“Mega events such as the Mahakumbh… bring upon us the realization that humankind has one unifying divine core,” writes Yakub Mathew in his recently released coffee table book, ‘Seeking the Infinite’.
By Usha Akella
In our times, wherein one feels pressured to cast her/his lot with Left or Right—and other fractured polarities—and be damned either way, a bold book arrived shining and fearless at the IAAC (Indo-American Arts Council) Literary Fest 2025 last November to announce the possibilities of reconciliation—and harmony. A mighty event rooted in a myth of nectar, and a mighty book exploring the infinite, no less—Seeking the Infinite redefines the Mahakumbh as one of humanity’s heritages, not solely Indian or Hindu.
The book draws our attention to water as a fundamental metaphor of purification, unity, and surrender. In its pages the Mahakumbh is recognized as aclarion call from India of the truth of one ultimate religion—humanity. As a reader you can position yourself on the shore of this book, and marvel at the timeless ripples of faith ignited by hope for a healed world.
Immortalizing the Mahakumbh in a book
‘Dedicated to the journey within’, Yakub Mathew’s book aims to capture the gravitas of the Mahakumbh—a once in 144 years riverine confluence termed Triveni Sangam (reflected in the skies by a rare astronomical configuration of Jupiter, Sun and Moon/the orbital revolution of Jupiter around the sun) in Prayagraj that welcomed an estimated 640 million devotees in 2025. The three rivers whose waters become a single stream are read symbolically in various fashions but mostly as an emblem of unity. That one of these rivers is mythical (Saraswati) does not hamper faith. And that a gathering of such staggering numbers rolled off peacefully, across nearly two months, is a miracle. A coffee table book with stunning photographs laid across 246 pages and lit by luminous quotes and narratives, Seeking the Infinite has immortalized the Mahakumbh as never before.
The very dedication states the resolution and celebration of paradoxes—the outward pilgrimage is veritably the turning within to touch an ineffable shore we carry in our souls. The book in its scope, aim and production is a Mahakumbh of an undertaking unafraid to boldly go toward impeccable standards of production and embark on an archaeology of semantics of the event. Turning the pages of this book feels like mimicking the journey, by entering the preliminary waters of the first chapter of ‘Blessings’ by a mystic, Hindu yogis and a Cardinal (Sadhguru, Swami Avdeshanand Giri Maharaj, Maharaj Radhanath Swami and His Eminence Cardinal Oswald Gracias), onward to deeper waters of musings and explorations. Finally, the reader emerges refreshed by India’s eternal reverberating spiritual current. And is reminded of a tenacious civilization that has neither been afraid to ask the deepest questions, nor hesitated to attempt to answer them. Answers that have buffeted along seemingly contradictory banks of form and formless, faith and agnosticism, ritual and dhyana—finally averring the human soul as the ultimate anthem of mystery. The overlapping waters of three rivers continue to transfer to the pages of this book asking for awakening from narrow and bigoted definitions of religion.
Yakub Mathew states his vision early on casting the Mahakumbh as an inter-national heritage not constrained by geographical borders. Though he describes himself as an accidental author, Mathew is not an accidental seeker. The journey undertaken by a Syrian Christian New York-based banker with his beloved wife, and a bevy of 18 friends to celebrate his 60th birthday and life after a dire illness has spawned what will be an everlasting tribute to the Mahakumbh. That he sought such an experience to define a rite of passage in human life is an indicator of the predilections of his soul.
Yakub has straddled temporal and spiritual worlds
Raised by a mother widowed young in Delhi, his childhood is reminiscent with interactions and mentorship by Mother Teresa and His Holiness Bishop Paulos Gregorios. Perhaps the first seeds of faith were laid at this time. Also, raised by uncles (P.C. Alexander and P.M. Thomas) who were public servants brought Yakub into the ken of the political and powerful—thus the two worlds of temporal and spiritual spanned the orb of his growing years. Yakub Mathew was never to forget that a delicate balance of human and cosmic forces shapes a life. Schooled in St. Xavier’s and St Stephen’s College, a typical brand of Indian Christianity contoured by an Indian world view shaped his humanist values, and global perspective. After some world travels, he finally went on to navigate his worldly role as a banker in New York City, abiding also by his inner yearnings. A privileged life has not tainted his wonder of existence or barred his unceasing engagement with subtler mysteries.
The Kumbh till this visit was seared in his memory only as a theatrical event of human drama, but in 2025 it alchemized spiritually into an experiential landmark expressed as, “I was just an insignificant speck of dust on the soap bubble of universe.” The riotous burgeoning of sounds and sights around him during the two days were not cacophony but the very pulsations of his own soul; as he dipped into the waters as one of the multitudes, he felt blessed for the opportunity to offer prayers ‘for peace in this turbulent world.’ The mammoth spectacle of humanity and human endeavor brought forth an utterance, “Shakti in Bhakti!” from him, and the Mahakumbh translated into a riveting passage of transformation too deep for words—reaffirming the knowledge that the microcosm and the macrocosm vibrate together: My soul too sang along with the music of the spheres.
A delightful potpourri of profound impressions rooted in personal experience, literary penmanship, academic scholarship, and spiritual insight suffuse the book. The musings uncover multi dimensions of the Mahakumbh from mythic to astronomic by luminaries in various fields such as spirituality, fashion, religion, administration, medicine, journalism, business, politics, theater, academia, sports, film, art, and music.
The scintillating writerly roster
The scintillating writerly roster of 55 names includes Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati, Ayaan Ali Bangash, Kabir Bedi, Harish Parvatheni, Satya Hinduja, Dr. Shashi Tharoor, George Mathew, Lord Meghnad Desai, Rev. Victor Lobo, Rev. Father Thomas V. Kunnukal, Dr. Navin Mehta, Farokh Engineer, Dr. Jagdish Bhagwati, Muzaffar Ali, Didi Krishna Kumari, Rakesh Kaul, Ashi Sonam Choden Dorji, Sadhvi Bhagwati Saraswati, Haji Syed Salman Chisty, Swami Swaroopananda, Anupam Kher, Swami Sarvapriyananda, Dr. Subramanian Swamy, Mokshapriya, Suhel Seth, Yogmata Keiko Aikawa, Radhe Jaggi, Barkha Dutt, and Ustad Hidayat Khan.
Even technology played its part in the 2,750 AI driven CCTV cameras monitoring the festivities as we are reminded by Amitabh Kant. Dr. Dinesh Singh creatively interprets the legendary River Saraswati as the flow of humanity itself. Dr. Achintya Moulick brilliantly perceives his surgical work to be his own Mahakumbh—he understands it as another kind of confluence of science and faith where he has witnessed miracles; the ‘hospital a temple, every heartbeat a mantra’. Such creative and profound writerly narratives mark the book as a treasure house of fresh insights.
Message of unity in diversity
But the book must not mistakenly be read as a page turner of the famous, high or mighty but rather viewed as the melding of voices to form one voice of homage to capture the mightiest sacred geo-astronomical occurrence in India—which in turn ignites a reexamination of India’s role in the world, and her eternal/everlasting (Sanatan) message of unity in diversity.
Even though the tumult has quietened down, millions have returned home and the waters lap on in all those who dipped into the sangam. The pluralistic waters of the Mahakumbh are representative of the eternal seeking for the divine of various religious voices fired by the single current of—yearning for the transcendental. Water has no boundary, it surges and flows, turns corners, and erodes hardened hearts. The Mahakumbh demands all masks and attire are surrendered to her waters, to find a single skin underneath — humanity. It is a purification rite that restores the truth underlying all human narratives.
Symbolically we can still dip in the pages of this book to relive the thrill of the event. For those such as myself, who could not attend the event early last year, reading the book is a reenactment of the ritual to experience its excitement and energy. The book has done a great service immortalizing the Mahakumbh, making it tangible for posterity. Finally, we grasp that Prayagraj, a holy site of pilgrimage like Mecca, Jerusalem or Kashi is the human heart where we discover the reconciliation of all contradictions and paradoxes. Where Love finally is the beginning, remainder, and the destination in all our inner and outer journeys. As is expressed so beautifully by His Eminence Cardinal Oswald Gracias: “This book will help us listen more deeply—to the longings of our own heart, to the silent music of creation, and to the voice of the One who speaks through both.”
Author bio
Usha Akella, Austin-based poet, has authored 11 books that include poetry and spiritual musical dramas. She has been invited to numerous international poetry festivals. She is the founder of the decade-old Matwaala (www.matwaala.com) that amplifies South Asian diasporic poets.
Her editorial works include a ‘A House of Words’, a festschrift dedicated to Keki Daruwalla published by the Sahitya Akademi of India. Her travel articles have appeared in Indian Express, Swagat, etc., and she has also won acclaim for her astute interviews of various people in The Hindu, Parabola and on her own website of curated interviews www.the-pov.com.
