03:16Hindu worshippers gathered on the banks of the Ganges river for a spiritual swim in Brijghat, Uttar Pradesh on Friday, despite India reporting a 30-fold increase in COVID-19 cases in the last month.
Crowds of people could be seen swimming in the chilly waters by Brijghat Ganga Nagri temple, with few worshippers seen wearing masks or socially distancing. One Hindu priest said there was "enthusiasm and devotion" among the crowd for the annual religious festival, "but due to adverse situations" the crowd was smaller than usual.
Every year on January 14 during the Makar Sankranti festival, one of the most sacred pilgrimages in Hinduism, believers around the country bathe in the holy waters of the Ganges and other spiritual sites in India. The ritual is thought to wash away one’s sins and free devotees from the cycle of death and rebirth.
However, amid the coronavirus pandemic, previous religious bathing rituals in India have been cited as ‘superspreader’ events. Worshippers often travel across the country for such religious practices, with Friday's ritual bathing raising concerns pilgrims could take the virus back home with them.
India: Thousands of Hindu worshippers take holy dip despite COVID spike
Hindu worshippers gathered on the banks of the Ganges river for a spiritual swim in Brijghat, Uttar Pradesh on Friday, despite India reporting a 30-fold increase in COVID-19 cases in the last month.
Crowds of people could be seen swimming in the chilly waters by Brijghat Ganga Nagri temple, with few worshippers seen wearing masks or socially distancing. One Hindu priest said there was "enthusiasm and devotion" among the crowd for the annual religious festival, "but due to adverse situations" the crowd was smaller than usual.
Every year on January 14 during the Makar Sankranti festival, one of the most sacred pilgrimages in Hinduism, believers around the country bathe in the holy waters of the Ganges and other spiritual sites in India. The ritual is thought to wash away one’s sins and free devotees from the cycle of death and rebirth.
However, amid the coronavirus pandemic, previous religious bathing rituals in India have been cited as ‘superspreader’ events. Worshippers often travel across the country for such religious practices, with Friday's ritual bathing raising concerns pilgrims could take the virus back home with them.
Hindu worshippers gathered on the banks of the Ganges river for a spiritual swim in Brijghat, Uttar Pradesh on Friday, despite India reporting a 30-fold increase in COVID-19 cases in the last month.
Crowds of people could be seen swimming in the chilly waters by Brijghat Ganga Nagri temple, with few worshippers seen wearing masks or socially distancing. One Hindu priest said there was "enthusiasm and devotion" among the crowd for the annual religious festival, "but due to adverse situations" the crowd was smaller than usual.
Every year on January 14 during the Makar Sankranti festival, one of the most sacred pilgrimages in Hinduism, believers around the country bathe in the holy waters of the Ganges and other spiritual sites in India. The ritual is thought to wash away one’s sins and free devotees from the cycle of death and rebirth.
However, amid the coronavirus pandemic, previous religious bathing rituals in India have been cited as ‘superspreader’ events. Worshippers often travel across the country for such religious practices, with Friday's ritual bathing raising concerns pilgrims could take the virus back home with them.