Thaipusam 2011

Thaipusam is a day of penance and thanksgiving for Hindus. It falls on the 10th day of the month of Thai in the Hindu Almanac. Devotees will do fasting and abstinence for a certain period of time before Thaipusam. Some devotees will follow strictly a vegetarian diet and sleep on the floor for months to get prepared for the day. On that day, devotees will offer Murugan fruits and yellow or orange flowers and also adorn dresses of the same colour. Most devotees bear milk, water, fruits and floral tributes on pails then hung from a yoke and carry them on their head to various Murugan temples.

Vehicle of Lord Murugan

This wooden or bamboo structure called 'Kavadi' is covered with cloth and decorated with feathers of peacock.

crowded with Hindus

milk, water & fruit

filling milk into the pot

praying

busy taking photograph

Joe McNally

He is an American photographer and has been shooting for the National Geographic Society.

ritual cleansing

carry a pail of milk

pot filled with milk

Body Piercing

hooks for piercing

fruits

pierce cheek and body

carrying Kavadi

Kavadi covered with cloth and feathers of peacock.

Drumming and Chanting

Devotees spear their tongue and cheek with long and shiny steel rod and pierce their chest and back with hooks.

Devotees

shaving in action

prayers

ritual cleansing at a stream

road full of people

one family

picnic?

相机： Canon EOS 1V & Fuji Zoomdate

菲林：Fuji 800, Fuji 400 & Fuji S200

镜头： Canon 50mm usm f1.4 & 100mm f2.8L Macro IS USM