Pilgrims wait to bathe in the early morning at the 2013 Kumbh Mela festival in Allahabad, India. In spite of polluted water and cold, crowded conditions, they report returning home healthier than they came.<br>
Pilgrims wait to bathe in the early morning at the 2013 Kumbh Mela festival in Allahabad, India. In spite of polluted water and cold, crowded conditions, they report returning home healthier than they came.
Karma of the Crowd
At the Kumbh Mela, the largest religious festival in the world, a throng of millions can be one.
This story appears in the February 2014 issue of National Geographic magazine.
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