and time of ‘Amrit Snan’ of 13 Akharas of Sanatan Dharma on Makar Sankranti and Basant Panchami.
Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP) President Mahant Ravindra Puri earlier told PTI that the first ‘Amrit Snan’ of this Mahakumbh will start at 5.30 am on Tuesday.
He also said that the common terms associated with Kumbh, ‘Shahi Snan’ and ‘Peshwai’ have been changed to ‘Amrit Snan’ and ‘Chhawni Pravesh’ respectively.
When asked how he got the inspiration to coin these words, Mahant Puri, who is also the chairman of the Mansa Devi Temple Trust in Haridwar, said, “We all speak words in Hindi and Urdu. It cannot be that we Don’t speak any word of Urdu.
He said, “But we thought that when it comes to our deities, we should try to keep names in Sanskrit language or keep ‘Sanatani’ names. Our intention is not to make it Hindu versus Muslim.”
According to Ashutosh Varshney, convener of Prayagraj-based Ram Naam Bank (an NGO), this ‘Amrit Snan’ will be the first such bath after the grand consecration of Lord Ram Lala in Ayodhya.
Varshney said, “It is a divine coincidence that two baths in the Maha Kumbh are falling on consecutive days. The main bath of Paush Purnima was on Monday, while Makar Sankranti is on Tuesday.”
“As a result, a large number of devotees, saints and common people from different regions have already arrived in the holy city of Prayagraj,” he said.
The current edition of Kumbh is being held after 12 years, although seers claim that the astronomical conjunctions for the event are happening after 144 years, making the occasion even more significant.
