Rekindling the social spirit of the Kumbh
The Kumbh Mela is described as the largest congregation of the faithful. It is simply amazing that in the absence of any formal invitation or announcement, millions and millions of pilgrims congregate every three years at the appointed date and have a holy dip to cleanse their sins. The original aim of the Kumbh included defence of the Hindu society and deliberate upon the challenges facing it. Even today, the sadhus carry their traditional weapons to the Kumbh. Unfortunately, the social significance of the Kumbh has been largely forgotten with time. The Shabarikumbh is a step towards rekindling the social significance of the Kumbh Mela.
On 11, 12 and 13 February 2006, an estimated six-seven lakh Hindus will gather at a remote area in Subir, Dang district, Gujarat and resolve to work for the defense of Hindu society in general and the vanavasi/tribal Hindus in particular. It was at this very spot that Shabari Mata met Sri Rama and Sri Lakshman when they were in exile. The sustained conversion activities carried out by Christian missionaries with the help of their foreign masters has altered the religious demography of large parts of our country. The tribal areas of our country are a special target of this missionary offensive. This has caused self-alienation among the tribals and fanned separatist and terrorist activities. The Shabarikumbh has been organized to deal a death blow to such anti-dharmic and anti-national activities.
Holding such a massive congregation in such a remote area bereft of basic amenities is a logistical nightmare. However, thousands of Hindu activists have gathered under the banner of the ‘Shri Shabarikumbh Samaroh Samiti’ Hundreds of Hindu dharmacharyas including vanavasi sants have lent their whole-hearted support to the Shabarikumbh. The success of the Shabarikumbh is a foregone conclusion considering the single-minded devotion, planning and co-ordination of lakhs of Hindus.