Simhastha 2028 Ujjain: Kumbh Mela Dates, Snan Days and What Makes Ujjain’s Kumbh Different

These are the dates announced for the 2028 mela. The detailed schedule of the other bathing days is issued by the mela administration closer to the time; please confirm against the official notification before you book travel.

The Kumbh Mela is held at four places — Prayagraj, Haridwar, Nashik and Ujjain — and each is timed by the position of Jupiter. Ujjain’s falls when Jupiter is in Leo, the sign called Simha in Sanskrit, with the Sun in Aries: Simha-stha means “standing in Leo.” Since Jupiter takes about twelve years to circle the zodiac, the mela returns to Ujjain once every twelve years. Nashik’s Kumbh is also tied to Jupiter in Leo, which is why both carry the name, but in everyday use “Simhastha” means Ujjain.

The Puranas tell that when the gods and asuras churned the ocean, a pot — a kumbh — of the nectar of immortality rose from it. In the struggle that followed, drops of the nectar fell at four places on earth, and the rivers there became sacred for the time those drops are remembered. At Ujjain that river is the Shipra. Bathing in it during Simhastha is held to be the most meritorious act of pilgrimage the city offers. It is tradition’s own account, and it is the reason millions travel here.

The mela lasts two months, but it is built around a few days. On the three main snans — traditionally called the Shahi Snan, and in recent years the Amrit Snan — the thirteen akharas of sadhus go in procession to the river in an order fixed by long custom, and bathe first. The public bathes after them. Between these fall several other auspicious bathing days, the parv snans, on dates such as Amavasya and Purnima. The main-snan days draw by far the largest crowds; a visit on an ordinary day of the mela is a very different, and far easier, experience.

The Shipra flows north through Ujjain, and its ghats run for several kilometres. Ram Ghat is the oldest and the centre of the mela; Datt Akhara Ghat faces it across the river. Further along are the ghats at Mangalnath and Siddhavat, and upstream is Triveni. During Simhastha the administration extends and assigns the ghats, sets one-way walking routes and closes the central area to vehicles on the main days, so expect to walk a good distance.

Simhastha is one of the largest gatherings on earth, and a little planning changes the experience entirely:

• Decide which kind of day you want. The main snans are for those who want to see the akharas; for a quiet bath and darshan, choose any other day.
• Arrange your stay early. Rooms in Ujjain fill long in advance; many visitors stay in Indore, about 55 km away, and travel in.
• Travel light and expect to walk. Carry water, identification and a note of your lodging.
• Elderly visitors and small children are safer on non-peak days and at the less crowded ghats.
• Follow the official routes and announcements on the day rather than older advice.

For the rest of the city, see places to visit in Ujjain, and for the Mahakal temple itself, our darshan guide.

Ujjain is one of the seven moksha-puris, the home of one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, and for centuries was the reference point of Indian astronomy — the story told in why Ujjain was the Greenwich of India. A festival that is timed entirely by the heavens returning to the city from which the heavens were measured is part of what gives Simhastha its particular weight.

Many families, and many abroad, will not be able to come in 2028. Tradition has always allowed worship to be performed on a person’s behalf with a sankalp in their name, and pujas in Ujjain continue through the Simhastha period as at any other time. How that works is explained in how to attend a puja online from home.