Of course the Kumbh mela is a magnificent spectacle too. Millions of people gathered in one place, colourful homy men, naked sadhus, wondrous feats of asceticism, piety on a scale unparalleled anywhere else. But much more than a spectacle, the Kumbh Mela is an experience, an experience for which we have to shed our cetainties and our self-confidence to be able to capture its meaning through the power of the imagination.