At India's Maha Kumbh Mela festival, holy smoke, dust and noise!

The spiritual and the commercial intermingle and all the senses are overloaded at the massive religious gathering in Allahabad.

ALLAHABAD, India — It’s dusk, and the sun’s rays succumb to the twinkle of amber streetlights at the sacred confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers. The day’s last bathers, intent on washing away sins and purifying their souls, take a dip in the cold, dirty water and then relax on blankets and launch boats covered in marigolds.