Samudra Manthan
When the Devas and Asuras churned the ocean of milk, Dhanvantari rose holding the kumbh, the pot of amrit. In the struggle that followed, drops of amrit fell at four places: Haridwar on the Ganga, Prayagraj at the Sangam, Ujjain on the Kshipra and Nashik on the Godavari. The Kumbh Mela returns to these four cities.
Timed by the planets
The mela follows the sky, not a fixed calendar date. Haridwar's Kumbh falls when Jupiter is in Aquarius (Kumbh rashi) and the Sun enters Aries. Ujjain and Nashik hold the Simhastha when Jupiter is in Leo (Simha rashi). Bathing during these alignments is believed to bring great spiritual merit.
The 13 Akharas
The Akharas are orders of sadhus. Seven are Shaiva sanyasi akharas, such as Juna, Niranjani and Mahanirvani, which trace their tradition to Adi Shankaracharya. Three are Vaishnava (Bairagi) akharas: Nirmohi, Digambar and Nirvani. Three are Udasin and Nirmal akharas. On Amrit Snan days they process to the ghat and bathe first, led by the Naga sadhus.
