Magh Mela
magh mela also spelled magha mela annual festival fair held month magha januaryfebruary near river bank sacred tank near hindu temple every twelve year magha melas coincide believed faithful astrologically auspicious position jupiter sun moon called kumbh mela one allahabad south notable festival mahamaham tank kumbhakonam east sagar island west bengal konark puri magha festival along bathing ritual form penance also observed hindu community bali indonesia certain date amavasya makar sankranti considered particularly sacred attracting larger gathering festival marked ritual dip water also celebration community commerce fair education religious discourse saint dāna community meal monk poor entertainment spectacle religious basis magh mela belief pilgrimage mean prāyaścitta atonement penance past mistake effort cleanses sin bathing holy river festival salvific value moksha – mean liberation cycle rebirth samsara according diane eck – professor comparative religion indian study festival great cultural fair brings people together tying shared thread religious devotion attendant bustle commerce trade secular entertainment magha mela festival mentioned mahabharata many major purana magh mela part river festival follow transition jupiter various zodiac sign river festival – called pushkaram pushkaralu – rotate year ghat temple along major river india revered sacred river goddess include ritual bathing well prayer ancestor religious discourse devotional music singing charity cultural program fair annual bathing festival also mentioned ancient tamil anthology sangam period example nine surviving poem paripatal collection dedicated river goddess vaikai poem mention bathing festival tamil month tai januaryfebruary month margazhi period overlap northern month magh bathing festival depicted spiritually auspicious occasion water sport fair community gathering sikhism magha mela – along diwali vaisakhi – three festival recognized guru amar da urged sikh gather community festival – ce popularly known maghi mark memory forty martyr muslimsikh war ce time guru gobind singh largest maghi gathering found muktsar according pashaura singh louis fenech guru amar da built goindwal sahib sikh pilgrimage site tirath also built baoli – stepped water tank – goindwal ritual bathing india