At the world’s largest religious festival, the Mahakumbh Mela that is currently ongoing at Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, one can meet people from all walks of life. Millions of devotees will converge at the festival to take a dip in the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna, and mystical Saraswati rivers.
The Babas (ascetics or sages) at the Mahakumbh are among its most iconic and fascinating aspects. At the grand religious festival, devotees can run into Naga Babas, Aghori Sadhus and some of the world’s most respected religious leaders. Even so, it is the presence of an ‘IITian Baba’ at the Mahakumbh that is currently making waves online.
IITian Baba at Mahakumbh
CNN News18 interviewed the IITian Baba who quit science for spirituality. This fact emerged during the conversation, when the interviewer commented on the sage’s manner of speaking.
“You speak well, you sound educated,” the interviewer said. At this, the Baba replied saying he had studied aerospace engineering at IIT Bombay.
The revelation led to two minutes of stunned silence on the interviewer’s part. When he finally regained his composure, the interviewer asked him if he had indeed studied aerospace engineering at IIT Bombay. “Yes,” the Baba, whose name was later revealed to be Abhay Singh, replied.
{{/usCountry}}The revelation led to two minutes of stunned silence on the interviewer’s part. When he finally regained his composure, the interviewer asked him if he had indeed studied aerospace engineering at IIT Bombay. “Yes,” the Baba, whose name was later revealed to be Abhay Singh, replied.
{{/usCountry}}“Iss avastha mein kaise prapt huye (How did you reach this stage?)” the interviewer asked Singh, who chuckled and replied, “Ye avastha toh sabse best avastha hai (This stage is the best stage).”
“If you keep pursuing knowledge, where do you reach? This is where you reach,” he added.
Singh revealed that he was born in Haryana and spent four years studying aerospace engineering at IIT Bombay. After that, he went into the “arts side” and pursued a Masters in Design.
“You look for the meaning of life. Even while I was studying engineering, I took philosophy courses - Post Modernism, Socrates, Plato - to understand what is the meaning of life,” he said.
The interaction between the IITian Baba and the interviewer has gone viral on social media. Many people in the comments section praised Singh for pursuing knowledge instead of money.
The Maha Kumbh began yesterday, January 13, and will go on till February 26.