The Hindu Pilgrims of the Kumbh Mela – Part One

Pilgrim bathes in the cold water of the “sacred” river.

My trip to Hardiwar was in 2010 but I wanted to share my impressions with my STORIES FROM ASIA readers….

We started in the cold darkness to take a taxi from Dehra Dun in the northern state Uttarakhand to Haridwar, 35 miles away. The taxi delivered us to a staging area 5 miles from the actual bathing area. I never thought I’d be so cold in India. We took a man-powered rickshaw for the first segment. I could see the puffs of his labored breaths as he took us a couple of miles. I was amazed by the number of people who had already been to the Ganga (Ganges) River for the ritual bath that is supposed to take away their sins at the Kumbh Mela.. Most were shivering in the early morning air…

The Hindu Pilgrims of the Kumbh Mela – Part Two

Man waiting to take the ritual bath

The Indian government’s efforts to control what was supposed to be a million dippers today turned out to be unneeded. This Kumbh Mela was different from 12 years ago as luxury camps were set up and tour busses dropped off the wealthier folk right next to the Ganga River for their holy dip. Stockades were contructed to slow down crowd movement – sort of like the way they do at airport check-in counters, weaving back and forth. I found myself in such a security stockade now as we worked our way to a place where we could see the special dip of the thousands of Sadhus and their smaller counterpart, the Nagas.

The Hindu Pilgrims of the Kumbh Mela – Part Three

As we made our way back to the ghats or bathing areas I noticed strings of beads like dried and wrinkled apricots in many of the shops. JG told me they are Rudraksh seeds and are a charm against all sorts of sickness and evil. Most of these hanging were the fakes most Hindus would wear as the real Rudraksh seeds are quite expensive they are kept in a locked case. These seeds are all the more precious if a priest would bless them – for a fee of course!

Faith sprouts in floating Cambodian village

KBAL TAOL, Cambodia –David* never imagined he’d use ghosts as a way to share the Gospel.

A Christian worker in Cambodia, David was surveying floating villages on Tonle Sap Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, and was in need of a boat and driver. Andrew,* whom David had led to Christ 18 months earlier, agreed to take the job.

Testimonies from the field: Rebuking the Insects

Burmese farmer

My name is “J”. I am 36 years old and have two daughters and one son. We had believed in Buddhism all our lives. My husband is a farmer and we all work together on the farm. On our farm we grow flowers, mainly: roses, daisies and broccoli vegetables. We sell our produce at a market seven miles away.

Last year some National Pioneers came to our farm telling us the good news. All our family were very glad to hear this good news. We renounced our former gods and worshipping Buddha. Then we believed in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, even though some our neighbours criticized us strongly.

Testimonies from the Field – Indonesia

Indonesian Man

Pray for some new believers, mostly youth, who have been imprisoned for nearly a month now due to “Christianising” Muslims in a small town in the west of the most populous island. Pray also for unity as a colleague has slandered another leader for creating “Rice Christians” through financial incentives. These lies cause confusion and distrust in communities of believers that are already under pressure from unbelievers and do not need the added stress of disunity and personal attacks from within.

Meera’s Story

A young woman in Mumbai outside the Gateway of India.

Meera (now 35) was born a Hindu in a poor dysfunctional Indian family. Meera’s real father left her Mom pregnant and she was almost aborted. Life was tough for Meera and her family. Since the family was poor and there was no provider her mother stayed with a man whom Meera was forced to call father. But this man did not see Meera as a daughter and she was sent to a job in a small store at a very young age.

The owner of the store raped her and she was taken to the hospital that registered a case against the rapist.

Rajasthan community to offer Rs. 5000 (US$78) to every newborn girl

Jodhpur: In a bid to reduce the high incidence of female foeticide and infanticide in Rajasthan, a local community has decided to open a bank account for every newborn girl and put Rs.5,000 (US $78)in it as fixed deposit.

The decision will be implemented among hundreds of families of the Ghanchi community in Jodhpur city, some 350 km from state capital Jaipur.

Under the Towel

Tomorrow my husband heads out for a meeting before we sneak to the US for our only child’s graduation. So, today was errand day – get money, pay the rent, return a colleague’s car, buy drinking water, etc. We all have days like that – ordinary and mundane. But what I saw today was far from ordinary.

I’ve been researching a particular object some of my Khmer friends own. The teepee-looking object with a coconut at the bottom is supposedly home to a guardian spirit that a fortuneteller invites to protect and heal a needy person. Surprisingly, that’s an ordinary practice here.

The Legacy of Missions in SE Asia

This is a brief history of the Morse family’s involvement in missions in SE Asia. It is extracted from the newsletter of Bobby and Tassanee Morse whu currently serve in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Their ministry includes a hostel for tribal children attending school in Chiang Mai and a media ministry in Thailand, Burma and China. Bobby Morse is a 3rd generation missionary of the Morse Family legacy.