Hindus gather in India for world's largest religious festival

ALLAHABAD, Jan 13 (AFP): Hindu devotees began gathering Sunday in northern India for the world's largest religious festival, with millions of pilgrims travelling to bathe in holy rivers for the spectacular Kumbh Mela.

State authorities in Uttar Pradesh are expecting 12 million visitors to descend on Allahabad for the centuries-old festival, which officially begins Tuesday and continues until early March.

The ancient city rises alongside the banks of the Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers, and the meeting point of the three is considered highly sacred in Hinduism.

Hindus believe bathing there during the Kumbh helps cleanse sins and frees the soul from the cycle of death and rebirth.

Two days before the gigantic bathing ritual begins, naked holy men wandered the banks smeared in ash, offering blessings for devotees.