For too long, the western world has seen a struggle between faith and science. The two have been at war for centuries, with a bellicose Pope forcing Galileo to recant his ‘heretical’ notion that the earth revolved around the sun.
For too long, the western world has seen a struggle between faith and science. The two have been at war for centuries, with a bellicose Pope forcing Galileo to recant his ‘heretical’ notion that the earth revolved around the sun.
The struggle between science and Church was perfectly captured in Dan Brown’s 2017 novel Origin where a genius atheist works to end religion’s influence on the world.
On the other hand, in Indic culture, which predates its western counterparts had no problem in the co-existence of science and faith.
Read: Maha Shivratri - why CERN the world's largest particle physics lab has a statue of Lord Shiva
This syncretic nature was perfectly captured with pictures by the indigenous Cartosat 2 satellite developed by ISRO showing key areas in and around Kumbh Mela.
It was a lovely reminder that a country which hosts the biggest religious festival on earth (also the largest congregation of people) is also capable of sending most satellites in space at the same time.
These are two images captured by Indian Remote Sensing Satellite #Cartosat2 showing key areas in and around #KumbhMela2019. pic.twitter.com/NSmixXV7Ga
— ISRO (@isro) January 17, 2019
Incidentally, the Carosat-2 Series satellite was part of 104 satellites launched into space at the same time, a world feat bettering Russia sending 37 satellites in a single mission in 2014.
Read: How Cartosat-2 will boost India’s military surveillance capabilities
1. Cartostat 2 Pic 1
)
Image captured by ISRO's Cartostat 2
2. Cartostat 2 Pic 2
)
Image captured by ISRO's Cartostat 2
3. Festival of Sacred Pitcher
)
The Kumbh Mela (the festival of the sacred pitcher) is anchored in Hindu mythology. It is the largest public gathering and collective act of faith anywhere in the world.
Ardh Kumbh is held in every six years, while the Kumbh Mela comes after 12 years.
4. Maha Kumbh
)
The Yogi Adityanath government has renamed Ardh Kumbh as Kumbh and the Kumbh as Maha Kumbh.
The mela draws tens of millions of pilgrims over the course of approximately 48 days to bathe at the sacred confluence of the Ganga, the Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati river.
5. All walks of life
)
The congregation includes Ascetics, Saints, Sadhus, Sadhvis, Kalpvasis and pilgrims from all walks of life.
6. Six auspicious dates
)
In all there are six auspicious bathing dates in this Kumbh - Makar Sankranti (January 15), Paush Poornima (January 21), Mauni Amawasya (February 4), Basant Panchami (February 10), Maghi Poornima (February 19) and Mahashivratri (March 4).
