The Kumbh Mela, is a Hindu pilgrimage that happens at different intervals in different locations in India. The Purna (complete) Kumbh happens at four places - Prayag (Allahabad), Ujjain, Haridwar and Nashik - every twelve years. There is also the Ardh Kumbh Mela, which is celebrated every six years at Haridwar and Prayag. There is also the Maha Kumbh Mela ('Great' Kumbh Mela) which happens after 12 'Purna Kumbh Melas', i.e. every 144 years. The Maha Kumbh Mela is held at Prayag, and the last one (in 2001) was attended by approximately 60 million people.
The Kumbh Mela is the most sacred of all the pilgrimages. The major event of a Kumbh Mela Festival is ritual bathing at the banks of the river in whichever town it is being held. Other activities include devotional singing, mass feeding of holy men and women and the poor, religious discussions and religious assemblies where doctrines are debated and standardized.
Future Kumbh Mela Festivals:
January 27 to February 25, 2013 - Purna Kumbha Mela at Prayag
August 15 to September 13, 2015 - Ardha Kumbha Mela at Nasik
April 22 to May 21, 2016 - Purna Kumbh Mela at Ujjan